Ruf Rodeo mixes Wild West looks with 21st century tech

Geared like it’s ready for a jaunt through the desert is the creation of famed Pfaffenhausen-based Porsche tuner Ruf Automobile.

Originally destined to be unveiled at the now-cancelled 2020 Geneva Motor Show, the Ruf Rodeo Concept eschews the company’s usual track-focused creations for something a little more country.

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Though it evokes the memory of Porsche’s Paris-Dakar rally cars, the Rodeo was inspired by more opulent settings on the other side of the world, namely the Rodeo Drive Concours d’Elegance of Beverley Hills.

Designed by Estonia Ruf, wife of the company’s founder, Alois, the Rodeo takes much of its design cues such as its Navajo art-inspired seat upholstery and generous application of saddle leather, from their time living and studying in the United States’ mid-west.

The Rodeo is no gussied up 911 either. Under its matt paintjob and leather wrapped bits, the Rodeo is built on Ruf’s carbon-fibre monocoque chassis that underpins the CTR Anniversary and SCR, and equipped with the tuner’s fire-breathing 368kW/465Nm 4.0-litre naturally-aspirated flat-six.

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As befits its off-road looks, the Rodeo is fitted with a four-wheel drive system, bigger all-terrain tyres, and long-travel suspension to give it a little more off-road capability than your run of the mill Ruf product.