IN 2012, while I was working at Porsche Cars Canada, filmmaker Tamir Moscovici introduced me to his documentary Urban Outlaw, which profiled prolific 911 collector and hot-rodder Magnus Walker. Watching the film, and later meeting Walker, is what got me into air-cooled Porsches, something that I figured would be just a phase. It was while shopping for a 964 — the bedroom-wall Porsche of my childhood — when I came across this Polar Silver 993, which I’ve had for almost seven years and 60,000 kilometres.
I wish I could say the 993’s done big, significant things in its time with me, but — a couple of not-far road trips and one track day aside — it actually does the complete opposite. Mostly, I use it as an urban runabout in good weather, dashing all over downtown Toronto on errands or between various coffee shops, taking the occasional trip to work in Vaughan, basically doing things far less noble or exciting than the stuff it was designed for.
But, that’s actually what I love about it. Running errands in the 993 makes every single one of those errands feel special, carving around a few on- and off-ramps on a weekend can be as satisfying as a longer trip into the country, and it looks so much better sitting outside a coffee-shop window than my Volkswagen Golf. Taking pictures of the car is almost as much fun as driving it, photography being another one of my hobbies.
Plus, all of the things that make the 993 a great sports car also happen to make it a great car to slice and dice through city traffic. It’s tiny, it’s easy to see out of thanks to its upright seating position and big glass, it is tough as nails, and still more than fast enough.
My 993 was originally delivered by Pfaff Porsche in March 1994 and it’s kind of coming full circle, having been serviced again at Pfaff since I began working there in 2015, and now undergoing a restoration for the Porsche Canada Classic Restoration Challenge. I can’t wait to get back behind the wheel of a brand-new 911 with more than 200,000 kilometres on it. </>
By Laurance Yap.
