Singer Vehicle Design
Singer Vehicle Design is the California workshop that turned the Porsche 911 air-cooled restomod into an art form. Founded in 2009 by Rob Dickinson, it takes customer-owned Porsche 964 models from 1989 to 1994 and transforms them over approximately 4,000 hours into objects that redefine what a reimagined classic can be.
Who Founded Singer Vehicle Design and Why the Porsche 964?
Rob Dickinson is a former musician, frontman of the British rock band Catherine Wheel, and a lifelong devotee of the air-cooled Porsche 911. In 2009, his passion crossed into profession when he established Singer Vehicle Design in Los Angeles. The name pays tribute to Norbert Singer, the legendary Porsche engineer who oversaw the brand's greatest racing victories at Le Mans and the World Sportscar Championship.
The choice of the 964 generation, built between 1989 and 1994, was deliberate. It was the last air-cooled 911 to use a significant number of carry-over components from earlier cars, making it the ideal base for a restomod that feels rooted in Porsche's golden age while incorporating entirely modern engineering.
The Singer 911 Process: 4,000 Hours and a Blank Cheque
The process begins when Singer takes possession of your 964. Starting price is no less than $395,000, and the build takes around 4,000 hours of skilled labour. In exchange, Singer rebuilds the car to a specification that covers every surface, system, and component. Carbon fiber replaces the original steel and aluminium body panels. The chassis is strengthened and reconfigured. Suspension is redesigned for track-level dynamics. Steering is upgraded to 993-specification for improved feel. Braking options include carbon-ceramic systems from the world's best suppliers.
Interior choices are equally exhaustive: handwoven door panels, quilted leather trunk liners, 75 exterior color options, each one a carefully curated pastel shade that manages to look composed and elegant regardless of the customer's brief. The result is a car that is simultaneously a showpiece and a serious driving machine.
The DLS: Singer and Williams Advanced Engineering
The pinnacle of the Singer program is the Dynamics and Lightweighting Study (DLS), developed in partnership with Williams Advanced Engineering, with Norbert Singer and legendary engine designer Hans Mezger as consultants. The DLS features a bespoke 4.0-litre naturally aspirated flat-six producing 500 horsepower, with four-valve cylinder heads, titanium connecting rods, and a 9,000 rpm redline. Every body panel is carbon fiber. Total production is capped at 75 cars, each built to individual customer specification at Singer's dedicated facility on the Williams campus at Grove, Oxfordshire. Pricing for the DLS ranges from $500,000 to $1.8 million depending on specification.
The DLS premiered at the 2018 Goodwood Festival of Speed. Robb Report described the DLS as Singer reimagining the 964 as never before. Singer Vehicle Design's official site documents the full range of commission options.
Other Porsche 911 Restomods Worth Knowing
Singer is not alone in the Porsche restomod space. TheArsenale carries the work of Machine Revival, whose custom Porsche 911 builds take an equally obsessive approach to the 911 platform. The Porsche 911 SC 3.0 MR 11 by Machine Revival is one example of what a talented independent studio can do with a classic chassis. For those drawn to bespoke Porsche creations more broadly, the full luxury car collection at TheArsenale features some of the most extraordinary custom and limited-production machines available anywhere.
