Porsche's influence on the streaming Petersen Car Week event continued on Saturday with an informative deep dive into the iconic 959 supercar curated by none of than Bruce Canepa himself. After a big 993 restomod reveal from Gunther Werks on August 12, attention switched to some fun auction action hosted by Bonham's and featuring insane cars like a Bugatti Chiron and Lamborghini Centenario. Today's coverage also includes another Lamborghini, the Sian, as well as glimpses at a range of personal celebrity collections, a conversation with Horacio Pagani, a peek at the McLaren Elva, and some actual motorsport action, as well.
Check Out The Stream
But the highlight for Porsche fans has to be getting a chance to hear from Bruce Canepa in his own words—from his own shop. Canepa has emerged as possibly the world's foremost 959 expert and the video features plenty of time as he explores everything that made the car so revolutionary when it was new, as well as how his shop is able to produce an even better version for the modern supercar era.
A Bit Of Background
As if the 959 needed an introduction, a bit of background on the car that arguably set the modern supercar industry in motion: the 959 was built as a rally racer but also was intended to explore the performance potential of the 911 platform. With an air-cooled, twin-turbocharged flat-six that employed water-cooled heads (a subject that would become highly heretical for Porsche purists a decade later with the Boxster and 996-generation 911), the 959 produced 444 horsepower that was routed to all four wheels.
Not Good Enough
Speaking of backgrounds, Canepa's shop is just about a Porschephile's dream, with a Carrera GT as well as a handful of 911 examples in various stages of disassembly visible in addition to the multiple 959s currently under construction. A Bugatti EB110 even makes an appearance! Tune into Canepa's talk to hear about how he managed to coax an insane 800 horsepower out of a car that already pushed the bounds of technology when it was new.
Sources: Youtube, Petersen, Robbreport