When anyone wants to find the origin of where modern supercars came from, the Porsche 959 is not just a great place to start looking. It is the only place to start looking. In 1985, when Porsche put the 959 on the market, most of its technical equipment wouldn’t have been out of place 25 years later. All-wheel drive, traction control, adjustable ride height, and twin-turbocharged propulsion were all on the standard features list, and almost all of those features can be found on today’s 911 in some way, shape, or form. It was a groundbreaking car not only for Porsche, but for the entire automobile industry–and it was so good that Porsche didn’t lend the NHTSA examples for crash testing, so the Reagan administration disallowed its legal sale in the United States. Luckily for us, it’s been 25 years since then, and the 959 is now fully legal on our shores without having to go through the Show and Display Act proceedings of years prior. Only 337 of these were made, and I’ve seen 3 or 4 of them since 2011, although this was the first one I’ve seen in silver in some time. In the sunlight of Scarsdale, NY, this 959’s time had come to shine for the public. Enjoy the photos.

-Albert S. Davis