“Legends never die.” That may sound like dramatic nonsense, but there is a truth to it. Look at the Porsche 911. After 60 years, it’s still in production. And in a way, even some of the old ones are new, thanks to companies like Singer and Gunther Werks. Recently, Jay Leno welcomed a uniquely modified and heritage-inspired 911 from a company called Lab Eleven to his garage.
As Lab Eleven’s U.S. distributor Axel Weller explains, even though the company’s vehicles are produced and given new interiors in Italy, they are very much not only German, but Porsche. According to him, Lab Eleven’s creations are made up of approximately 90 percent original Porsche components to ensure they can be serviced by any Porsche dealer and equipped with parts from Porsche Classic. The retro-style car he brought to show Leno started life as a 1995 993-generation 911 and was completely disassembled, media blasted, and fitted with all-metal parts, including an aluminum trunk lid, original Porsche fenders, 930 Turbo flares, and an aluminum 911R deck lid.
Under that louvered cover is a rebuilt air-cooled 3.8-liter flat-six that’s equipped with RS camshafts and connected to a 993 six-speed manual gearbox. Output is a stout 350 horsepower, which only has to move 2,640 pounds – a weight loss of about 500 pounds compared to a standard 993, according to Weller.
The interior has the Italian craftsmanship of the same company that trims Pagani cockpits and Porsche components, such as an RSR steering wheel, Porsche Pepita fabric seat inserts, and a Porsche Classic radio with Bluetooth.
Lab Eleven 911s are so Porsche that each finished one goes to them for inspection. Once they pass, Porsche resets their odometers and gives them certificates of authenticity.
This kind of thorough work and factory-backed pedigree does not come cheap. Prices start at $720,000. As Weller puts it, “Your imagination dictates the rest of the price.”
As of right now, the Lab Eleven 911 shown here is the only one in the U.S. After being on Jay Leno’s YouTube channel, it probably won’t have that distinction for long.
