Vintage Porsche 912 Crashes Into London Cafe, Two Injured
“It was lucky no one died,” one witness reportedly said.
This weekend in Northwest London, a small urban coffee shop had its front windows demolished by the careless front end of an Irish Green 1968 Porsche 912. According to eyewitnesses in a report from The Mirror, the Porsche was being driven incredibly fast around a corner and "just lost control" when it smashed into the front of the streetside restaurant.
One woman was treated for leg injuries and taken to a major trauma center, while a second patient was treated for minor injuries and taken to a nearby hospital for evaluation. No indication was given as to whether either of them was in fact the driver of the Porsche.
Short wheelbase 900-series Porsches are known for their knife-edge handling, but the 912 is certainly more well balanced than a same-year 911 might have been in the same situation. If the rear-engine car were to experience an abrupt throttle input or brake stab while still negotiating a turn, the common "snap oversteer" might have caught the pilot off guard, and an overreaction at the wheel could have sent the 912 into the shop window.
It seems unlikely this 50-year-old Porsche was not enthusiast- or collector-owned, as it appears to be in excellent condition. And the car is likely to have been driven many miles, as the badge on the rear decklid appears to be a vintage Porsche mileage celebration badge the factory used to give out to owners with documented high-mileage examples. Nice 912s like this one have been gaining in value and stature among Porsche owners in recent years, and this car's damage is certainly a travesty. More importantly, however, it seems everyone will recover from the event, and the car is likely to be repaired and returned to service.
