GRAPHITE METALLIC

Graphite Metallic

Jeroen Jansen on chasing the childhood dream car.

Boyhood dreams are always larger than life. You’re a rock star and a footballer simultaneously and, naturally, you drive a fast car. As a child, Jeroen Jansen inhabited much the same fantasy, and it was his teacher’s 944 that captured his imagination.

Every morning, she parked it right in front of the school. Occasionally, he caught her leaving. If the headlights went up before she pulled away, he was on cloud nine for the rest of the day. The lessons in the classroom couldn’t hope to compete with the view out of the window.

For his fifth birthday, he received a Carrera slot-car set complete with a 944. More fuel for the fantasy, but it would be many years before he could buy the real thing.

Jeroen, now 38, welcomes us into his home in a quiet suburb of Utrecht. Designer furniture sits alongside pieces his wife has made herself. Copies of JFK, the men’s lifestyle magazine he edits, are spread across the table. Japanese language books fill the shelves and crop up around the house. He has been learning the language for a couple of years now, having started in preparation for a trip to Japan in 2024.

On the car, he says this: “I always knew I wanted a 944 and set myself the goal of having one before I hit 30”, Jeroen says. “I began looking online, but I knew exactly what I wanted. A Graphite Metallic 944 with the later dashboard, a light leather interior and black ‘telephone dial’ wheels. I looked at other examples but always came away knowing I needed to wait for the right one.”

In 2017, Jeroen’s patience pays off. An email alert arrives for a new listing: a car that ticks all of his boxes. By the time he contacts the seller, the advert has been live for less than two hours.

Almost a decade later, the 944 is still with him. Once his daily driver, it now comes out whenever the pleasure of driving takes priority. “I rent some space on a farm just outside the city. Whenever I swap my everyday car for the Porsche, I end up driving it for days. I take it to the JFK office in Amsterdam, to meetings, or out to the woods with our dog, Chef.

When I first showed my wife pictures of a 944, she didn’t fall immediately for this type of Porsche, but now she loves it so much. She encourages me to only put well spent miles on it, in stead of boring commuter traffic.”

"I knew exactly what I wanted. A Graphite Metallic 944 with the later dashboard, a light leather interior and black ‘telephone dial’ wheels."

Jeroen cherishes his Porsche. He waited a long time to find the right one and has no intention of letting it go.

We take the 944 into the city centre of Utrecht, heading for Jeroen’s favourite record shop: De Plaatboef. It’s an Indian Summer in Utrecht and still warm enough to open the sunroof. Cyclists stream past on either side, a few catching the sound of Souls of Mischief’s ‘93 ’Til Infinity’ drifting from the car. It’s one of Jeroen’s favourite tracks for a drive. Kavinsky’s album OutRun often provides the soundtrack to his time behind the wheel, too.

In this university city, even a Thursday afternoon finds the café terraces full. Among the vans and modern city cars, the Porsche’s lines have an almost graphic clarity. It is in excellent condition, both mechanically and cosmetically. But there is always a list. “Next week, it’s the timing belt, and I’m planning to replace the dampers within the next six months.” Jeroen cherishes his Porsche. He waited a long time to find the right one and has no intention of letting it go. Once, a classroom window framed his dream car. Today, the windscreen frames his world.