Attendees to this year’s Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance are in for a historic automotive treat as the Porsche 959 famously owned by Bill Gates will be showcased at the event.
The Bill Gates 959 is famous, but not because it was once the fastest production car in the world or because of its connection to the Microsoft co-founder.
The 959 is famous because it spawned an effort that changed certain automotive laws in the United States.
Porsche built just 292 units of the 959, a car based on the 911, which was produced from 1986 to 1988. When it debuted, it became the fastest production car in the world (for a brief stint), having a maximum speed of approximately 317 km/h (197 mph).
The car was not permitted in the United States because it did not undergo certain testing.
Gates imported a 1988 Porsche 959 Komfort into the U.S., but without approval of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) or the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
The car was seized by U.S. customs and held for 13 years. Gates reportedly paid a fine of $28 per day for all 13 years the car was in storage.
While the car remained locked up, Gates and other car enthusiasts worked with Bruce Canepa, a retired race car driver who became a car dealer, to lobby the U.S. government to allow the car into the United States.
Their effort resulted in the 1999 “Show or Display” legislation, which allows vehicles of historic or technological significance to be legally imported into the U.S. The cars still have to be driven under specific exemptions.
The car named “the Bill Gates 959” is now considered one of the most important 959s ever made.
“This car isn’t just a marvel of engineering – it helped change U.S. automotive legislation,” said Rob McLeese, founder and chair of the Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance, in a news release.
“To welcome the Bill Gates 959 to Cobble Beach this year is an absolute honour. It perfectly embodies our mission of celebrating vehicles that have profoundly shaped automotive history.”
The car will be displayed on Sunday, Sept. 14 at the Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance in Kemble, Ont.
About the event
The 11th annual Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance and Motoring Festival happens Sept. 12 to 14 along the shores of Georgian Bay in Ontario.
The event is considered Canada’s premier automotive event, and features some of the finest classic cars from around the world.
The weekend event includes the Tour d’Elegance (for participants) through scenic Grey Bruce County, a Saturday Cars and Coffee evebt, the Concours d’Lemons in Owen Sound, seminars and various other festivities.
The festival culminates with the Concours d’Elegance on Sunday, which happens on the 18th fairway of Cobble Beach Resort in Kemble, a small community near Owen Sound. The 18th fairway overlooks Georgian Bay.
The event raises money for Brightshores Health System Owen Sound Foundation and for Sunnybrook Hospital Foundation.
Other historic displays
The Bill Gates 959 will be just one legendary automotive display at this year’s event.
Another prominent display will include three Experimental vehicles created by Chevrolet, these being the CERV I, CEV II and CERV III. CERV stands for Chevrolet Engineering Research Vehicles.
CERV I was developed around 1959-60 and is considered the “Father of the Corvette.” It features a lightweight chassis and fibreglass body and a V8 engine producing 350 hp.
CERV II was developed in 1963-64 and features a monocoque chassis and all-wheel drive, designed for a new line of racing Corvettes.
CERV III came much later. It began life as a 1986 Corvette Indy concept and became a near-production-ready supercar by 1990. The problem was that this high-performance car would have had a price tag of more than $300,000, which was just too high for General Motors, so the car never made it to production.
More information and tickets for this year’s Cobble Beach festival is available on the organization’s website.
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