Yellowbird

The Ruf CTR shocked the industry when it blew away Porsche and Ferrari supercars in the late 80s. It's also the star of the most exciting Nordschleife lap ever recorded. The mix of sheer performance, exclusiveness and media frenzy made it an instant icon, that we celebrate here with the tartan seat pattern of the 30th Anniversary edition.

The Ruf CTR "Yellow Bird" was based on a 1997 911 Carrera 3.2 and is still the most iconic of Alois Ruf Jr.'s driver-focused creations, its legendary status no doubt helped by the fact that it's the star of most entertaining recorded Nordschleife lap of all time - the astonishment increases when you notice that is being driven by a man/deity sporting a very period-correct and surprisingly carefree just-popping-out-to-the-grocery-store outfit without even a helmet or driving gloves. No surprise then, that this multi-cam video packed with smoking tires and opposite lock sideways action in a totally analog driving experience - no anti-lock braking or traction control systems here - is regarded as one of the very first car videos that became "viral" on the Internet's early years, long before "being viral" was considered to be anything remotely positive.

But the CTR was not just a great driving machine or a very exclusive exotic car with only 29 units ever made. Seemingly from nowhere, the yellow underdog blew away the fastest factory supercars, like the 959 and F40, in the famous Road & Track Top Speed shootout, where it was clocked at 338.4km/h (211.5mph), shocking the industry with its record-breaking speed.