My answer was automotive journalism, but now there鈥檚 a quicker and easier way: classic car rentals. The 1982 Porsche 911 SC pictured here is one such rental car, which I procured for a couple days while covering the Scottsdale auctions, using Hagerty鈥檚 DriveShare app. I confess, my heart wasn鈥檛 initially set on the 911 SC. 300, and I knew from past experience that a 911 SC is not twice as much fun to drive. Blame the intense interest in anything rear-engined and air-cooled. So I booked a 951, waited a couple days, and then was informed the car was in the shop. I quickly learned the other rental 951 was also in the shop, leaving me with one option. First lesson: Be sure to book your DriveShare rental well in advance to avoid any scheduling issues. So I booked the 911 SC from Jon Morley, owner of Canyon State Classics in Tempe, AZ, a business that buys, sells, and consigns cars, and will even help you find the one you鈥檙e looking for.
In the 鈥渟howroom鈥?garage space, I was surrounded by a classic Toyota FJ Cruiser, a Rolls Royce, a 981 Boxster S, and more. Though a share of DriveShare rentals are owned by auto industry business people, private owners list their cars to rent as well. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a very visceral car,鈥?Morley stated in a phone interview. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e very connected to the car in every single way,鈥?he continued, with notable appreciation for the air-cooled 911鈥檚 reputation as a driver鈥檚 car. When asked about why he put his 911 SC up for rent, he said he decided to do so when he learned of the DriveShare program, though he had been considering renting on Turo, another rental car app, for awhile. He wanted to explore ways to make a little money on a car that was otherwise sitting on his lot, waiting to be sold. 300 per day pricing, he said, 鈥淚t鈥檚 not going to be for everybody.
To prepare for my arrival, Morley had a bit of preventive maintenance done to the car so I wouldn鈥檛 have any problems during my two-day rental. I鈥檝e heard people make a common utterance to air-cooled 911 virgins almost everywhere I go, and it鈥檚 the truth: You must drive one to know what you鈥檙e missing. No other car Porsche has made since the 1960s comes close to replicating all the details that make up the 911 experience. So, once I was seated in the brown leather interior, I took a few minutes to familiarize myself with this quirky little sports car. The first thing I notice is the unadjustable steering wheel, which is placed a bit too low and far away for my total comfort. I then slide the seat forward and do my usual dance to find my preferred distance from the pedals 鈥?with my left foot on the clutch, there鈥檚 a slight bend to my knee. I take note how the floor-hinged clutch and brake pedals are trying to fold my feet into my shins, and then give the gear lever a few rows.
The Type 915 gearbox that was found in every manual 911 from 1972-1986 deserves it own introductory paragraph because it feels nothing like any modern manual transmission. From my past experiences with this gearbox, my dislike for it was already known. The quirkiness starts with your first grab of the shift lever. You鈥檒l notice it does not return to center when in neutral; it will stay in whatever position you leave it, between first and second, third and fourth, or somewhere in between. The lack of a return-to-center spring is likely to give first-timers the impression that the gearbox is broken, even though it isn鈥檛, and initiate fears of selecting first when going to third. After re-familiarizing myself with the transmission, I turn the left-hand ignition, reach down for the shifter next to the seat鈥檚 bottom bolster, and pull left while pushing it up into first. I roll gingerly onto the gas pedal, ease off the clutch, and am on my way. The SC鈥檚 3.0-liter flat six up to 4,000 rpm makes a sound that鈥檚 nothing to write home about.
A nice burbly idle is followed by increasingly louder noise as the revs climb, without much of the endearing flat-six wail. As I drive away from Canyon State Classics, the engine is buttery smooth and imparts the feeling of quality, regardless of the noise it鈥檚 emitting. And then it鈥檚 time to shift. Approaching 4,000 rpm, I grab the shifter, roll onto the clutch pedal and off the gas, pull it out of first and into second, and complete the shift. It was not smooth, and smooth shifting is a point of pride for me. The 915 had reared its head in protest. I continued to make inconsistent, jerky shifts, and even asked knowledgeable 911 owner and Porsche Panorama contributor Nathan Merz, who was also attending the auctions, if there was something wrong with the transmission. Nope, it鈥檚 fine, he quipped. He suggested that I slow down my shifts to smooth them out, because the 915 doesn鈥檛 take well to quick shifts. I took his advice, slowing gear changes to what seemed like a snail鈥檚 pace, and pretty soon I was able to go from gear to gear without upsetting the car.