There’s a sort of involuntary reaction that comes out when anyone mentions a restomod Porsche these days. It ranges from ‘yet another 911 claiming to be honed’ or ‘reimagined’ and maybe even ‘bespoke.’
There is also the amount of money and ideas thrown (sometimes quite randomly) at an above-average base car with the goal to elevate. And they all seem to cost the same outrageous and outlandish amount of cash—at the very least.
But for all the myriad companies messing with 911s, Fifteen Eleven Design caught our eye, simply because it decided to turn its attention to the 914. A choice that’s interesting in itself as the 914 was the mid-engined, semi-convertible, budget co-production between Volkswagen and Porsche back in the late ’60s and ’70s. It’s a car that hasn’t been on the most wanted list for quite a while. So, interest piqued, with the back story of the company that produces it being the elevator pitch, but more on that in a minute.
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First, a quick look into this funny-looking little Porsche 914. This is a car that’s not so much been restomodded as completely rebuilt. What remains of the original donor is sparse—mainly just A- and B-pillars, floors, and bulkheads. There’s now a strengthening central tunnel filled with the bits that didn’t fit anywhere else. Mainly because the guts of the 914 are from a brand new Cayman S—a 3.8-liter flat-six, a six-speed manual gearbox, and the looms to support it.
Which brings us to the execution of this restomod-rebuild project. Fifteen Eleven Design is a restomod offshoot from Mellors Elliot Motorsport. The racing preparation company is housed in Bakewell, a sleepy, touristy market town in the Peak District of England, that harbors an interesting motorsport secret at its heart.
And Mellors Elliot is the reason that the 914 feels so confident. Forty years of rally-car prep and build experience was placed into the making of it. The 914 feels like a familiar Porsche, but expertly modified with unfamiliar colors, because Mellors Elliot and Fifteen Eleven know a thing or two about essentially building a car from the ground up.
Owned and run by father Chris Mellors and his two sons Ben and Ollie, plus a team of skilled support, it’s a proper traditional family business. A business that’s been going since the ’80s when Chris was competing (BTRDA Champ, National Rally Champion for Ford Motorsport in 1994, 1995, and 1996), through the glory years of rallying. There are Production World Rally Championships secured in MEM cars, Asia Pacific Championships, WRC2, USA Pro Rally, and they’re now prepping Proton’s Iriz R5 plug ’n’ play rally car.
And that’s not all. During the pandemic, Mellors Elliot had all the free time to develop new skills and passions. So the garage started doing projects: concours restorations, light improving, and restomodding of classics. From Morris Travellers to Maserati 3500 GTs dating back to the early ’60s and Aston DB series cars with all the screwheads pointing in the same direction. Even the full recommissioning of a 1980 Williams FW07/04 F1 car driven by Australian racing legend Alan Jones. But Ben, an alumnus of the Coventry Automotive and Transport Design School, decided on another focus: a 1972 Ford Escort MkI that had been sitting around the back of the workshop. And like the best kind of projects, it quickly spiraled out of control.
Off came the roof, then the chassis was strengthened and shortened, and the rear Atlas axle and arches were modified as the asymmetry annoyed Ben. The front pair of seats is now where the rears should be, and there’s a 320hp 24-valve V6 up front with a five-speed manual Getrag. It’s a Speedster, which means there’s no roof, and the cover is actually tweed encased in polymer, like upper-class Scottish carbon fiber. The interior is similarly divisive, full of roll bars, bare metal, and saddle leather.
Honestly? It’s a weird build. But it’s the kind of fascinating weird that has you debating whether you love or hate it, the perfect kind of conversation. The next project is a Mitsubishi Evo VI series built in collaboration with Finnish rally phenom,Tommi Makinen. The build will churn out low numbers in total, and it’ll be pretty much WRC spec but for the road. Something slightly closer to Mellor Elliot’s roots than the 914, but an exciting idea nonetheless. A car that hits all the nostalgic notes of a certain generation, and a project that aims to make a capable restomod. Though the prices involved will probably be tough to swallow.
All of this is why that little Porsche 914 feels so special. This is not a design company that’s thrown cash at a set of parts, but an engineering and motorsport company that’s allowed some freedom for its creative alter ego. You’re paying for over 40 years of experience, rather than fancy quilted leather. Although you can have that, too.
And the best bit? The people at Fifteen Eleven Design, and by Mellors Elliot, are warm, funny, and welcoming. They’d make buying a car from them feel like being adopted by a rallying family. And that’s worth more than cash alone.
More photos of Fifteen Eleven Design’s Porsche 914 restomod:
NOTE: This story first appeared on TopGear.com. Minor edits have been made.
