LimoncellaProjekt: Saving a "sunken" Porsche 993

It is probably the most interesting restoration project we’ve come across in a very long time. Italian Paolo Iacometti shares the story behind his quite unbelievable 993 “LimoncellaProjekt”.

Words: Wilhelm Lutjeharms

Photography: Supplied 

If there is a single story that has grabbed the attention of Porsche, classic car or restoration enthusiasts, it can undoubtedly be found at the Instagram account “Limoncellaprojekt”. The person behind the account is Paolo Iacometti. Based in Italy, he has done something quite out of the ordinary: he decided to save a 993 had been submerged under water, in a river… for four-and-a-half years! Let that, uhm, "sink" in for moment... 

• Find a classic Porsche for yourself here.

During our interview, it quickly became evident that he is a true enthusiast and didn't want any attention, but still, it is fascinating to learn more about him and his mindset. What motivated him to tackle such a massive project, even with the full assistance and experience of a workshop?

Background

Paolo eagerly shares stories about his upbringing and how his love for cars and especially Porsche’s 911 came about. But he digs much deeper than your general enthusiast. He zooms in on the 993 and soon admits that to him the 993 RSR is the ultimate and pinnacle of Porsche’s 911 air-cooled development. However, if you think he wanted to build a 993 RSR tribute, you'd be wrong. His 993 did take some cues from the Cup and RSR, but the story of this car runs in a number of directions and the end result, and the dream that is still being chased, goes in a different direction to that of a RSR tribute. 

Paolo was already driving his father’s Polar Silver 993, but he didn’t want to butcher the car to make it suitable for the track, but every time he did an event with the 993 he thoroughly enjoyed it and thought about ways to improve it. But then things changed when this sunken 993 crossed his path.

“In 2018 I saw the pictures of the 993 Carrera being taken out of the river on Facebook. It was the year when I thought regularly about stripping out my 993 Carrera and making it into some kind of track-focused car. But then I reflected for a split second and realised I could not do it to such a pristine and cared-for 993, I simply had too much respect for it. It was my father’s car, after all, and even has a full-service history!”

“When I saw the pictures and eventually the wreck, I thought, emotionally... ‘never’. But rationally I thought ‘Paolo, but maybe there is a possibility you can build this into a razor-sharp old-fashioned track tool’. This thought was running in my head, over and over. I thought, at least, let’s try!”

However, Paolo already knew about this car as a youngster as one of the previous owners, the third owner, Dr. Andrea Giomi, who was a Porsche collector, lived in the same municipality as Poala. This means his history with the car goes back more than two decades. The first owner was actually the Italian fashion designer Enrico Coveri.

From the information that Paolo managed to put together over the past five years, Enrico’s wife went to the Porsche dealership in Florence and ordered the car in the yellow that was closest to the yellow hue Coveri was using in his designs. This was called Lemon Yellow in the Porsche colour palette, available back on '86-'88 MY production. The car was passed on to another enthusiast only a couple of years later, and Paolo is now well acquainted to this second owner. His name is Alessandro Baccani and is an official Porsche 992 GT3 R driver.

One thing led to another, and during a conversation with the third owner, Dr. Andrea Giomi, Paolo was informed that the person to whom he had sold the car accidentally drove the car into the river during a rainy evening in 2014. “This was in 2016 when I had this conversation and I didn’t really think about it again. But when a couple years after this exchange I saw the pictures, I realised it couldn’t be another car. I realised that maybe there was an opportunity, because I wouldn't be butchering my pristine father’s car, but I would be saving a car destined to be crushed and destroyed. Believe it or not, but the core of this project comes from my appreciation and respect of Porsche’s artisanal masters - whether it is a painting, a car or a chair, but it is made well and it is made by hand. I like art, I like monuments and I like museums.”

Paolo had to pay the transfer of ownership fees as well as all the outstanding taxes of the time the car had been in the water (as well as the five years during the restoration), as if it was still on the road. “At that point I actually didn’t know if the car was salvageable or not, but I wanted everything to be legitimate.” 

How it started

“I put on old clothes, a hat, thick and long gloves so I wouldn't cut my hands and set a day aside to clean the car as much as possible. I knew it was going to be a long day, so I booked the tow truck for that evening. I didn’t eat, just drank a lot of water. I think I removed around a tonne, or more, of mud that day!”

“At the time I thought I could take some parts off the car and leave the chassis in the garden at my parents’ house. What also made this car special was that it had the early, and rare, short-ratio gearbox, the G50.21.2. I thought, let’s see what can be done, otherwise the car would have been crushed. I had no prior experience of rebuilding or restoring a car. I didn’t even have friends that worked in workshops.”

“From the beginning I wanted to be involved in the project. This meant the workshop would need to allow me to participate. I was thankful when I found the coachbuilders called Autocarrozzeria Capecchi in Pistoia, founded as far back as 1952. They trusted me and allowed me to be part of the project.”

Needless to say, the car was stripped completely bare. That is the moment when the team realised that there was no structural damage to the car. 

Challenges

“The most challenging aspect was the disassembly process, and specifically removing the fully adjustable electric seats. These were basically glued to the car by mud and rust and the aim was not to damage the control units or the need to cut the bottom of the car. Secondly, the hardest single thing to sort out was the gearbox.”

Specific parts that were fitted was an RS/Cup killer switch mounting base, RS/Cup brake control unit mounting bracket, RS/Cup front hanging hook reinforcement, M003 Momo steering wheel with quick release and an adjustable throttle pedal, among many others.  A genuine Porsche M003 (RS Clubsport) full aero kit has been fitted and up front is a welded strut reinforcement with genuine Porsche parts as was used for the 993 RSR. The rear and side glass are polycarbonate.

In the drivetrain a single mass Porsche flywheel and pressure plate has been installed, a Sachs performance clutch, a larger master cylinder from JPL Germany and the original limited slip differential has been completely rebuilt. The latter is part of the original car’s specification and so was option M220 (option-LSD).

The M64.05 engine was completely rebuilt with most of the parts surviving. The intake and the ECU are from the M64.21 that came with the vario ram air intake system. Aluminium billet Rennline engine covers were fitted on the both the upper and lower side of the engine.

Obviously, a lot of equipment that had been fitted were left out during the rebuild. These include, to name a few, the airbags, air conditioning, heating, carpets and sound deadening. An original 964 roof was found in Germany, and few people know that a 964 and a 993’s roofs are the same.

“Furthermore, the chassis, when it was stripped to bare metal, has been fully reinforced with interrupted seam welding, according to the specifications of the 993 RSR race car. The car is now ready for a Matter roll cage to be welded in, but it currently has the rigidity that is at least equal to the RS (M002), without the welded cage.

“The aim was to make a car that would be close to that of a combination of a 993 Cup and RSR racing car. I found the information of the welding methods Porsche suggested to the racing teams when a new 993 body was ordered.”

Parts suppliers

The suspension features Tarett Engineering adjustable mono-ball drop links and there are no rubber bushes in the car. The subframe mounts are solid billet aluminium. The engine carrier is that of the RS/Cup and the engine supports are semi-solid Rennline blue rubber mounts. The gearbox mount is also semi-solid as the RS short shift leverage, the so called golden-rod, are both from FD Motorsport. At the rear are brand new RS A-arms and Rennline mono-ball adjustable control arms. The front A-arms uses Teflon line inserts and the front features re-engineered RS wheel carriers in aluminium billet from BBi.

A 3-way adjustable coil over system, complete with aluminium billet camber plates have also been installed from Motion Control Suspension.

There are front and rear adjustable Porsche RS sway bars with Powerflex black series bushings and Moonball drop links, also from Tarett Engineering. The steering pump was removed from the right rear bank of the engine and replaced with the RSR electric pump in the luggage compartment.

The fuel tank and accessories such as the fuel level sensor are the original ones restored to brand new condition, as well as the brake fuel reservoir. Last but not least, Recaro Podium Carbon seats have now been fitted. 

The end, and the beginning

It is evident that over the past few years Paolo has learned nearly all there is to know about the 993, restoring it, rebuilding it and improving it

During our online interview, Paolo showed me some elements of the car that he has kept. Included is the Quarts analogue clock that indicates 06:42 PM, the time that the accident possibly took place and when the car’s electronics stopped working on 14 February 2014. It was already dark, it was raining and it is said that the river was also quite full. 

On the 25th of July 2023, Paolo took the car out on the road for the first time. Understandably he mentions that date without thinking twice. “I was rather emotional but it was very exciting.” It seems there will be a long journey ahead for Paolo and this unique 993 as he still has a number of ideas and plans for this unique, rescued 911.