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Fifty years of the Porsche 911 Carrera RS 2.7

‘Duck tail’, ‘RS’ or ‘2.7’. Today, the Porsche 911 Carrera RS 2.7 is known by many nicknames. But its significance remains unique: it was the fastest German production car of its day and is the first series production model with front and rear spoilers – the latter earning it the ‘duck tail’ moniker. In 1972, Porsche thereby launched a trend for rear spoilers on series production cars.About 50 years ago, Porsche began with the development of the 911 Carrera RS 2.7. “The 911 Carrera RS 2.7 was intended as a homologation special. It was to be a very light, fast sports car,” recalls Peter Falk, who was then the Head of Testing for series production cars at Porsche. Even though the model variant was based on the 911, it ended up becoming a new base vehicle for racing and rallying that featured many technical innovations. The most powerful model of the first generation of the 911 was the first 911 to be christened ‘Carrera’ – the crowning glory of the Porsche range. Weight, aerodynamics, engine and chassis were all worked on intensively. Around 15 engineers developed the car from May 1972 onwards, and were joined by production staff.