Sometimes the most important cars don’t look the part. While everyone obsesses over flashy supercars and limited-edition hypercars, the real treasures of automotive history often hide in plain sight. Case in point: this unassuming white Porsche 964 Carrera 4 Leichtbau heading to Gooding Christie’s Pebble Beach auction in August. To most eyes, it’s just another clean 911 from the early ’90s. To Porsche historians, it’s one of the rarest and most significant 911s ever built – one of only 22 examples that bridged the gap between road cars and race cars in ways that Porsche had never attempted before.
The Racing Series That Never Was
The Leichtbau story begins with Jürgen Barth, the Le Mans-winning driver who ran Porsche’s Customer Racing Department in the early 1990s. As the head of Weissach’s motorsport division, Barth had a vision: create a racing series for the then-new 964 Carrera 4. He wanted something like a 964 RS but with all-wheel drive – a car that could showcase the sophisticated drivetrain technology Porsche had developed for both the road and rally stages.
The timing was perfect. Porsche’s Carrera Cup was evolving from its 944 Turbo origins into what would become arguably the world’s most important single-make racing series. The 964 platform, with its revolutionary all-wheel-drive system borrowed from the 953 Paris-Dakar rally car, seemed like the perfect foundation for the next evolution.
330 Pounds Lighter and Infinitely Rarer
To create the Leichtbau (German for “lightweight”), Porsche’s racing workshop went far beyond typical weight-saving measures. Sure, they stripped out carpets, sound deadening, and creature comforts, but that was just the beginning. The doors and hood were replaced with aluminum pieces, the engine lid became fiberglass, and the side windows were swapped for sliding Plexiglas panels.
The result? A car that weighed just 2,414 pounds, which is 330 pounds lighter than even the track-focused 964 Carrera RS and nearly 850 pounds less than a standard Carrera 4. To put that in perspective, this 1990 Porsche weighs less than most modern Miatas.
Technology Transfer at Its Finest
The adjustable, electronically-regulated all-wheel-drive system came directly from the 953 Paris-Dakar rally car, allowing drivers to manually adjust torque distribution between all four wheels. The suspension was borrowed from the 964 Cup car and lowered by up to an inch, while the adjustable rear spoiler was fixed in position for maximum downforce.
Under the stripped cabin sat the same 3.6-liter dual-ignition flat-six from the 964 RS, but with catalytic converters and mufflers deleted for an extra 5 horsepower, bringing total output to 265 hp. Power flowed through a close-ratio five-speed manual, which is music to our ears.
A Time Capsule with 312 Miles
The example heading to auction is chassis number 004, finished in Grand Prix White with a black interior stripped down to the essentials. With just 502 kilometers (312 miles) on the odometer, it’s essentially a brand-new car from 1990. The cabin features Recaro bucket seats, a roll cage, and little else.
The rarity cannot be overstated. While the 964 generation is already the least-produced 911 variant with 63,762 examples built across all models, the Leichtbau represents just 22 of those cars. To find one with such low mileage is essentially finding automotive unicorn territory.
The Series That Never Happened
Ironically, the racing series that these cars were built to populate never materialized. After creating 22 development cars, Porsche shelved the Leichtbau program, making these vehicles forever orphaned prototypes. In some ways, this makes them even more special.
The Carrera Cup would eventually become a global phenomenon, but it evolved using different cars and different technology, and the Leichtbau cars became historical footnotes.
Spec Sheet
Model: 1990 Porsche 964 Carrera 4 Leichtbau
Production: 22 examples total (chassis #004)
Engine: 3.6L dual-ignition flat-six
Power: 265 HP
Torque: 265 lb-ft
Transmission: Close-ratio 5-speed manual
Drivetrain: Adjustable AWD system (from 953 Paris-Dakar)
Weight: 2,414 lbs (330 lbs lighter than 964 RS)
Suspension: Cup car-derived, lowered 1 inch
Brakes: 911 SC/RS specification
Body: Aluminum doors/hood, fiberglass engine lid, Plexiglas windows
Interior: Stripped with Recaro buckets and roll cage
Mileage: 502 km (312 miles)
Paint: Grand Prix White
Creator: Jürgen Barth (Le Mans winner, Porsche Customer Racing)
Purpose: Development for planned Carrera 4 racing series
Pricing & Availability
The car will be auctioned by Gooding Christie’s at their Pebble Beach sale on August 15-16, 2025, with an estimated selling price of $750,000-$1,000,000. A similar example sold for $1,050,000 in 2022.
David Brynan, senior specialist at Gooding Christie’s, emphasizes the car’s significance: “The Carrera 4 Leichtbau is one of the most rare, interesting, and technically sophisticated 964 models—and is among the last 911s that were entirely hand built in Porsche’s legendary racing workshop, Werk I.”
Recap
1990 Porsche 964 Carrera 4 Leichtbau
One of only 22 lightweight development cars built for a racing series that never happened, featuring 953 rally car AWD technology, 330-pound weight reduction, and just 312 miles on the odometer.
