PSA: You Can Drive Your Porsche Carrera GT Again

It’s been a rough year and a half for owners of the Porsche Carrera GT. Well, as rough as it can be for people who own an example of one of the greatest driver’s cars ever created, which are worth comfortably into seven figures these days.

In spring 2023, Porsche issued a stop-use order for all Carrera GTs worldwide. It found that joints connecting suspension components at both ends of the V10-powered supercar were susceptible to failure from stress and corrosion, and at the time, there was no available fix.

The stop-use order arguably had the biggest impact on UK Carrera GTs. In the midst of it, we spoke to James Cottingham, managing director of car dealer and Carrera GT experts, DK Engineering. “[Our insurance company] told us that we are not allowed to drive the car, a rare occurrence under our policy in such situations,” said Cottingham at the time.

“We have observed that in the USA, adherence to the campaign appears less stringent,” he said, adding, “This could be attributed to the way insurance works in the States, where third-party insurance is separate from the car itself.” Indeed, the recall notice in the US clarified that if a car was inspected and was found to be mechanically sound, it could still be driven.

That left the 90 or so Carrera GTs residing in Britain out of action for around 18 months, but that’s finally come to an end, as Porsche has developed a fix and is in the process of repairing each and every Carrera GT. The fix comes with a few unexpected perks, too.

In the US, for instance, each Carrera GT owner is getting around $3500 (approximately £2600) in service credit to account for the fact that their cars have – theoretically, at least – been sitting unused for a year and a half. This was reported by The Autopian and backed up by CGT-owning YouTuber Doug DeMuro, and we assume other markets will be getting a similar treatment.

On top of that, every single Carrera GT is getting a full set of new Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres, again presumably to offset any rubber perishing that took place while the cars – again, theoretically – had been sat motionless.

It remains to be seen how this affects the market for the CGT, of which only 1270 were built. When we spoke to Cottingham, he told us “We believe that this situation caused a slight stagnation in the CGT market, which is understandable, as owners are left wondering what to do with their cars.

“However, we see this as a significant opportunity later this year. The market has slowed after this period, but once the 'stop drive' campaign is resolved with Porsche's recall, people will notice how other models, such as Singer DLSs, [Ferrari] F40s, F50s, and even 918 Spyders, have appreciated in value since the campaign began. This will likely lead to a surge in CGT values, accompanied by a sharp increase in demand."

Now that the issue's, DK has two examples of the car for sale, one of which is one of the first UK cars to have already had the recall carried out. Both are listed at just over £1.1 million, largely in the region where they’ve been for the last couple of years. As more and more cars get the fix, though, it could be about to become even more of a seller’s market.