Porsche 911 - by Randy Leffingwell (Hardcover)

About the Book

In Porsche 911: 50 Years, best-selling author Randy Leffingwell celebrates a half-century of one of the world's premiere sports cars, covering every iconic 911 model.

Book Synopsis

Best-selling author Randy Leffingwell celebrates a half-century of one of the world's premiere sports cars, focusing on the major themes that have defined Porsche's rear-engined wonder.

Porsche 911: 50 Years tells the whole story--design and development, racing and competition, engineering and technology, style and culture. All the iconic 911 models are included:

• The original 901 prototype that set the standard
• The legendary RS models that made the little Porsche a dominant force on the world's racetracks
• The infamous Turbo, the car that kept the performance flame alight during the dark, dismal decade of the 1970s
• The fabled 959, the model that redefined the term "sports car"
• The 993, last of the original air-cooled models
• The 996, 997, and 991, the liquid-cooled cars that brought the 911 into a new millennium

Beyond telling the story of the cars, Porsche 911: 50 years also spotlights the people behind them: Ferdinand "Butzi" Porsche, the son of legendary Porsche founder Ferdinand "Ferry" Porsche, who co-designed the instantly recognizable 911 shape; Peter W. Schutz, the Porsche CEO who saved the 911 from extinction; and Dr. Helmuth Bott, the engineering genius behind many of the groundbreaking technologies that have defined the 911, including fuel injection, turbocharging, and all-wheel-drive.

Leffingwell also tells the story of the 911 community--the clubs and culture that surround the car.

Together, all of these facets make Porsche 911: 50 Years the most essential book in any Porsche owner or fan's library.

From the Back Cover

"Porsche 911: 50 Years "celebrates the first half-century of one of the world's premier sports cars. Author Randy Leffingwell has interviewed the key players involved in the creation and design of Porsche's rear-engined wonder and uncovered never-before-told stories about the development, production, and competition history of the cars, providing an inside look into every aspect of the 911. Covering every iconic 911 model--from the 901 to the RS models to the Turbo to the 959 to the 993 to the latest 991--this book tells the 911 story by combining Leffingwell's first-person interviewswith never-before-seen new and archival photography. All of this makes "Porsche 911: 50 Years" an essential book in any Porsche fan's library.

Review Quotes

'an exhaustive history of the 911... I wholeheartedly recommend it.'

"Originally published in 2013, Randy Leffingwell's celebration of one of the world's premiere sports cars, is still a top seller more than 3-years later."--FLATSIXES.com

"Porsche 911: 50 Years is above all a celebration of a peculiarly individual car which in a rational world would never have existed and yet survived and prospered through a half century, evolving and adapting but never losing its highly distinct character. No other brand has ever managed this and Leffingwell's achievement is the focus he brings to this compelling story. Some of the face-to-face discussions the author was able to hold with current Porsche movers and shakers would have been impossible only a few years ago and this greater openness has extended to the company's image collection: the book is illustrated by a superb selection of previously unseen Archive photography. Leffingwell has created a splendid monument to the Porsche 911, which more than just the definitive sports car, has defied conformist pressures to become a symbol of endeavour and excellence." - Total911.com

About the Author

Randy Leffingwell wrote his first book, American Muscle, while still on staff at the Los Angeles Times. The book examined Times' publisher Otis Chandler's growing collection of muscle cars. American Muscle published in September 1990, jump-started a love of book creation that ultimately led Leffingwell to leave the Times in 1995. By then, he and Motorbooks had published Porsche Legends, and six other books.

Since 1990, Leffingwell has authored more than 60 titles, most of them automotive-oriented. Over 30-plus years, these include a dozen Porsche titles ranging from general overviews--Porsche 75 Years: Expect the Unexpected, and The Complete Book of Porsche 911--to deeper explorations in Porsche Turbo and Porsche 911: 50 Years. During this time, he has regularly traveled to Germany to continue his research regarding Porsche's history. To date, Leffingwell has interviewed more than 200 Porsche engineers, stylists, model makers, racers, and managers.

While he has tackled other subjects including John Deere tractors, Harley-Davidson motorcycles, and West Coast lighthouses, Leffingwell admits he is almost addicted to the Porsche story. In addition to his book work, he is historical editor for 000 magazine and PorschePanorama. And for the past decade he has been researching and writing an encyclopedic history of Porsche's motorsports endeavors.

Leffingwell lives near Santa Barbara, California.