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novembre 24, 2017 - Porsche

Porsche 918 Spyder - King of the roads

Comunicato Stampa disponibile solo in lingua originale. 

It’s not often you see someone in their mid-sixties jump out of a #porsche Cayenne so youthfully. His attire – jeans, waistcoat, a checked shirt and John Lennon-style sunglasses – take at least two decades off him. This man’s appearance speaks volumes about his continued zest for life. Benno Oertig lives for two things dear to his heart: his daughter Marina and two sleek sports cars in the legendary Martini design.

We are meeting in Freienbach in the Swiss canton of Schwyz. Oertig opens the gate to the hall and reveals his hideaway. Sparkling grey floors and snow-white walls adorned with large-scale triptychs of his racing cars. “On the right there at the back, we will have a workshop area and some lounge furniture”, explains Oertig, pointing to the, as yet, bare corner. For him, it is the perfect atmosphere in which to prepare for the next race or to reminisce about the last circuit laps with his 911 GT3 RS. Or simply to enjoy the sweeping lines of one of his #porsche 918 Spyders. Oertig has been a car guy ever since he was a youngster, so much so that he applied for his first racing licence on his

18th birthday. “Me in a Renault R8 Gordini against the NSU TT”, he recalls. At the age of 25, however, he hung up his helmet and gloves and sold them together with the car, investing the proceeds – “50,000 francs, that was a lot of money at the time” – in his first company.

It was goodbye to his racing career; from this point on, finances and family became the dominant features of his life, taking him abroad many times. At the height of his career, he was involved in the management of 63 companies in no less than 24 European countries. There was no time left for fast laps, but his heart still beat for the cars. “In 1986, I bought my first #porsche, a 3.2 litre 911 Carrera with 231 hp. At that time, it was the most powerful #porsche in the range after the Turbo”, says Oertig. And the starting point for a lifelong passion.

Enduring love for the brand

From that moment on, Benno Oertig never missed a 911 generation – his garage always housed at least one #porsche, at times even two or three: “The 964 model line was a revelation – all-wheel drive at last!” He even caught up on every 911 that he had missed in the years prior to 1986, such as the Turbo and Carrera Cabriolet from the G series. Currently, his garage is home to various vehicles including a 2015 Targa 4, a 2014 GT3 and the white Martini GT3 RS from 2016. And, the jewel in the crown, the #918spyder: serial number 71 out of a total of 918 units produced. Its weight is reduced by around 41 kilograms thanks to the optional Weissach package with lighter brake discs, ceramic wheel bearings, titanium bolts and carbon-fibre-reinforced plastic instead of aluminium in the body and interior.

“This is the future, a revolution”, says Oertig about the combined plug-in hybrid drive with a 887-hp high-speed V8 and a 129-hp and 156-hp electric motor on the front and rear axle respectively. “This car is so effortlessly manageable, so efficient.” He enthuses further, saying that the variable torque distribution to all four wheels ensures incredible driving precision and that a current 911 GT3 is significantly more demanding in terms of handling.