RUF – The KING of Porsche Tuners
- 42 Comment
Well, this is the last post in my 7 Days of Porsche Tuners series, and I've saved my personal favorite, and the one I feel is the best, for last. Today's tuner is RUF, a German (ha! of course!) tuner located in Pfaffenhausen, Germany.
RUF was started by Alois Ruf, Sr in 1939 as AUTO RUF, a general service garage. The business took on different ventures over the years including a gas station, full-sized passenger tourist bus, and bus company. Son, Alois Ruf Jr., is more responsible for the focus on Porsche customizations as his passion for true sports cars developed. When Alois' father, Alois Ruf, Sr., died in 1974, he vowed to continue the company's development and philosophy of innovation and quality.
RUF early on focused on the Porsche 911 platform for their customizations and enhancements with the first model making it's debut in 1975. They quickly grew to be one of the most respected international sports car manufacturers and suppliers of specialized components in the world. They even built (and still build) Porsches from the ground up.
I have always loved RUF Porsches, especially the 911 Turbo models from the 80's. That has long been on my list of ultimate cars to own someday. Most of the RUF enhanced cars are subtle, but are unbelievable performers. The quality and engineering is unparalleled. To me, they embody what you expect from German engineering and manufacturing.
RUF continues to be a leader in super sports cars. For instance, in May 2007, the RUF Rt12 (pictured at the top of this post) won 1st place in the readers' choice of the German "sports auto" magazine in the category of super sports cars. They beat out supercars like the Bugatti 16.4 Veyron and the Ferrari 599 GTB.
One of the most amazing creations to come out of RUF to date is the CTR 3. Not badged with the Porsche nameplate, it's a pure RUF manufactured car that looks like it's based on the Cayman with a mid-engine placement. Get these specs though: 700 bhp, 0-62 mph in 3.2 seconds, 0-125 mph in 9.6 seconds and a top speed of 234 mph! Just think, if driving in California, you could be headed to jail in about 7 seconds if you just stomped on the accelerator and didn't let up. That's speed we read about, but few of us will ever have the chance to appreciate first hand. I'm guessing that's one of those things you don't fully understand until you actually experience it.
One other thing about the CTR 3. Check out the interior. If that isn't subtle class, I don't know what is. I've always loved the suede covering on the Lamborghini Gallardo dash and headliner, so of course I love this RUF interior. Always feels cozy and rich when you're sitting in that type of space.
As for cost, RUF cars certainly don't come cheap, but you definitely get what you pay for. The quality and final product is worth the money, assuming you have it to spend. I looked at a RUF Porsche a few months ago that made it onto the Tempting Porsches list. It wasn't quite as enhanced as the models shown on the RUF web site, and the RUF engine had been swapped for a crate Porsche engine, but it still had some of the RUF enhancements. Be awesome to own one of these cars some day.
As a side note, the RUF Yellowbird shown below was a 1980's supercar capable of doing 213 mph. Only 25 were produced. Here's a little more info:
Based on Porsche's 964 turbo, the CTR featured carbon body panels (almost unheard of in the 1980's) to keep weight down to a mere 1100kg. The 462 bhp was transmitted to the rear wheels through an in-house 6-speed gearbox, again a rare sight in 1988. This combination of high power and low weight meant slingshot acceleration. 60 mph arrived in just 3.7sec, with 100 mph coming up 3 seconds later – both world records at the time, and still incredibly fast even today. [Via SuperCarWorld.com]
You can visit either the RUF corporate site or the RUF North America representative site for more info and pictures. Definitely worth checking out.
RUF Corporate site: RUF-Automobile.de
RUF North America site: RUFAutoCentre.com
[Source: RUF-Automobile.de]
42 Comments on this post
Trackbacks
-
Jeff W said:
I have always enjoyed looking at the Ruf cars. They have done so much and they always look drivable.
April 3rd, 2009 at 1:31 pm -
Jeff W said:
Thanks for your 7 days of posts on tuners. I have learned a lot and enjoyed the content and pics.
April 3rd, 2009 at 1:33 pm -
993C4S said:
Hey Ryan,
Thought you might like this video series about RUF
April 3rd, 2009 at 7:53 pm -
Andrew said:
OMG – that thing is Beeeeeauty-ful!
Maybe a new desktop background at work…?
April 3rd, 2009 at 8:17 pm -
Andrew said:
^ referring to the blue one. :drool:
April 3rd, 2009 at 8:21 pm -
Joe said:
Nice interior shot, love the upholstery.
April 4th, 2009 at 7:07 pm -
James said:
the wheels on that blue car make it look AMAZING!!!
April 4th, 2009 at 11:51 pm -
James said:
the yellow one is just so classic porsche looking =)
April 4th, 2009 at 11:52 pm -
James said:
actually ryan i was quite surprised when i hadn't seen ruf as one of the places you highlighted, i should've known you were saving the best for last
April 4th, 2009 at 11:55 pm -
Scott said:
Very informative series. Thanks for doing this. Although it makes me want a Porsche even that much more now.
April 5th, 2009 at 8:07 am -
Jeremy said:
I was not familiar with the Ruf car prior to reading this post. I am an instant fan. These are really sweet looking rides.
April 5th, 2009 at 9:43 am -
James said:
jeremy i'm calling bull s on that one. your head must have been in the sand
April 5th, 2009 at 9:02 pm -
Jeff W said:
I still can't get over the suede interior. That looks so comfortable I could live in it.
April 6th, 2009 at 8:03 am -
Jeremy said:
Call it what you will James, but I am a a complete dumb a$$ when it comes to cars.
April 6th, 2009 at 8:36 am -
Andrew said:
Aggressive James. Geez…
April 7th, 2009 at 8:39 am -
Jeremy said:
James and I have an agreement Andrew to make this competitions as hostile as possible for each other.
April 7th, 2009 at 10:39 am -
Jeremy said:
I love how the Porsche matches the color of the sky in that first picture. Great image.
April 9th, 2009 at 7:34 am -
James said:
well you do have a point there jeremy. you did think you could get your corolla all pimped out.
April 11th, 2009 at 6:09 pm -
James said:
so ryan, would you throw in a set of the ruf wheels on the 911 if i let you have the car 6 months out of the year??
April 11th, 2009 at 6:12 pm -
Brad said:
RUF , everything they touch Porsche turns to gold!. They just do the Porsches right too, Some tuners to other makes don`t always do the original factory car justice, No names
April 18th, 2009 at 3:57 pm -
Brad said:
I keep coming back to this post and just love that CTR 3 !
May 19th, 2009 at 7:24 am -
Phil S said:
I like the electric blue and the Yellow Bird Rufs
May 26th, 2009 at 8:15 pm -
Brad said:
I think most here probably popped a few of these pics up as wall paper, I did…..and actually used the CTR 3 interior…Its so cool. A wicked ride like that yet the interior still looks as comfortable as your living room.Maybe a little cozier
May 28th, 2009 at 8:27 am -
Stephen said:
OUTSTANDING work!
May 30th, 2009 at 8:19 am -
lar said:
RUF was always the one i read about;been around for quite a while.
May 30th, 2009 at 3:14 pm -
maria said:
RUF has a great reputation.
May 30th, 2009 at 5:10 pm -
Andy said:
if i had this job…i would be the happiest man in the world
June 7th, 2009 at 8:41 pm -
Phil Schneider said:
nice rims on the top car
June 11th, 2009 at 8:53 pm -
Stephen said:
This is quality work, but I wonder how much they charge?
June 16th, 2009 at 8:49 pm -
Brad said:
One more thing i would like to say…and thats to the title of this post : RUF, king of Porsche tuners…..Yes..absolutely and undisputed if you ask me!
June 30th, 2009 at 7:56 am -
Stephen said:
I really like the work that has been presented and I'm sure all the work is top notch, but does anyone know how much they charge to "trick" out a Porsche?
July 9th, 2009 at 6:47 am -
Stephen said:
I love the color blue!
July 10th, 2009 at 9:18 am -
Stephen said:
The interior picture has 2 gas & brake pedals. Is this "tricked out" so a left/right handed/footed person can drive the car, with ease?
July 16th, 2009 at 5:46 am -
Stephen said:
The interior is beautiful. Still would like to know why 2 gas/brake pedals?
July 17th, 2009 at 6:10 am -
mitchell said:
the blue one would definitely turn heads on the road. RUF!
July 19th, 2009 at 1:07 am -
Stephen said:
Can anyone answer my question about the 2 brake/gas pedals?
July 20th, 2009 at 5:54 am -
lar said:
once read a tuner car showdown in r&t.half the cars couldn't finish.don't think ruf has this problem.
July 21st, 2009 at 9:01 am -
Kristina Brown said:
RUF has a long history of innovation and quality with the tuners.
July 24th, 2009 at 4:00 am -
Casey W said:
RUF is my favorite of the porsche tuners. The first porsche video i can remember seeing was a documentary on the autobahn and RUF's 212mph test run. ever since then i was hooked. I dabble in my own tuning and modifications, but i could only dream of ending up with something like what they create
July 28th, 2009 at 6:19 am -
Laura Adams said:
All I can say is Ruf, Ruf!
August 4th, 2009 at 10:24 am -
luis said:
This is my first time at this Blog,I was looking for some Panamera Turbo owners feedback and I saw a lot of Ruf enthusiasts !
Ruf IS THE BEST! There is a lot of competition for the top,but there is not substitute for reliability!!!,and that is a BIG PROBLEM for some of his competitors. Also the horsepower figures of some tuners are based on ponies size breeds!!!!!!! At Pfaffenhausen,the breed of horses they use for their motors are the same ones that pulled the Budweiser beer wagon!!!!!!!!
September 27th, 2009 at 7:33 pm -
asx share trading said:
Gemballa is a turner company for Porsche's in the same way Saleen and Shelby is a tuner company for Ford's.
January 19th, 2010 at 1:01 am
