The modern supercar world is mightily impressive for its technology and its raw speed. And, I should say, for flattering drivers such as myself by setting astonishingly fast lap times. But the level of competence in a modern performance car – not to mention the legislative restrictions on safety and emissions – has gone some way to diluting the thrill. Which is why I’m increasingly looking at the flourishing market of reimagined classics, including from the team at Thornley Kelham for which LaSource is a sales agent.
Over the past four years they have evolved their award-winning concours-standard restoration business into an ultra-bespoke car factory, developing a collection of redesigned and reengineered models known as the European Collection. And the first to be completed is a study of the Porsche 911 known as the European RS. Visions of the Jaguar XK and Porsche 356 will follow later this year.
Even before you step behind the wheel, the sense of attention-to-detail and craftsmanship on display in the European RS is astonishing. It’s not surface-level beauty like mother of pearl dials or custom engraving, it’s just pure perfection. The shut lines are impeccably narrow, the paint is flawlessly smooth, the panels are perfectly shaped and the seats are stitched with millimetre-precision. Every time I looked out over the front arches and saw utter perfection, I was reminded exactly why 6,000 hours of engineering and finishing goes in to creating a European RS.
The styling overall, led by Hal Walter, is a modern day evocation of some of the most thrilling 911s of all time, namely the 2.8 RSR and the 2.7 RS. And the split rear spoiler, wide-body rear and perfectly balanced proportions are impeccable. Some buyers, however, may be looking for to tone down the racing car styling a little and Thornley Kelham does have alternative bumper designs and – incidentally – headlight designs.
Driving the European RS is a journey back in time to when cars were raw, engaging, and utterly connected to the road. You know it as soon as you turn the key with a loud wub-wub-wub idle carefully engineered to evoke the feel of a motorsport-ready 911. And where later 911s ensure that feeling ebbs away fairly quickly, opting for refinement and comfort, the RS doesn’t let up.
The metallic, raucous, booming howl as the 3.8-litre flat-six nears 8,000rpm is utterly addictive, accompanied by the ferocious acceleration of a car with around 400hp weighing only a tonne. It’s as quick as many modern supercars, but I can’t think of anything else on the road today that gets close to this complete immersion in the driving experience.
It is fabulously analogue, a rare quality in today’s technology-saturated world. The car is incredibly pointable, with steering so precise that you very quickly get comfortable with high-speed cornering, feeling each bump and seemingly exactly how much grip remains in the tyres. The standard JRZ coilovers on this example are firm – at the buyer’s request – but adaptive dampers help to soften up the ride.
Every twist and turn is a joy, emphasised by a traction control system that allows you to explore the European RS’ capabilities before gently reeling you back in if the angle of slip gets too great. It’s extremely hard to engineer an electronic system like this for a restomod, but Thornley Kelham has spent the time to get it right and it’s a decision that pays off greatly.
To paraphrase the words of Elliott Hughes at Magneto, the European RS is almost unmatched in its speed and engagement. I can think of relatively few cars on the road today that that get close to this complete immersion in the driving experience. Matt Bird of PistonHeads had similar thoughts, saying that ‘like so many great cars of this genre, the TK car is vividly alive at distinctly ordinary speeds’. I don’t claim to be an expert, but in this case I do agree with the experts – the European RS feels right within the first 50 metres.
And the beauty of this car is that it can be engineered from the ground-up exactly how you want it; 3.6, 3.8 or 4.0-litre; five-speed or six-speed manual; power steering or not; adaptive dampers or fixed. The choices are almost endless, so if you’d like to learn more about the European RS do contact me and I’d be happy to send you a brochure outlining the details, pricing and availability. A total of 15 will be made, and opportunities still remain for you to secure one of the production slots.