Carrera DIGITAL 124 Porsche 911 RSR (991)

Carrera Digital 124 Porsche 911 RSR (991) " 956 Design"

Item No. 23885

The Rothmans cigarette brand's livery became synonymous with many Porsche factory cars in the 1980s. Whether it was a 911 or the later Porsche 959 in international rallies or the 956/962 in the then Group C international endurance races, Porsche's image at that time was significantly shaped by the Rothmans design.

Porsche cars with the Rothmans livery won at Le Mans in 1982, 1983, 1986, and 1987. Jacky Ickx, Stefan Bellof, and Derek Bell won world championship titles with this sponsorship livery.

Even though the sponsor's name is no longer visible on the car, the design is easily recognizable and evokes memories of many great vehicles. Therefore, it's no surprise that Porsche created this design to commemorate "70 Years of Porsche Sports Cars" and sent it to Le Mans in 2018.
The paint job, with its wide white center section and dark blue side skirts, makes the Rothmanns Porsche appear slimmer than the Sau version. Ultimately, it's just as wide and fits well alongside another car of that width on the 124 Carrera track. Driving side by side around curves is a challenge, which will likely result in paint transfer – at least during testing, two of the new Porsches, as well as a Porsche and an SLS, were able to drive side by side quite well. Shoulder strips, normally a given in 1:24 scale vehicle operation, are mandatory for these cars – I would forego guardrails altogether as a precaution. However, thanks to its low center of gravity, the new 911 Porsche isn't quite as easily thrown off course. The relatively high total weight of 250 grams is distributed as 180 grams across the chassis and 70 grams across the body. The substructure for the driver's seat is installed relatively flat in the body, but could perhaps be lightened by a few grams at the rear.
The performance is comparable to the other wide GT cars in the 124 Carrera range (e.g., the Mercedes SLS). The old, sleek 911 GT from previous production runs—which, as is well known, was also delivered with liveries that originally belonged to the current model—is somewhat more agile, not least for weight reasons, but lacks the axle width and weighty robustness of the new GT 911 Porsche. Racing will show which model will be on the winner's podium more often.

The paintwork is expertly executed and the colors are clean. The prototypical decals are clean and crisp. The visible driver's seat is painted to mimic the original and is equipped with the HANS system.
The axles are in good condition and run smoothly. The tires have sufficient grip, but they should be briefly sanded on the track, slightly beveling the edges.
Demagnetized and with slightly sanded tires, the new 911 is a real joy on the track... I immediately felt at home. The car is smooth and easy to control, even in tight corners. The headlights and brake lights are quite bright and very visible when driving at night.
The only thing that's not quite as sturdy about the new 911 is the front. There's a printed plastic part in the middle that acts as a ventilation grille. I hope this will be available as a spare part. Otherwise, I'd just glue a metal grille in there after it breaks.

I'm looking forward to a wide range of variants of the new Porsche – there's already plenty to choose from.

JoergW