Few carmakers have the same allure as Porsche, the German automaker famous for its range of high-performance cars, including some incredibly rare limited editions.
Arguably the most famous limited edition in the brand's history, the world-beating Porsche 959, remains a dream car for many gearheads, there are however dozens of other special Porsche road cars. Fuelled by a passion for racing, Porsche designers continually strive for ever-faster cars, many of which find their way onto public roads in the form of thinly disguised race cars.
10 1969 Porsche 914-8 - 2 Cars Built
The 914 had a confusing introduction, lower-spec models wore Volkswagen insignia while the larger-engine cars were badged as Porsche. Initially produced in 1969 a collaboration between Porsche and Volkswagen, the 914 used a mid-engine platform with a choice of four or six-cylinder engines with up to 109hp.
During its 8-year production cycle, the 914 produced more powerful special editions, including the 914-8 equipped with flat-eight cylinder engines producing 360hp
9 2016 Porsche 911 R - 991 Cars Built
The Porsche 911 remains the supercar to beat, the familiar silhouette resembles the original car of the 1960s, but under the skin, every new model brings more levels of engineering. Among many enthusiasts, non-turbo models are most desirable with their simpler approach to performance, the 911 R, however, is still a powerful car with 500hp on tap.
Any limited edition Porsche will be something special, the 911 R continues the tradition of lightweight track-focused road cars. Introduced in 2016, with a normally aspirated 4-liter version of the legendary Porsche flat-six engine, the 911 R provides owners with a pure driving experience.
8 2015 Porsche 918 Spyder - 918 Cars Built
Porsche's 918 Spyder is the first hypercar launched by the German carmaker since the 959 launched in 1988 and immediately made its mark setting the fastest production lap record of the Nürburgring. The 918 first produced in 2015 with a series of 918 cars faced strong competition from McLaren's P1 and Ferrari's LaFerrari, both of which are more expensive and produced in fewer numbers.
Breaking with tradition, Porsches 918 Spyder uses a mid-engine layout with a hybrid powertrain combing a V8 4.6-liter combustion engine along with two electric motors to produce a total of 887hp.
7 1981 Porsche 924 Carrera GTR - 17 Cars Built
The entry-level Porsche 924 attracted a lot of unfair criticism for the origins of its engine, the block castings manufactured by Volkswagen led many critics to claim the 924 wasn't a real Porsche. Initial production cars were not especially powerful and only had 95hp from a 2-liter engine, later revisions gained more power adding to the car's reputation.
Without a doubt, the ultimate Porsche 924, the Carrera GTR designed for competition use equipped with a modified engine produced 375hp proved it's worth claiming a well deserved 6th place overall at Le Mans.
6 1988 Porsche 959 Sport - 29 Cars Built
The original hypercar, Porsche's 959 used a different approach to its arch-rival Ferrari's F40 as the German carmaker built the most technologically advanced cars in the 1980s. Equipped with a water-cooled twin-turbocharged engine and all-wheel drive the 959 formed the basis for future 911 generations.
Porsche engineers equipping the 959 with larger turbochargers resulted in the rare Sport model, of which just 29 cars were built. Increasing the power output of the regular 959's 2.8-liter engine to 515hp increased maximum speed to 211mph.
5 1953 Porsche 356 America Roadster - 16 Cars Built
The VW Beetle origins are evident in Porsche's roadster, using the underpinnings and drivetrain as the basis for the 356. Over a period of 18 years, Porsche improved the 356 design, adding more powerful air-cooled engines, in total over 76,000 cars were built including coupes, roadsters and, special editions.
Designed exclusively for the US market, Porsche's 356 America Roadster used an aluminum body that made it considerably lighter than other roadster versions at 1334lbs. Despite the importance of the US market for Porsche, only 16 "America" special edition roadsters were built making the 356 one of the rarest special edition Porsches.
4 1997 Porsche 911 GT1 (Road Spec) - 25 Cars Built
International FIA GT regulations in the 1990s are responsible for some of the fastest road cars ever, Porsche's 911 GT1 showing its ability clocking a top speed of 205mph on the famous Mulsanne Straight.
Porsche's GT1 despite its name shares little with the standard 911 and uses a custom-built tubular steel chassis fitted with a 536hp twin-turbocharged flat-six engine. Only 25 road-legal 911 GT1's were built to meet homologation regulations.
3 1967 Porsche 911R - 23 Cars Built
Porsche originally intended the 911R for competition use, however, the FIA rejected the prototype and as a result, only 24 cars were built. Near identical to standard cars the 911R is distinguished from the revised front and rear bumpers, along with the circular rear light clusters.
Cosmetic differences aside, Porsche's 911R was stripped of the interior, which combined with lighter panels resulted in an impressive 500lbs weight saving. No competition Porsche would be complete without a power boost, the 911R was fitted with a 2-liter flat-six produced 210hp.
2 1996 Porsche 993 GT2 - 194 Cars Built
Porsche's factory-backed racing program is good news for gearheads, leading to the development of limited edition hardcore road cars. The 993 GT2 one of the best models in recent years reverted to rear-wheel drive only, the weight saving added greater benefits to overall performance.
Designed for competition use Porsche's 993 GT2 delivers impressive performance, the rear-mounted 444hp turbocharged engine launched the car to 60mph in 3.9-seconds, flat out posting a top speed of 187mph.
1 1988 Porsche 928 SE - 42 Cars Built
At one point Porsche had intended the 928 to replace the popular 911 range, aiming the car at a more upmarket client base, fortunately, both models existed in parallel. Porsche's first front-engine production car and also the first model to use a V8 engine, the 928 was one of the best long-distance GT cars of its time.
Produced exclusively for the British market, the Special Edition (SE) cars offer an option halfway between the manufacturer's standard S4 models and the Club Sport edition, which features a slightly more powerful V8 engine.