The RUF Turbo R Cabriolet: The One-Open-Top RUF That Proved Genius Doesn’t Need a Roof

Was it one-of-one? And how many Turbo Rs existed?

Yes—the Turbo R Cabriolet is commonly documented as the only Cabriolet example. Gooding & Company, in its catalog description, calls it a “one-of-a-kind RUF-built supercar” and “the sole Cabriolet produced,” while also noting it’s one of approximately 15 Turbo Rs built overall.

That “approximately 15” figure for total Turbo R production is echoed in multiple enthusiast and auction contexts, and it’s the number most often attached to factory-built Turbo R cars from the period.

So the hierarchy looks like this:

• RUF Turbo R (coupe): ~15 built (commonly cited)
• RUF Turbo R Cabriolet: 1 built

And that’s why the Cabriolet matters: it’s rare even by RUF standards.

How the Turbo R “life” began: filling the CTR2-shaped hole

RUF introduced the Turbo R in the late 993 era as the company’s supercar-flavored flagship after the CTR2 chapter. The idea wasn’t to simply make a faster 993 Turbo; it was to create a complete RUF product with the kind of cohesive engineering you expect from a manufacturer, not a tuner.

Gooding’s description of the Cabriolet frames it as a RUF-built car rather than a casual conversion, and that distinction is key. RUF has long been recognized in enthusiast circles for producing low-volume vehicles under its own identity—cars engineered and finished as RUFs, not just “Porsches with parts.”

The “genius” move: turning a 993 Turbo into a RUF Turbo R

The Turbo R recipe is classic RUF thinking: start with a platform that already works, then improve what matters most for real speed—power delivery, stability, braking confidence, and high-speed composure.

Powertrain: 490 horsepower, air-cooled, twin-turbocharged attitude

For the Turbo R Cabriolet, the headline number is 490 horsepower from an air-cooled, twin-turbo flat-six—the kind of output that was still exotic at the time, especially when paired with a usable street demeanor.

Gooding’s catalog notes the 490 hp figure directly, and it’s consistently tied to this specific Cabriolet’s presentation.

Performance: supercar pace with daily-driver logic

Classic Motorsports, previewing the same one-of-one Cabriolet, cites RUF performance claims of 0–60 mph in 3.6 seconds and a top speed around 204 mph.

That’s important context: this was an open-top car conceptually rooted in a 911 shape, capable of numbers that put it into late-90s supercar territory—without the drama of an Italian exotic ownership experience.

Drivetrain: traction that lets you use the power

The Turbo R is typically associated with all-wheel drive, leveraging the 993 Turbo’s fundamental strength: deploy big power without turning every damp on-ramp into a respect lesson. Reference summaries commonly describe the Turbo R as rear-engine, AWD, and manual in its core spec.

Why building a Cabriolet version is a big deal

Converting a high-power coupe into a convertible isn’t a cosmetic exercise. Remove the roof and you change the car’s behavior: torsional rigidity drops, shake increases, and high-speed aero stability becomes more sensitive. Doing it properly means reinforcing structure, calibrating suspension, and ensuring the car still feels planted at speed.

That’s why the Turbo R Cabriolet being the sole example is so believable. Even for RUF, it’s the kind of project you do either because a very specific client wanted it—or because the company wanted to prove it could.

And the spec choices make the intent clear. Gooding lists the car as accompanied by factory documentation and correct accessories—signals that this was treated as a serious build, not an improvised experiment.

The modern collector chapter: what it sold for

Ultra-rare RUFs have surged in collector value, and the Turbo R Cabriolet has auction validation to match its mythology.

At Gooding & Company’s Amelia Island sales in March 2023, the 1998 RUF Turbo R Cabriolet achieved a reported price of $1,022,500. That result is summarized by Elferspot’s auction recap and also referenced in a Chubb write-up discussing headline Amelia results.

For a single-build car, that price reflects two things at once:

1. RUF’s rising blue-chip status among serious collectors
2. The Cabriolet’s unique position as a one-of-one variant from an already tiny Turbo R run

What the Turbo R Cabriolet represents today

The RUF Turbo R Cabriolet sits in a very specific hall of fame. It isn’t famous because it was mass-produced. It’s famous because it’s the opposite: a bespoke, manufacturer-built idea that combines three rare traits in one package:

• Air-cooled 993-era authenticity
• RUF-level engineering and rarity
• Open-top exclusivity that exists once, and only once

If the CTR “Yellowbird” is the mythic headline act in RUF history, the Turbo R Cabriolet is the deep cut that collectors whisper about—the car that proves RUF’s genius wasn’t just about chasing numbers. It was also about building the exact car someone dreamed of, even when that dream required reinventing the rules of what a 911-based convertible could be.