This Is The Very First Porsche Widowmaker

Early Porsche 911s became notorious for their wayward handling characteristics with all of their weight hanging in the back – add a primitive turbocharger to the equation and you get this, the "widowmaker."

The problem with these early 911 Turbos was turbo-lag, where all of the power would come suddenly after a bit of a delay. This sudden boost created a tendency for these cars to swap-ends in the corners, giving them their deadly reputation. Manage the boost though, and you had one of the fastest cars in the world at the time.

The first Turbo was a gift to Louise Piëch, daughter of Ferdinand Porsche and mother of Ferdinand Piëch, and has a number of unique features. There is a badge delete, a 10k RPM tachometer, and an un-tinted front windshield so Louise could paint from inside her car. Not to mention the gloriously 1970s red plaid interior, which Porsche should most certainly revive.

The current 911 Turbo has completely shed its widowmaker image with all-wheel-drive, double clutch transmission, and all kinds of traction management designed to keep drivers out of ditches. It's much more of a GT car that just happens to be able to accelerate like the Millennium Falcon when called upon.

It's certainly a departure from the original, but the current Turbo DNA can be traced back to the original widowmaker.