Just when you think the market is saturated with Porsche 911 restomods, another variant or iteration pops up. While the recent Theon Design reveal focused on on-road performance, Signature Autosports’ build heads in the opposite direction. Meridian – restomod companies have a penchant for naming their builds – is a 1989 (964-generation) Carrera 4 transformed into something a 911 Dakar could never keep up with when the going gets tough. It’s also got an engine bay that beats a contemporary 911 for drama, and that’s before the naturally aspirated motor even fires up.
Signature’s Meridian Reengineers the Flat-Six
Over the rear axle was once a 3.6-liter naturally aspirated engine, but it’s been replaced by a rebuilt 3.8-liter motor with Mahle pistons and cylinder sleeves, the former of which meet a forged crankshaft by way of forged Pauter connecting rods with ceramic-coated rod and main bearings. Stronger head studs and a rebuilt oil pump help contain and cool the engine, which now breathes through custom billet cylinder heads from Pauter Machine. That’s the juicy bit, because the cylinder head/s make the power and the bottom end just contains and distributes it. The shopping list here includes custom billet camshafts, IWIS racing timing chains with new guides and tensioners, refreshed rocker arms and new shafts, and RSR-style sealing combined with CNC-ported intake and exhaust passages, oversized valves with performance springs, and titanium retainers.
signatureautosports.com
Along with individual throttle bodies inside a GT3-inspired intake plenum with a high-performance filter – not to mention a lightweight flywheel and clutch – this engine clearly wants to rev, but while we can be sure it produces more than the 247 horsepower offered by the original M64/01, Signature Autosports did not disclose the redline or any performance metrics. Instead, the focus is on the ingredients that make up this recipe, which also include Haltech engine management, a custom coil-on-plug ignition system, a Clewett serpentine-belt conversion, and plenty of carbon fiber around the engine. That means the rest of the vehicle needs similar attention.
Signature Meridian Raises the 911’s Off-Road Reputation
The build features a Russel Built Fabrication Sportsman Safari Kit, which adds NORRA Baja-inspired suspension architecture to enable up to 10 inches of wheel travel. The wheelbase also stretches by 2.0 inches, and the track and ground clearance figures have also increased. To bolster Meridian’s off-road capability, KING Racing Shocks and Eibach coil springs are paired with updated suspension components, brakes, and beefy skid plates, while BFGoodrich’s widely used All-Terrain T/A KO3 tires fill the arches. In fact, they and their black wheels fill the arches too much for a standard 964 body, so exposed carbon fiber wheel fender extensions and bumper elements appear. This is a little confusing, given that a car like this should be hurtling across arid lands, not avoiding the slightest scratch. Carbon fiber also appears on the roof, where a Baja Designs lighting system is installed to complement those on the hood.
Inside, black leather and Alcantara dominate the cabin, from the seats and dashboard to the headliner, door panels, and carpeting. Custom door cards with machined aluminum details match the pedals, dashboard controls, gauge surrounds, handbrake lever, and gear knob (we’d choose something else if this is meant to spend hours at a time in the sun, but hey, to each their own). A MOMO steering wheel, heated front seats, a Kenwood head unit and subwoofer with Rockford Fosgate speakers and a Sony amplifier make enjoying your favorite music easier, while a Classic Retrofit air-conditioning system means you should be able to spend hours at a time driving the car. As a custom creation, just about any detail can be altered for a personalized build, but if Meridian #001 tickles your fancy, it’s currently on sale in Wilmington, North Carolina, with an asking price of $499,950, excluding shipping, taxes, title, and registration costs.
Â
