I went for a ride in Ruf CTR-1 "Yellowbird"...

[Emission]

I just accepted a position as the Editor-in-Chief of our PCA Chapter (Santa Barbara) newsletter. It is an award-winning monthly publication. I start in January.

While at the Ventura show last weekend, I bumped into my dream car on display – the Ruf CTR-1 “Yellowbird” – I had to review it for my first issue in a few months!

A few phone calls, and a week later, I found myself looking at the real “Yellowbird” (the first unit and the one on the cover of Road & Track from July 1987) parked in the garage of an individual in Santa Barbara. Owned by German Luis Ruf (aka RUF Automobiles), the car was on loan to Road & Track and a few shows in California. It is waiting to be flown back to Germany in the next few days. It looks great, with a fresh coat of bright yellow paint.

The value of the car, when new, was about $150,000. Today, it is arguably priceless (um, $1 million+?) so I knew I wouldn’t be driving it. Little matter, I just wanted a ride.

A few initial observations (I haven’t written the article or done my fact-checking yet):

The chassis is a narrow-body 1987 coupe, no sunroof. The rear fender from a ’72 (I think) was welded on so the oil can be filled from there. Inside, you’ll find a full cage, Recaro seats, and harnesses. Rain gutters are shaved for better aerodynamics (it only has one tiny mirror on the exterior). Crank windows and no A/C. NACA ducting on the fenders feed the intercoolers.

The engine is a flat-6, 3.4-liter, with twin turbos (K-26’s, I think) and twin intercoolers. Boost is adjustable from .4 – 1.3 bar. It makes 469 hp and 457 lb-ft of torque. No CAT or US emission equipment - German car. Transmission is a 5-speed with a dog-leg pattern. The car weighs only about 2580 pounds!

Front tires are 205’s on 17’s (I think), while rears are only 255’s on 17-inch forged aluminum Ruf wheels (from Speedline).

The Ruf CTR-1 was designed to be the ultimate touring car, not a track car. It was designed to corner very well, but to also ride well (compromise here). Luis Ruf designs cars for function, not aesthetics - everything has a purpose, and it will work flawlessly. Remember, Yellowbird is 19-years-old!

Cutting to the chase, I strapped in as Yellowbird was started. The idle is smooth, and the exhaust is deep and subtle. It is quieter than my 930 with dual Fabspeeds.

We pulled away and waited for the car to warm. It hadn’t been driven since it left the Ventura show. I was amazed that it rode much like my 930 – not at all harsh.

After a painfully long warm up, we finally found an open stretch of road north of Santa Barbara. At 60, with the car in 3rd, the pedal was floored. The turbos spooled immediately and we blasted forward. Holy shhiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii.....

BLASTING is about right. This car MOVED. We hit 120+ mph in seconds – then we had to let off. What a rush!

In thirty-eight years, I have never felt a car accelerate like the Yellowbird. 0-60 is a tested 4.0 seconds. However, 0-100 is a blazing 7.3 seconds (compare that to the 959 Sport at 8.2 seconds, or the brand-new 505 bhp Corvette Z06 at 7.9 seconds!). Freeway acceleration above 100 mph was better than my 930 under full boost in second gear at 40 mph. My 930 does 0-100 in an embarrassingly slow – under these comparisons - 11.5 seconds (and that’s after ripping off a 0-60 in less than five seconds). It felt much like a Boeing 757 barreling down the runway as the acceleration increased as speed increased!

Top speed is 211 mph.

You can pass anyone, at any time, in the Yellowbird.

Riding in Yellowbird, nearly every pre-’99 Carrera owner will notice the lack of wind noise above 70 mph – credit missing rain gutters. Take away the exterior mirrors too, and it is eerily quiet up there. All the noise is from behind you, from the engine compartment (sound deadening absent). The car is much better aerodynamically than my wide-body 930 (which was starting to look a bit piggish at this point).

Though not the targeted focus, handling was nearly perfect. High-speed sweepers, and canyon roads, were no issue. Yellowbird stuck. Period.

We drove for about two hours, stopping for pictures many times along the way. Except for climbing in and out, and strapping in and out, of competition Recaros multiple times an hour (what a PITA), the ride was very comfortable, even with the “sport” suspension on the Yellowbird.

(For those who were wondering - oil temps hovered at about 80 C. during the entire drive - about 170 F. - not bad for an oil-cooled twin-turbo engine that makes nearly 470 hp!)

Back in Santa Barbara, I said goodbye to the fastest car I may ever ride in.

A few pictures (that's my 930 next to Yellowbird):

[bento]

Great read on a Monday morning. Thanks.

db

[JTO]

Sorry if I missed something but isn't it "Alois Ruf" you are talking about?

I saw the car too at the PCA Escape. It toured with us. What a car. Really tractable around town. Alois was great and very chatty. He loves talking cars.
Troy

[KobaltBlau]

cool! thank you for sharing this with us.

[SLO-BOB]

Cool story/car. Thanks for sharing!

[Emission]

Originally posted by JTO
Sorry if I missed something but isn't it "Alois Ruf" you are talking about?

I saw the car too at the PCA Escape. It toured with us. What a car. Really tractable around town. Alois was great and very chatty. He loves talking cars.
Troy

Yes, Luis Ruf = Alois Ruf.

[sammyg2]

One more name to add to the list of people I hate
If jealousy really is one of the 7 deadly sins I don't stand a chance
Is that the same car on the nurburgring video? you know which video I'm talking about, the one I've drooled over at least 1000 times.

[Jeff]

Great read. Beautiful car! Do you have any straight on photos of the front bumper/ spoiler you could post?

Sammyg2, LINK THE VIDEO! I wanna see.

[motion]

That is awesome!!!

[Emission]

Originally posted by sammyg2
One more name to add to the list of people I hate
If jealousy really is one of the 7 deadly sins I don't stand a chance
Is that the same car on the nurburgring video? you know which video I'm talking about, the one I've drooled over at least 1000 times.

Yes, fairly certain. The car now has a proper "Ruf" steering wheel however (looks just like the 930S wheel).

There were several Ruf CTR-1 "Yellowbird" cars made (I think about ten, but I need to research). It is my understanding that the first Yellowbird has the NACA ducting on the fenders as an intake for the intercoolers. Later, it was found that area is low pressure (no airflow), so they were relocated (under the car, I think).

I found the video here:

http://www.aocb77.dsl.pipex.com/RUF.wmv

[Emission]

Originally posted by C U L8R
Great read. Beautiful car! Do you have any straight on photos of the front bumper/ spoiler you could post?

Sammyg2, LINK THE VIDEO! I wanna see.

Aerodynamically clean!

A small rubber spoiler under the chin.

[Kroggers]

That is soooooooo cool. I want that car so much!!!

[acapella8]

Wonderful reading, can you share more pics of engine compartment.

-Tom
Newbee 78SC, dreaming of yellow today...

[RickM]

Which rear flares are those? Looks like they're between a Carrera and turbo.

[Emission]

Originally posted by RickM
Which rear flares are those? Looks like they're between a Carrera and turbo.

It is my understanding they start as a 1987 narrow-body Carrera, then they are moved out about 1" on each side.

[David]

How was the traction with the 255 rear tires?

[goat]

I am so envious.
great write-up too.
do you know if that car on torsion bars?
and did you get any other info on the suspension setup?

[}{arlequin]

wish you posted that early enough to replace my caffeine rush!!! great story and very cool pics! thanks.

[Emission]

Originally posted by 125shifter
How was the traction with the 255 rear tires?

We never pushed that hard on a corner, but they did claw for traction under acceleration in the first two gears (in any case, on a car that only weighs 2580 lbs, 255's are pretty wide). They were not the original Dunlop tires either, they were modern sticky Michelins.

[Emission]

Originally posted by goat
I am so envious.
great write-up too.
do you know if that car on torsion bars?
and did you get any other info on the suspension setup?

Good question, for which I don't know the answer. I will find out (it may take a day or two).