Alois Ruf Jr., head of German performance marque Ruf still owns his first Porsche, a 901 nicknamed Quick Blue that he was gifted at age 19. But his connection to the car may go back even further.
Ruf Automobile was founded by Alois Ruf Sr. in 1939, initially as an ordinary garage in Pfaffenhausen, Germany, near Munich.
An enduring connection to Porsche would begin in 1963 with the repair of a damaged 356, and later that year Ruf Jr. would catch a glimpse of a blue 901 on a rain-soaked autobahn near Günzburg, about halfway between Munich and Stuttgart. That brief glimpse created a lasting impression.
The 901 had only recently been introduced as the replacement for the 356, which the Ruf garage had already begun to specialize in. A trademark dispute with Peugeot would soon lead to a name change to 911, setting the stage for the sports car we know today.
1963 Porsche 901 owned by Alois Ruf Jr.
In 1969, Alois Ruf Sr. gave his son one of those earlier 901 models as a 19th birthday present, so he'd have something to work on once he got his driver's license. The original flat-6 had been replaced by the flat-4 from a Porsche 912, but Ruf Jr. happily drove the 901 for many years. A planned restoration was continually put off as Ruf Jr. focused on growing the family company into a performance powerhouse complete with its own line of supercars.
When the time finally came, in 2019, research showed that Ruf's car was the sixth 901 built. Previously thought to have been lost, it was the first 901 with five round instruments, and was painted Enamel Blue at the factory. So, given how few 901s were in circulation at the time, there's a good chance this was the very car Ruf Jr. saw speeding down the autobahn in 1964.
The car—chassis number 13326—was built in September 1963 and made its public debut at the Earls Court auto show in London on October 16 of that year, and then appeared at the 1964 Geneva auto show the following March.
Alois Ruf Jr.
A dummy engine was installed for the show appearances, but chassis 13326 was then handed over to Porsche's development department, which installed a real engine and tested the car at Germany's Hockenheimring. The blue 901 was then used as a company car by future Volkswagen Group boss Ferdinand Piëch before being sold to legendary Porsche engine designer Hans Mezger. He in turn sold the car to a businessman, who sold it to Ruf Sr. after it was damaged in an on-track incident.
With its full history now in focus, the car was restored to its initial appearance at the Geneva show, albeit with a working engine donated by a vocational college. As Ruf continues to expand, including setting up shop in the U.S., the resurrected Quick Blue is a quaint reminder of the company's humble origins.
