An old car, yes, but with a state-of-the-art screen for GPS and access to your smartphone. This trend is quietly developing in the world of vintage cars, whose great mass, Rétromobile, is celebrated until Sunday afternoon in Paris.
If some enthusiasts risk calling it a crime of lèse majeste, this modernization is spearheaded by a brand that cannot be accused of selling its heritage: Porsche.
Apple Car Play in a 1970s Porsche 911
The Porsche Communication Management System (PCMS), Porsche’s infotainment system, is available on all classic 911s, from the F-type to the 997 and the first-generation Cayenne. The German brand installs a screen that can be connected to the user’s smartphone, instead of to the car radio.
“It comes in the same place, it is an assembly that is also carried out on the speakers, so now you have the sound of your car radio with Apple CarPlay, for example,” explains Franziska Le Gusquet, marketing manager, in BFM Business. of after-sales service. , Classic and lifestyle at Porsche. Porsche also plans to modernize the headlights tomorrow with the introduction of LED headlights.
“Many of our customers want to use their vehicle on a daily basis, so having GPS and Bluetooth connectivity in an older vehicle has become essential,” continues Franziska Le Gusquet.
“Of course, we were careful to preserve the design of the period, it is presented in a very sober way,” he adds.
“A completely digital alternative”
This need for connectivity has pushed the R-Fit company to work on adaptable screens for older models. As the company also develops retrofit kits (to transform thermal cars into electric ones) for Citroën 2CV or R5, the screens complete its offer for modernizing classic cars.
Installed in place of the meters behind the steering wheel, the screen should make it possible to control the charge level, the vehicle’s consumption or even when the car recovers energy when braking.
“The idea is to create a completely digital alternative to the original dashboard, while maintaining seamless integration,” explains Joël Ricoveri, development director, in an R-Fit video.
“One of the main challenges of the project is the integration of modern equipment in an old car”, all in analog signals, adds Erwin Museur, founder of Design 1880. The communication protocols were designed in collaboration with the Berlin start-up. Incar. R-Fit does not rule out eventually offering this offer also on thermal models.
This modernization of the old ones, however, comes at a cost: just under 1,000 euros in R-Fit, installation included. At Porsche it costs 1,300 euros, with additional installation. And don’t panic when reselling: the screens can be removed to restore the vehicle’s authenticity.
Source: BFM TV
