Gunther Werks 400R Perfects an Already Proven Formula

Eye Candy

There are many builders willing to piece together perfect, reimagined vintage Porsche 911s and sell them for big dollars these days. And all of them are quite incredible in their own right. Gunther Werks is a relative newcomer in this field, cranking out 993-based customs, though not a ton of them, for obvious reasons. But the few examples that do exist quite literally qualify as eye candy.

Photos: Gunther Werks

Cult Following

Automobile was lucky enough to live with a Gunther Werks 911 for a short time, and came away impressed with just how much attention it attracted. The most interesting thing was the fact that so many people recognized it just from Instagram, where their particular loaner model has developed a bit of a cult following despite being one of just 25 produced.

Photos: Gunther Werks

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Totally Surreal

But in all fairness, this is a car that was seemingly destined to become an Instagram star. It features some of the most beautiful and intricately detailed construction we've ever seen, down to the last piece of carbon fiber. As Automobile notes, the car "looks like an impossibly idealized rendering." It's so beautiful that it's somewhat hard to believe that it's real, and that's obviously a high compliment.

Photos: Gunther Werks

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Continuation Model

The idea behind the overall design of the 400R is what Gunther Werks imagines a 993-gen 911 might look like today if Porsche had never stopped producing it and just continued to develop it over time. And the result is, pardon our audacity, better than the current 911, at least in terms of style. 

Photos: Gunther Werks

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No Slouch

The standard 3.6-liter flat-six is no slouch either. It's been reworked by Rothsport Racing, which increases displacement to 4.0 liters, fills it with forged internals, tops it with a 996-gen GT3 intake, and controls it via a two-stage Motec engine management system. The result is 431 horsepower and 312 pound-feet of torque, more than enough to move this lightweight machine around quite quickly.

Photos: Gunther Werks

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Harmonious Mixture

The interior is, of course, a work of art, with more stitching and intricate details than we can shake a stick at. Here we have a harmonious mixture of aluminum, carbon fiber, and leather, all blended together perfectly. And even though it may look a bit like an original 993 cabin, Gunther Werks says that 80 percent of what we see is new.

Photos: Gunther Werks

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Delivering Experiences

Performance is impressive, as Gunther Werks says that the 400R will lap Laguna Seca faster than a 991.1 GT3 RS. But it isn't cheap, either, with a price tag reaching $700,000. This is typical of most good things in life, of course, and Automobile reckons that it's worth every penny. "As a device for delivering experiences, the Gunther Werks is incredible, and as far as I can tell, essentially unmatched," the rag concludes.

Photos: Gunther Werks

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