By Ian Wright
If you have the money, a few high-end automakers will take your car and restore it. At Porsche, it doesn't even need to be a proper classic. In this case, though, it's a legendary low production icon that has returned to the Porsche factory for renewal – a 20-year-old Carrera GT. Not only was Porsche collector Victor Gómez's Carrera GT restored, but it was also redesigned as part of the Sonderwunsch program with a fresh interior and 1970 Le Mans-winning 917-inspired livery.
The Carrera GT's Overhaul
Porsche hasn't shared details about the state of Gómez's 2005 Carrera GT when it entered the factory, but considering it's a rare 20-year-old hypercar, it likely wasn't rotting in some barn somewhere. However, 20 years can still lead to some deterioration, particularly to rubber and coatings. The renewal project takes a car back to what Porsche calls its "zero kilometer condition." But this project went several steps further.
The car was completely pulled apart, technical components such as the transmission and V10 engine were overhauled, and the carbon parts were recoated. The original silver paint was then replaced with the livery from the red and white 917 short-tail race car that Hans Herrmann and Richard Attwood drove to Porsche's first victory at Le Mans. According to Porsche, the red and white livery is known as the Salzburg Design.
The Salzberg Design
It's named after the Austrian city of Salzburg where the "Porsche Alpenstraße" car dealership prepared two 917's for the Porsche Salzburg team, which was close to being a works team while the Gulf-sponsored team, which was the official partner to Porsche, also entered two cars. In 1970, Porsche threw everything it could at Le Mans to win the coveted 24-hour endurance race, so it also lent one of its flat-12 powered monsters to Martini Racing to enter.
| Porsche Carrera GT | |
| Production | 2003 – 2006 |
| Engine | 5.7-liter V10 |
| Horsepower | 603 |
| Torque | 435 |
| Redline | 8,400 rpm |
| Transmission | Six-speed auto |
The in-house Porsche Salzburg was retired after 1970 to give way to factory-sponsored teams, but the livery has become iconic to Porsche and motor racing enthusiasts. The problem for Porsche in 2025 was that it's not easy to recreate the livery that was specifically designed for one car and put it on a completely different car. To do so, Porsche brought in veteren designer Grant Larson before he retires after 36 years with Porsche.
Read the full article on CarBuzz
This article originally appeared on CarBuzz and is republished here with permission.
