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US emission regulations sure have a way of messing with cars, especially those from the late ‘60s and early ‘70s. For the 1968 model year, Porsche offered the 911T, 911, 911L, and top-of-the-range 911S in both Coupe and Targa form…. except in the US. Because emissions. Instead, we received the base 911 and our “special” version of the 911L, essentially a 911S with a base 911 engine.

Today’s Spotlight car is one of those “special” US specification 911Ls, except this isn’t just any 911L. This 1968 911L Coupe has a history. And not a history of being a significant factory prototype or auto show stand car. But a more personal history of a car that traveled the world with its original owner for the last 55 years.

The car was purchased new from Gunther Knapp, who owned Riviera Motors in Portland, Oregon, by a young gentleman entering the Air Force and getting ready to ship out to Italy. He had initially wanted to order a ‘69 911 and take delivery in Europe, but it was love at first sight for this particular 911L.

The car was shipped from the Oakland Naval Station to the US Naval Base in Naples, Italy, where it was driven daily to work and then used as a family car on the weekends to explore. Period pictures of the car accompany the sale and include fond memories of a picnic stop on the way to Alberobello, where the couple's daughter is seen eating lunch in the frunk, and of a ski trip to the Appenine Mountains, where the car is seen with skis affixed to the roof rack.

The car returned from its European adventure in 1972, taking up daily driver duties again, and then garaged and used sparingly from about 1985 onward. The Canary Yellow paint is original, and the mileage is documented at 134,000, as it turned the 100k corner once. The body is adorned with dents, corrosion, and minor scratches (signs of use, not abuse), and the mostly original Black leather interior is worn a bit, as it should be.

The car comes with a replacement tool kit, owner’s manual, literature, a stack of service records, and, most importantly, vintage photographs of years of memories; something that can’t be “restored” even by the best craftsmen in the business.

The market for 911Ls has held steady over the last five years, but as the L was only offered for a single model year, there aren’t significant numbers of comps. But with original paint, documented miles, and a story like this, you can throw comps out the window, and that’s precisely what bidders did as our Spotlight car achieved a five-year market high at a final bid of $160,000. Well sold, well bought, and well… just awesome. I hope the next steward holds on to this one for the next 55 years.

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