Lanzante’s TAG Championship is a Porsche 911 with an F1 engine

If you think the Porsche 911 restomod formula has become stale, Lanzante’s new TAG Championship is proof that there’s still room for innovation in the space. And room for a genuine McLaren F1 car power unit in the back of a 911…

The British engineering firm responsible for the McLaren P1 LM and Pagani Zonda Revolucion has re-engineered the iconic 930 Turbo to accept the TAG 1.5-litre V6 engine used in 80s McLaren F1 cars. The end result is a 616bhp 911 that revs to 10,250rpm, and weighs just 920kg (without fuel) thanks to carbonfibre components. 

The engine is the real deal too. The Porsche-built TAG TTE P01 turbocharged motor drove McLaren to three F1 world championships in the mid-80s with Niki Lauda and Alain Prost, with Cosworth rebuilding three race-used units for the TAG Championship. 

New pistons, conrods, valves, cams and revised intake and exhaust systems have been fitted for use in the 911, along with new titanium turbos that save 8kg. The TAG Championship is fully road legal and runs on regular fuel, and uses a Porsche 993 gearbox with custom ratios. 

This isn’t the first time Lanzante has installed the TAG engine in a 911, having built the TAG Turbo last year in tribute to a one-off McLaren-built 911 prototype from the 80s. The Championship is more powerful and lighter than its predecessor, focusing on raw performance rather than faithfully recreating the original prototype. As such it uses carbonfibre for the bonnet, doors, front wings, front splitter, roof and rear wing, along with carbon/magnesium 18-inch wheels and ceramic brakes.

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Lanzante has stripped the interior down to its bare essentials, removing the electric windows and mirrors while fitting a lightweight climate control system. A roll cage and carbon-backed Recaro seats with six-point harnesses complete the motorsport feel. 

Just three TAG Championships will be built, the first of which will debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed this year.