Both Variety and Vanity Fair reported that Top Gun: Maverick grossed $156 million in the U.S. over the Memorial Day weekend, surpassing the record held by 2007’s Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End. Since then, the Tom Cruise film has broke record after record, and fans can’t stop raving about the testosterone-heavy movie packed with courageous pilots, insane fighter jets, and big boys’ toys like a beautiful sailing boat and the most insane Porsche 911.
Given that Millennials are the most nostalgic generation, it does not surprise us that they are excited about Tom Cruise running around with other gents, trying to save America’s interests around the globe. Interestingly enough, faithful fans didn’t even mind that the movie seems a replica of the 1986 Top Gun, using the same recipe for success: exotic fighter jets, young careless pilots, an insane beautiful Porsche, and an outrageous Maverick-frankly, we are surprised he is still testing R&D planes after all these years of insubordination. Considering the crazy times we are living in, it’s nice to believe there are still good guys out there putting themselves at risk for the Greater Good.
The 1973 Porsche 911 S From The Top Gun Movie
This is a collector’s dream car, and by far, one of the most spectacular high-performance vehicles that Porsche ever assembled. In the movie, Penny played by Jennifer Connelly, is the one driving this beauty. Apart from that, we didn’t understand how Penny lived such a plush life having a collector’s car, a fast sailing boat, and a house on the beach from the income she made with her bar, we loved she was a strong female character who drove a silver 1973 Porsche 911 S.
“Penny sails fast boats, so I liked the idea that she drove a vintage Porsche as well,” director Joseph Kosinski told Bloomberg in an email. “I think the 1973 911 S model is one of their most timeless designs.”
Bloomberg points out that in the 1986 Top Gun, Tom Cruise’s love interest, the astrophysicist “Charlie” Blackwood drove around in a black 1958 Porsche 356 Speedster, which was a replica, not an original. This time, the female lead had the pleasure of driving a numbers-matching original 1973 Porsche 911 S. The Porsche came from the private collection of long time Porsche collector, Nick Psyllos.
Lending the Porsche 911 S for the Top Gun movie was a smart marketing move, and Nick Psyllos increased the value of the car significantly. Just to put things into perspective, Bloomberg reports that a cameo in a James Bond movie can boost a car’s value by 1,000 percent. Meanwhile, Hagerty comes up with an even more impressive number, pointing out that a cameo in a James Bond movie can boost the car’s value by nearly 5000 percent. Hagerty highlights the case of the 1977 Lotus Esprit S1 featured in the 1977 movie The Spy Who Loved Me. In 2013, RM Sotheby’s auctioned the vehicle in London for $997,000. This represents a staggering 4,908 percent increase over the standard Hagerty Price Guide value of the model at the time. To be fair, Top Gun doesn’t have the same star power as the James Bond franchise, but this doesn’t mean Tom Cruise and his pilot drama won’t boost the price of the 1973 Porsche 911 S. With that being said, the 1979 Porsche 928 that Cruise drove in Risky Business was auctioned for $1.9 million.
Why The 1973 Porsche 911 S Is A Valuable Classic Car
This was a limited series and Porsche manufactured only 1430 “911S” Coupes for the 1973 year. Naturally, the limited production boosted the value of the car in the past years. But this is not the only reason why this particular Porsche is so in demand right now. This model year represented the last with the 2.4-liter flat-six engine (which was replaced with the 2.7-liter engine for 1974) as well as the last year for the small bumpers (for 1974 the 911 received the larger “impact” bumpers). Accordingly, it is an even more appealing model to Porsche fans.
The 2.4-liter flat six that came on the 1973 Porsche 911 S could produce 190-horsepower, a massive output for a non-V8 engine back then. This beauty was capable of speeding from 0 to 60 miles per hour in 6.5 seconds, and it reached the top speed of 144 miles per hour.
The 1973 Porsche 911 S was expensive when new, and today values are through the roof for pre-1974 911s, especially the “S” version. Penny’s model in Top Gun is valued at anywhere from $160,000 to $200,000.
