d56tuye

26 Top six modified 911s: PS AutoArt
BELOW The Le Mans Classic
Clubsport is a notable tie-up
for PS AutoArt with Peter
Auto and the ACO
PS AUTOART
SPECIALISTS IN RE-ENGINEERING UNDERSTATED, CUSTOM CLASSICS
“When it comes
to modifying
the 911, there
are a plethora of
companies out
there offering
something
bigger and
wider, more brash, whatever it takes to stand out. We
go completely the other way.” These are the words of
Paul Stephens, founder of PS AutoArt, who offers his
thoughts as we walk around his bustling workshop,
which is filled with long-bonnet 911 projects.
To the average punter, a PS AutoArt car might
appear stock in comparison to what’s on offer
elsewhere in this feature – and that’s exactly the
point, the Essex company executing its brand through
original design with technological enhancement.
Stephens cites one Alois Ruf as an influence on
his own enthusiasm for the 911, after buying an SCR
by chance in 1991. “I confess I didn’t really know what
it was. Although it was an SC, it had a short-stroke
3.2 engine in it, different gearbox ratios, a limitedslip
diff. The whole car was alive. After I bought it, I
found out a bit more about the car, which was when I
first spoke to Alois. I’m such a huge fan of his.
“The beauty of a RUF is, externally, there’s only
a few subtle differences even to those in the know.
Really it reveals itself once you turn the key.” This
helped sow the seeds in Stephens’ mind for unlocking
further potential from a 911 through modification.
It is fitting, then, that Stephens’ AutoArt enterprise
is now sharing pages with RUF, his inspired mantra
of ‘less is more’ featuring throughout the current PS
AutoArt lineup. Expertly appointed for the discerning
enthusiast, “If you know, you know. If you don’t know,
you don’t need to know,” Stephens says confidently.
It’s a breath of fresh air from the overt and evermore
extreme 964-based creations on offer elsewhere
in the industry. For Stephens, the 964 was a starting
point, albeit many years ago. “I started to look at
the AutoArt side of things unofficially in 2002. The
964 was, at the time, what the 996 is today. It was
unloved, nobody really wanted one. We wanted to
take elements of the stock 964 and lighten the car to
RS-spec, put more power into it like a 993 RS, and
create a style evocative of the 2.7 Carrera RS. We
wanted a unique car that chipped away at three eras
of RS, and that was the focus of the 300R.”
With PS AutoArt officially born in 2005, a
Clubsport series followed under the mantra of less
is more, which was revisited with the Clubsport
Series II some ten years later. “We needed to refine
things, as the original Clubsport was a very raw car,”
Stephens says, which also gives a fair reflection for
where the industry had gone in that time, clients
wanting a more rounded product as a result of the
work coming out of Singer.
Many have sought to follow Singer’s work in
‘reimagining’ the 911, but PS AutoArt was working
with 964s much before Singer. “We moved on
from the 964-focused backdates quite a while ago,”
Stephens says, the cars currently under development
all testament to a vision of a simpler, more minimalist
look, underpinned by technology, plus modern fit and
finish. “Our trademark is to re-engineer a classic 911
with a focus on reliability and durability in today’s
world, but keep that DNA so it still feels like an older
car to drive,” Stephens adds.
Among other things, the long-hood Clubsport
Series II is still in production today, with a limited
version of it arguably the pinnacle for Stephens
and AutoArt so far in terms of prestige. Only ten
versions of the Le Mans Classic Clubsport, signed
off in conjunction with Peter Auto and the ACO no
less, will be built. Those cars will feature prominently
at the tenth instalment of Le Mans Classic in the
summer, which also signals a big birthday for PS
AutoArt itself.
This year marks 15 years in business, and Stephens
will celebrate this in spectacular fashion with the
reveal of a special project already under development.
Our lips are sealed – for now – but you can be sure
it’s far removed from the 964 backdate craze that’s
become the norm elsewhere. Stephens offers a little
more insight: “It’s a product that really drills down
into the purity of the air-cooled 911 and what it stood
for at launch as a driver’s car.” If all works out as
planned, we could be talking about a car of the year.
Roll on the summer, and a chance to climb behind
the wheel…