The Porsche 911 Spirit 70 Is A Groovy Tribute To ’70s Style

When you look back at all the many decades of automotive history, some stand out more than others. Plenty of icons, for instance, came out of the 1960s and 1980s, but sandwiched between them was the 1970s which, for many reasons, wasn’t a brilliant decade for cars. Still, as it has been for over 60 years, the Porsche 911 was at least a shining light among a sea of brown-hued mediocrity.

Porsche has seen fit to celebrate this with the 911 Spirit 70, a special edition that’s chock full of nods to disco-era 911s, specifically citing the late ’70s and early ’80s as inspiration. It’s the third of four planned models in Porsche’s Heritage Design strategy, kicked off in 2020 by the 911 Targa 4S Heritage Design Edition and continued with 2022’s 911 Sport Classic.

The Spirit 70 is based on the newly-hybridised 911 Carrera GTS Cabriolet, and gets that car’s mechanical setup – a 3.6-litre turbocharged flat-six augmented by a small gearbox-mounted electric motor, producing a total of 534bhp and 450lb ft. It sends that to the back wheels by way of an eight-speed PDK auto. Porsche hasn’t confirmed figures, but it should equal the base car’s 3.1-second 0-62mph time and 194mph top speed.

Front and centre of the groovy new look is the Olive Neo paint, a new shade created by Porsche as an ode to similar hues it offered in the late ’70s and early ’80s. It’s also being offered in an equally vibrant orange, plus the more muted silver or black for those who don’t want to shout about their limited-edition Porsche.

Whatever colour you opt for, you’re getting a trio of racing stripes running over the length of the car, ending in a period-appropriate 911 logo on the bonnet. The sides get classic Porsche lettering stripes, plus a ‘70’ racing-style roundel.

Offsetting the paint, meanwhile, are various details in Bronzite, a greyish-gold hue that’s been applied to the rear diffuser, front air intakes and the five-spoke Fuchs-style alloys – themselves a long-running nod to a ’70s Porsche hallmark. There are other neat little details like a period-correct Porsche crest on the nose, too.

On the inside, you get seat centres in Porsche’s legendary Pasha fabric, a wavy distorted chequerboard pattern that really couldn’t be more ’70s if it tried. Here, it replicates the exterior shade, and can be found on the door cards and even the inside of the glovebox. If you simply can’t get enough trippy chequered fabric in your life, you can further spec it for the rear seat centres, dashboard and boot mat.

While the 911 sadly moved over to a digital instrument cluster for its 992.2 facelift, there’s a new layout for it available just on the Spirit 70. This brings a set of white analogue-format dials, with green digits, as featured on Porsches of yore like the 356.

Available to order today from £187,700, Porsche’s only building 1500 examples of the 911 Spirit 70. If you’re really into its vibe, and you have another £12,000 to spend, you can get an accompanying Porsche Design watch to go with it, with a colour scheme that matches the car and a dial that replicates its rev counter.

As for the fourth and final Heritage Design car? We’re still likely a couple of years off seeing it yet, but given the three we’ve had so far have moved forward from the late ‘50s through to the early ’80s in their inspiration, we’re going to take an educated guess at what might be coming next. Hope you like pastel hues.