► Tribute to original 1987 CTR
► 700bhp, €750k, 30 to be made
► New from the ground up
Remember the Ruf CTR ‘Yellowbird’? The twin-turbocharged, custard-coloured, heavily modified Porsche 911 launched by famed Porsche-fiddlers Ruf in 1987, and immortalised in the Nordschleife on-board film ‘Faczination on Nürburgring?’ That’s the one.
Ruf itself hasn’t forgotten it either. It’s built a brand-new supercar called the CTR 2017 in celebration of the Yellowbird’s 30th anniversary. Only this time it’s not based on a donor Porsche 911 – for the first time the German company has created a new car all of its own.
It still looks like a 911, though?
Sure does. From a distance, you’d be forgiven for mistaking the new Ruf CTR for a late ’80s/early ’90s-era Porsche 911, and just like the iconic Porker it’s rear-engined. But underneath the retro (and admirably compact) carbonfibre bodywork is a bespoke chassis of Ruf’s own design.
It combines a carbon monocoque (with box-section sills and central member spanned by a flat floor) with metal subframes front and rear, and a rollcage-like tubular steel structure above. Total kerbweight is expected to stay well below the 1300kg mark.
Suspension is a double-wishbone arrangement front and rear with racecar-style pushrod-operated horizontal dampers, mounted inboard – longitudinally at the front, horizontally at the rear.
Engine?
A 3.6-litre dry-sump Metzger flat-six with twin turbochargers taking max power to no less than 700bhp and torque to 649lb ft. That’s hooked up to a manual gearbox(!), and the CTR drives its rear wheels only, via a limited-slip differential. Quite a recipe.
How many will Ruf make?
A production run of 30 cars is planned. The car here on show at Geneva is the first prototype. Deliveries to customers are expected to begin in 2018, with a price of around €750,000 per car. That’s currently around £650,000.
Sounds steep? Maybe, but the limited-edition 911 market has gone potty recently, don’t forget, with even the 2016 911R reputedly changing hands for terrifying sums.
How fast?
Ruf hasn’t yet completed any performance testing, but its calculations suggest 0-62mph in under 3.5 seconds, and 0-200kph (124mph) in as little as 8.8sec.
Top speed? Potentially in excess of 225mph.
The speedo reads to 230mph, just to be sure. Let’s hope that tea tray spoiler does its job…
Give me some lovely details to look out for on the Ruf CTR 2017
How about the inboard rear dampers visible through the rear screen, the rear windows neatly integrated air intakes within their sweep, or the beguilingly simple tartan-trimmed interior?
An ultimate analogue driver’s car for the modern era? The Ruf CTR 2017 is truly one of the surprise stars of Geneva 2017.
Click here for CAR’s full run down of all the major new cars at the show.