Singer, purveyor of beautifully restored (and tastefully improved) classic Porsche 911s, has turned its hand to rallying.
The result is the Singer ACS, a modern homage to the Porsche 959 Safari built as a collaboration between Singer and the off-road 911 specialists at Tuthill Porsche.
The All-terrain Competition Study was commissioned by a long-running Singer customer who wanted an air-cooled 911 capable of competing in off-road and rally events. The mysterious backer actually requested two: one with a skew to rally raids, and another for tarmac rallying.
If you want one, the customer has even given Singer the go-ahead to build the ACS for other buyers who aren’t afraid to get their Hunter boots muddy. They’ll need deep pockets, though.
Nothing Singer is cheap, but the ACS will set you back a seven-figure sum in the UK. Apply your appropriate currency conversions and weep.
Based on a 964-generation Porsche 911, the ACS is powered by a 3.6-litre flat-six (air-cooled, of course) developing 335kW of power, sent to the road through permanent all-wheel drive and a five-speed sequential gearbox.
Off-road necessities such as a long-range fuel tank, full-sized spare tyres, and significantly more underbody reinforcement than a regular 911 (duh) are all present and correct, and the car rides on a unique long-travel suspension.
Each of the 16-inch wheels is wrapped in BF Goodrich tyres, and they’re hooked up to dual five-way adjustable dampers. None of this off-road hardware is what you’d call light. Nor is the FIA-approved roll cage inside, so the body is made up entirely of carbon-fibre panels to compensate.
As with any Singer, the devil really is in the details here. Those spats off the front bumper aren’t just there for looks, they’re functional mudguards with a difference.
Under the clamshell bonnet are some truly wild graphics, while the interior blends pared-back race elements like the fake-paint-splattered buckets and full roll cage with what looks like a Tesla infotainment screen, but is actually an off-road navigation system.
The ducktail look to the clamshell is a clear nod to the legendary 959 Safari, while the centrally-mounted exhaust has been nicked from the Singer Dynamic Lightweighting Study unveiled at Goodwood in 2018.
You could nerd out over the details endlessly. Lord knows we have.
