Welcome to this week’s FC Throwback, where we take a look back at some of our favourite previous feature cars. This week it’s one our all time favourites, the Bisimoto Porsche 911. Forget economy and comfort for company cars – this one has 771-bhp, a roll-cage and an ass full
of turbos!
Forced induction or naturally aspirated? You can argue the toss all day long – of course, there are pros and cons to both. But to us, not a lot beats the massive kick in the balls you can only get when the boost of a big snail setup kicks in.
Even though Bisi Ezerioha, from Los Angeles, honed his motorsport teeth by delving into the dark art of N/A tuning, over the last few years he’s become something of a god in the forced induction world.
After moving to America and achieving a BS in chemical engineering, he set up Bisimoto Engineering quickly stamping his authority on the US car scene. His latest creation, this 1976 Porsche Carrera, tells you everything you need to know about the man, his ethos and his rapidly expanding tuning firm.
From first impressions it looks heavily modified and that’s for one good reason – it is heavily modified. It’s one of those cars that looks ridiculously fast even when it’s standing still. The front lipped bumper is endlessly eye-catching, but pop round the back and everything goes crazy. As if the enormous carbon wing isn’t enough, what really grabs your attention is the two giant, shiny turbos which appear to be spilling out onto the street.
The white Eins Gramm rims are a little on the jaw-dropping side too, especially stanced on a set of custom-built Eibach coilovers. You’ll have noticed they perfectly frame the mental 996 brake setup too.His goal was to combine the best elements of the classic Porsche with those of the new, culminating in a race-spec ride with the added bonus of being totally at home on the street.
It was no small feat either. For a start the old-skool air cooled setup had to be adapted to accommodate the modern 3.4 litre twin-turbo water cooled motor (not to mention a six-speed 997 gearbox). The engine that went in is a bit special too. Stripped and sleeved with new cams, custom rods and ceramic-coated forged pistons all topped off with an intercooler the size of a barn door. Bisi also took on the challenge to convert it to AEM drive-by-wire. “Even the engineers at AEM were shocked that we got it to work so well!” he says.
This is the third set up Bisi has experimented with. “The last one was a rear valance arrangement with huge 64mm turbos. It shut the dyno down at over 1000bhp, but it had a very laggy boost curve, resulting in light-switch horse power gradients.” Obviously that’s about as much use as a cock flavoured lollipop on the streets of Los Angeles.
With the twin Turbotechnics blowers Bisi says “the final product is perfect; 771bhp at the wheels with excellent driveability, fantastic midrange and a hair-raising top speed… all at only 11.4 psi.”
As for the Interior? Well, it’s minimalist at best. Only the absolute essentials have been kept. There are no creature comforts, just a pair of race seats with harnesses and a pretty damn-substantial cage. Even the doorcards have been replaced with flat panels to save weight. A sweet touch is the 11,000rpm tacho, pretty essential with half the US national debt tied up in the engine. With the bark of that six ringing in your ears there’s not much use for in-car entertainment – all that remains of the standard eight-track is a carbon panel that fills the hole!
Bisi has plans to take his retro rocket for a few high speed runs and perform some testing at the local drag strip and road race courses in the very near future. That is of course if he doesn’t sell it and concentrate on the next project.
After all the ‘oohs’ and ‘ahhs’, the next logical question for Bisi is ‘so how much?’ Or ‘where can I get my own one?’ His answer is simple: “I will let her go, or replicate her, for the right price.” We guess we’d all better start saving up then!
Tech spec Bisimoto Porsche 911
Tuning
Porsche 3.4-litre M96 engine incorporating Bisimoto steel rods; heat shielding intake gasket; 1000cc high impedance injectors; drive-by-wire 82mm throttle body; custom headwork; custom intake; Action 2MS clutch and exhaust manifold and web level 2.4 camshafts; Arias 9:1 forged pistons with ceramic coated tops; and moly coated skirts; high output smart ignition coils; AEM Series 2 EMS with custom drive by wire control; 5-bar MAP sensor; oil pressure sensor; electronic boost control solenoid; K&N oil filter; NGK Iridium spark plugs; Purol lubricants (10w-40 engine); twin custom Turbonetics BTX6162 billet turbochargers; Godzilla blow-off valve and RG-45 wastegates; custom Spearco air-air intercooler; Driftmotion 2.5-inch aluminium piping; Golden Eagle sleeved engine cases; 997 6-speed gearbox; Griffin shrouded dual pass radiator; custom aluminium fuel cell; Supertech stainless steel intake and Inconel exhaust valve; Vibrant Vanjen clamps and stainless hardware; Holley dominator 1800 billet fuel pump; Kinsler fuel rail; ARP head studs; VP Racing 100 unleaded fuel; Kinsler 100 and 25 micron fuel filters; RSR engine mounts; Odyssey ER35MJ dry cell battery; G&J braided fuel, coolant and oil lines; Burns Stainless exhaust piping and hardware.
Chassis
11×18 and 13×18-inch Eins Gramm aluminium wheels powder coated in Grand Prix white; 265/35R-18 (F) and 315/30R-18 (R) Falken Azenis tyres; NASA spec chromoly roll-cage; Bisimoto-Eibach coilover suspension; custom 996 derived brake kit.
Exterior
Bisimoto GT-X wing; splitter infused front and rear bumpers and side skirts; with Dzus fasteners; Carbon Creations GT Concept One top wing; Type 2 graphics stickers; resprayed in custom Bisimoto Electric blue paint.
Interior
Bisimotowerks racing seats and 11,000rpm tachometer with
shift light; Porsche 997 shift knob; Bisimoto fighter special gauge fit control box; Rywire mil-spec harness with low resistance bulkheads; Rueda interior paint; Rennline floor boards and steering release mechanism; Prototipo steering wheel; RS door panels.
Words & photos Darren Maybury
