Porsche Love is in the Air | Water

By Christopher Carreiro*

For the fourth Porsche Air | Water presented by Mobil One, nearly 10,000 enthusiasts made their way to Costa Mesa in Orange County, California.

Winding through the Orange County Fairgrounds, the participants were treated to a carefully crafted collection, wherein the Porsche brand celebrated 75 years of Porsche Motorsport.

First Air, then Water, then the World

Emerging from Luftgekhülts air-cooled only event, Air | Water displayed a broader palette of Porsche, touring and race-born alike. Owners stood with first time enthusiasts as Porsche Cars North America unveiled its US debut of the 911 GT3 S/C.

Having returned from an immensely successful trip to Japan, in which Luft Tokyo displayed storied cars along a shuttered section of highway in its Ginza District, Luftgekhült brought together a fresh set of race cars and custom creations.

The Air | Water event is the brainchild of former Porsche factory driver and California native, Patrick Long. Having won legendary endurance races such as Le Mans and Daytona, Patrick became a brand ambassador and as such he developed an event that would showcase the best of what Porsche has to offer.

What the 4th Installment Begot

Luftgekhült has created a cult following, known for its debuts as well as unique activations within the event.

A champion of fan engagement in the racing world is AO Racing, with what they call their Porsche GT3 “Rawrs”. Iconic dino-inspired liveries such as “Rexy” and an “Roxy” have brought an all-around attraction to the Porsche universe.

Displayed prominently on the OC Fair & Events Center, AO Racing unveiled their newest livery, “Sketchy” ahead of the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Championship held at Laguna Seca Raceway in May.

New Creations

Exhibitors showcased their newest high-performance air cooled and turbo creations as well. Among them, Singer Vehicle Design and Gunther Werks were bookends on either sides of the exhibition halls.

Singer, known for its reimagining of the 911, presented its stunning Turbo Study and DLS Turbo. A restored 964 featured a 3.8L twin-turbo flat six producing over 700 horsepower that uniquely blends water-cooled cylinder heads with air-cooled cylinders, as well as, air-to-water intercooling.

Gunther Werks upped the ante this year with a robust five-car display, emphasizing a re-engineering of the 911.

Limited to just 26 examples the 1000 horsepower, slant-nosed 930 F-26 would be by any other standard the star of the show, had it not been for the car at the center of Gunther Werks display that rested under satin curtain.

Promptly at 10:30, amid a massive crowd, Gunther Werks unveiled its “Projekt ENDGAME” Porsche 993 Speedster.

This One-of-One 840 horsepower creation marked the last of their speedster line and simultaneously introduced GWX bespoke division, a go-wild arm of Gunther Werks.

“ENDGAME” featured a sumptuous True Candy Red finish as well as 24 karat gold plated intercoolers and gold finishes throughout the car, its spec derived heavily from Ironmans coat of armor.

Moments of Loudness

Gunther Werks turned the 24 karat gold key, warning everyone sensitive to sound to stand at a distance as they started their Projekt ENDGAME Turbo Speedster, roaring it to life. These activations were scattered throughout the event, periodically hearing the characteristically deep mechanical growl of a flat six firing up, a note of beauty.

History on Display

On the promenade, cars were meant to be discovered organically. Dunlop, as the official tire of both Air | Water and Luftgekhült brought a hallmark car to the showing. The most prominently displayed car of the event was the Dunlop 962.

The Porsche 962 is one the most successful race cars in history, particularly remembered is the Shell Dunlop 962 driven by Derek Bell, Klaus Ludwig and Hans-Joachim Stuck.

Hans Stuck is synonymous with the 962, having tested and raced more miles than any one driver, he set a track lap record at Le Mans in 1985 that held for 32 years.

The 962C in the iconic Shell Dunlop livery was purpose built for the 1988 24 Hours of Le Mans and recorded the fastest qualifying time, set by Stuck.

Broad Arrow Auction

Another key feature of the festivity was Hagerty’s Broad Arrow Auction at the 2026 Air | Water event. The hangar of the OC Fair and Exposition Center was abuzz filled wall-to-wall with bidders and exuberant fans alike as stunning examples of Porsche came across the block.

Notable cars such as the 1990 Porsche 911 dubbed the “Lindsey Commission” reimagined by Singer sold for $1,022,500. Two cars, however, sat juxtaposed at the helm of the auction, both in bold specs respectively.

First to the block was LOT 227, a 1988 Porsche 959 SC Reimagined by Canepa in striking Viper Green over brown leather.

Fitted with the full suite of Canepa “Stage III” upgrades this 959 now produces 850 horsepower boasting a new top speed of 230 miles per hour.

While the bidding in the room was inspired it stalled just shy of its estimated value of $3.2 million. Its’s counterpart wouldn’t meet the same fate.

Marque Cars

The marque car of the Broad Astro Groups auction was LOT 256, a 2015 Porsche 918 Spyder Weissach Package. This Paint to Sample 918 Spyder was one of just four delivered to North America and the only example selected with a black interior finishing with silver piping.

The PTS Riviera Blue spec was described by Porsche as “vibrant shade of light blue inspired by the brilliant blue waters of the Italian and French Riviera coasts.”

Along with the weight saving Weissach Package, this 918 was anticipated to be the top selling car of the event, it delivered. A heated bidding war saw the price clear reserve, finally selling to a phone bidder at $4,680,000.

With 84 percent of cars having a sell through rate topping $20 million in total sales, it represents the Broad Arrows best result of a single-marque event to date.

One for the Books

This year’s Air | Water was one for the books, setting the bar yet higher for next year. As the popularity grows with each iteration it isn’t hard to imagine that Air | Water will return in 2027 with yet another stunning curation of Porsche’s for all to gather in amazement.

* Christopher Carreiro is a Contributing Editor and Photographic Director for LA Car/LACar.com. Facebook users can view Christopher's Porsche Air | Water photo gallery on LA Car's Facebook gallery.

For more information about the Porsche Air | Water event, click here.
For information about Luftgekühlt, click here.