As the many fans of the brand will tell you, Porsche takes its wing design seriously. In fact, the 911 rear spoiler history goes back over 50 years. In all that time, though, nobody, be it a Porsche designer or an independent Porschephile, has come up with an aerodynamic design like this one: enter the 911 whale tail roof spoiler.
Sure, the Porsche whale tale is famous, having adorned the posteriors of special 911s built in the 1970s and 1980s—introduced by the ’74 Carrera RS 3.0, this is larger and flatter compared to its predecessor, the Porsche ducktail from the 1972-launched 911 Carrera RS 2.7. However, its defining feature is the rubber-finished tailing edge aimed at the sky.
However, as you may have already noticed, the 911 whale tail we have here is attached not to the engine cover, but the roof. And we dare you to find a Neunelfer that packs such a wing, be it a real build or a rendering like this one.
Why is this aero piece called a whale tale? Well, that was the name enthusiasts gave to the rear spoiler of the Ford Escort RS Cosworth, a rally homologation special that preceded the monster we call the Focus RS.
And this little element is what London, UK-based digital artist Khyzyl Saleem (aka The Kyza) decided to strap to the roof of a 964-series Porsche 911 (1989-1994). Now, before you question his methods, keep in mind The Kyza is also a body kit designer, and here’s his Live To Offend (LTO) Mazda RX-7 widebody as an example.
The Escort RS Cosworth kindly donated its rear spoiler to this Porsche
The Escort RS Cosworth never won the World Rally Championship, even though it did enjoy some victories. However, its road version remains one of the most captivating fast Fords coming from the company’s European division. This AWD hatchback came with a 2.0-liter turbo-four offering 224 hp, but the Cosworth engine allowed tuners to push it to over 1,000 hp. So please excuse the humbleness of the 755 hp example in the video below.
Also factor in the rarity—7,145 were built—and you’ll see why an Escort RS Cosworth easily rivals special classic 911s on the collector market, with a good example trading hands for about $75,000 these days.
No, the Escort RS Cosworth has nothing in common with the 911. In fact, if you want to talk 911 wings from that decade, we’ll mention the Porsche taco wing of the 996.1 GT3 (here’s its collectible value). From the side, this reminds us of the shape of one of Mexico’s specialties. And while it was later offered as part of a factory aerokit, the taco wing is also known as the Pacman spoiler.
Elsewhere, the square overfenders are inspired by those of another rally homologation special, namely the Renault 5 Turbo mid-engined hot hatch of the 1980s. Hey, the French carmaker is reinventing this as the all-electric Renault 5 these days, but this is another story for another time.
The mix between the boxy front and rear fenders and the curvy shapes of the base 911 body also reminds us of a much more recent creation, though. That would be the Singer DLS Turbo. The latest creation of the Californian Porsche-reinventing specialist comes with a price of well over $1.8 million, but you can gawk at this rendering for zero dollars!
