Everyone has its own preferences when it comes to lightweight Porsches but when the company from Stuttgart starts naming its top 5, it’s time for everyone to listen.
Porsche has been a constant beacon for automotive performance, pushing boundaries and stealing drivers’ hearts for decades. The greatest ingredient of them all is lightness, with Porsche focusing on making its top performers lighter, way before it was “cool”.
Models like the famous 911 Carrera RS 2.7 left a permanent footprint in the history books, especially in the hardcore Sport version which is 100kg lighter than the Touring by ditching things like the clock, the rear seats, the passenger’s sun shade, the door handles and more. Total dry weight? Just 975kg (2149lbs).
Everyone knows about the 2.7 RS but what about the 906 Carrera 6? This beauty was the last road-legal racing car ever offered by Porsche as a response to Ferrari’s Dino 206. There was even a version of it specifically made for camera duties during racing. A fiberglass body on top of a space frame means that the 906 tips the scales at just 675kg (1488lbs) dry.
Next up is the Porsche 356 SL (Sport Leicht), the first model of the brand to win its class at Le Mans. Featuring a handcrafted all-aluminum body, the 356 SL weighed just 640kg (1410lbs) and showed the world what Porsche was aiming for.
The next model may not be a road car but it definitely left a mark on Porsche’s long motorsport history. The 718 Formula 2 race car was a lightweight single-seater powered by a 150hp 1.5-liter flat-four with two overhead camshafts per cylinder bank. Total weight is 456kg (1005lbs).
And finally, in the number 1 spot in Porsche’s Top 5 lightest model is the 909 Bergspyder. Built specifically for hillclimbing events, the 909 has specs that still send chills to everyone; Power is provided by a 275hp 2.0-liter flat-8 engine, having to move a car so light that is scarcely believable: 384kg (846lbs), thanks to its thin plastic bodyshell and aluminum frame. 0-60mph came in under 2 seconds, in 1968. Think about that for a moment.
VIDEO