Justin abrahams
1993 Porsche 993
My first car was a 105 series Alfa and an Alfa Spyder was my second car. So I really had this Italian thing going early on. As it happens, tastes change over time. I’ve gone from loving the excitement of having something tempestuous and temperamental, to a preference for something a little more robust and responsive in my life.
CHANGING GEARS
CHASE THAT FEELING
I did my CAMS licence in my 20’s and enjoyed some racing and had some ‘hot-hatch’ type things.
But I always thought about 911’s. The quintessential sports car, a real driver’s car. I kind of like all of the incarnations of air-cooled 911s and had to have one. I was looking at everything from long bonnets, right through the 70’s to some non-air cooled. But in searching I was particularly interested in something with some serious performance creds and you can’t beat that air-cooled sound.
That narrowed my desire for 964s and 993s. Then this one came to me.
I did a lot of research into what mods you can do without taking it too far from original. It really came down to two key areas that I knew I had to focus on – exhausts and suspension. People often talked about how that model sat a little high. Bilstein suspension improved the driving dynamic and gave it a whole new lower stance. From the 964 they went wider on the hips and I love that extra curve. I also added some width on the rear wheels. They’re just 20mm spaces. And a stabiliser across the front makes it a bit more rigid.
Then I added a Fabspeed exhaust system with a catalytic converter bypass. A chip to punch the power and the airbox that looks as good it delivers.
SOUND AND VISION
Apart from the other stuff I’ve done mechanically, there was also the internal freshen ups and upgrades. Carpets, cracking dash, etc. The new steering wheel from Momo that I think looks better than the original.
It is all personal taste I guess. You make these things for yourself and your own enjoyment in the end.
GO YOUR OWN WAY
One of my favourite drives is from LA into the desert. I’ve done it a few times and loved it. If I could take a passenger along I reckon it would be interesting to have Nick Cave riding shotgun. I’ve got a few existential questions for him that need answering! We’d head in Palm Springs direction, wind through Joshua Tree (take a few mushrooms) and then on to Vegas.
DESERT DRIVING
90s CAR. 90s TUNES.
The original audio system was of course a Blaupunkt model. I’ve ended up with a newer digital set-up that still looks period correct, has Porsche insignia and has voice activation which helps. I play a bit of hip-hop, blues and new wave. But weirdly I tend to match the music to the car and listen to a fair bit of 90s when I drive. The Cure. A bit of Sonic Youth.
My childhood dream car was always a Dino. I never had the coin for it in the 80s and I certainly don’t now. But, gee that dream still lives on. I think you’ve always got to live out your childhood dreams. Unfortunately, the Dino might have escaped me, but the V12 365s that have the same platform as the Daytona are on my radar. There’s not a bad angle on those babies and I’ve got a secret late night vice of searching for the one that I could possibly make my own.
CHILDHOOD DREAMS
GEEKING OUT
I’ve had a number of motorbikes over time and I’ve got a BMW LT1100 in the garage. The flying brick they called it. It’s an 80s cop bike. I like it, but it’s cars I really get excited about.
Cars are fun. And I’m not afraid to say that sometimes it’s just about the visual aesthetic. I see them as art. I get as much pleasure looking at that car as I do driving it. It’s the curves, it’s this weird obsession.
Some kids geek out on tech or music….but I geek out on cars.
I started to worry when The European Union announced they’re going to ban both diesel and petrol cars from 2035. I can’t really get my head around the implications for all the cars I love. Sure, Australia’s one of the slowest adopters of electric vehicles, but I fear I may be the last man on earth turning the ignition on a petrol car. My cars need a heartbeat and I do love V8s and the thrill I get in my Porsche.
It reminds me of an ad our old mate Eric in Amsterdam did for Ferrari. If I remember correctly it was set in 2056 and there was this guy that was 138 years old because he’d had all this anti-aging gear. He had his birthday party and they blew out the candles and he was basically really bored with it all and snuck downstairs and pulls the cover off his old Ferrari. He starts the engine and for the first time in the day he’s genuinely excited. His heart starts pulsing and racing.
That’s how I feel. I connect with that.
LAST MAN ON EARTH
MOTO AMORO
The thing I really like most about the car that I have is the smell. It reminds me of all those years ago when I had the 105. There’s something organic about it. It’s this sort of confluence of leather and petrol. It does something for me.
I feel my next project might be launching a fragrance – ‘parfum de cuir et carburant’.