Porsche Develops 15 One-Off Cars, With Top Commission Around $15 Million
Porsche is engineering 15 bespoke cars through its Sonderwunsch division, with the most expensive commission reportedly already sold for roughly $15 million. Prices for the projects start at nearly $2 million, according to Alexander Fabig, Porsche's vice president of individualization and classic.
Omar Al Nuaimi
Seven-figure commissions, designs still unknown
The Autopian, citing Automotive News, reports a price range of €1.62 million (about $1.82 million) to €13.47 million (about $15.09 million) for the individual projects. It also reports that a customer has already bought the highest-priced car.
That top price exceeds the Porsche auction record cited by The Autopian: $14.08 million for the Gulf-liveried 917K race car used in Steve McQueen's film "Le Mans," sold at Pebble Beach.
The designs and delivery dates remain undisclosed. Supercar Blondie suggests the cars could use the 911 or Porsche Mission S as a starting point and estimates that finished examples might appear in two or three years. Neither the proposed models nor that timeline is confirmed.
Engineering beyond paint and upholstery
Sonderwunsch, German for "special request," allows changes well beyond custom paint or leather. Working much like traditional coachbuilders, Porsche's factory engineers can reshape bodywork, alter a chassis and adapt a drivetrain to produce a car outside the standard lineup.
Such work takes years. Porsche Newsroom and Porsche's Christophorus magazine describe a concept and feasibility stage lasting up to a year, followed by at least two years of implementation. Fabig says Porsche can produce as many as 12 factory one-offs simultaneously, although customer demand substantially exceeds that capacity.
The first Sonderwunsch factory one-off for a specific end customer illustrates that process. Milan-based architect and designer Luca Trazzi commissioned a 993-generation 911 Speedster; work began in February 2021 and finished in 2024, three years later.
The current program dates to its 2021 reinstatement, when Porsche established three levels: Factory Commission, Factory Re-Commission and Factory One-Off. Its institutional roots reach back to the Special Request Department founded in Zuffenhausen in 1978.
Fewer cars, more profit per vehicle
Robb Report places the bespoke projects within CEO Michael Leiters' strategy to reduce production volume while increasing profit on each vehicle. Separately, Fabig told journalists that future series-production projects could command premiums exceeding 200 percent over their base models.
Porsche is also considering additional "few-off" special editions, built in very small quantities, according to Robb Report.
Another part of Sonderwunsch is factory recommissioning, which restores and re-engineers heritage cars. Supercar Blondie puts the cost of work on examples such as the V10-powered Carrera GT at upwards of $800,000. Robb Report, citing Fabig's comments to Automotive News, gives a range of $500,000 to $800,000 per recommission.
Fabig said Porsche had completed 11 recommissioned vehicles, had another 16 in progress and had a waiting list of 21 cars.
