The new Porsche 911 R uses a variety of weight-saving design strategies and lightweight materials to cut pounds. According to the Porsche website, “The bonnet and wings of the new 911 R are made from carbon fibre-reinforced plastic, the roof from magnesium, and the rear side windows from polycarbonate.”
Notice something that’s not on that list? It seems as if the Van Berghe GmbH racing team did. That’s why it had its 1-of-991 911 R re-skinned in aluminum – sort of. They had the white paint covered with a removable matte aluminum wrap. The stripes that were originally on the car were kept, in spirit. Instead of green, the stripes on the new metallic shell became black.
No matter the exterior colors of the Porsche 911 R itself, its 500-horsepower, naturally aspirated flat-six seems more than capable of speaking for the car. With this tasteful, subdued, and quiet visual tweak, it’ll shout.
Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.
After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.
While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.
Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.
