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Porsche 904 Bergspyder (1965 – 1966)

Porsche 904 Bergspyder
Porsche 904 Bergspyder
Model
Porsche 904 Bergspyder
Years
1965 - 1966
Production
5 units
Engine
2L Type 771 B8
Power
240 bhp @ 8700 rpm
Torque
N/A
0 - 60 mph
N/A
Top Speed
161 mph

Porsche 904 Bergspyder (1965 – 1966)

Porsche 904 Spyder

Premiere: May 9, 1965, Targa Florio / Engine: Porsche type 771, 2.0-litre flat-8, 191 kW / Notable Drivers: Gerhard Mitter (10), Charlie Kolb (5), Jo Bonnier (2), Colin Davis (2), Hans Schenk (1), Bob Thorpe (1), John Fulp (1), Jochen Rindt (1), Graham Hill (1), Herbert Müller (1)

For 1965 racing season Porsche built five 904 Spyders for its own use – chassis 906-003, -004, -007, -008 and -009. All 904 spyders had 8-cylinder 2-litre engines. There were two body variants, the 003, 004 and 009 cars had natural Spyder look as you would expect from a Porsche of that era, while the 007 and 008 had not so pleasing design. To increase cornering capability in hillclimbing, the overhangs were shortened. While the spyder-version of the 904 has often been called as a Bergspyder, it was not just used for hillclimbing. The spyders also got nicknamed as ‘kangaroo’ because of the roadholding – the lightweight cars with stiff suspensions jumped on bad roads.

The first racing event for the 904 Spyder was 1965 Targa Florio held on May 9.

The 904 Spyder #182 (chassis 906-008) driven by Gerhard Mitter/Colin Davis is victorious in 2-litre prototype class and scores 2nd overall after a 3.3-litre Ferrari.

The sister car to the Targa Florio runner-up was chassis 906-007. Factory team entered it only twice – at the Rossfeld hill climb and Norisring racing event. Gerhard Mitter won both. The car was then sold on to private driver, while the Targa Florio car was totalled at the Cesana-Sestriere Hillclimb.

Then there were the more beautiful 904 Spyders, chassis 906-003, -004 and -009. The 003 was the first one taken to the event – the 1965 Nürburgring 1000 km – but was completely crashed at the practice.

The 906-004 car is entered into a 2-litre prototype race on Solitude on July 18, 1965 and wins it driven by Gerhard Mitter.

The last event where the factory team entered 904 Spyders was Schauinsland Hillclimb on August 8, 1965. Ludovico Scarfiotti won the event for Ferrari and Gerhard Mitter scored second just 1.9 seconds behind in a 904 Spyder, chassis 906-004. The other 904 Spyder, chassis 906-009, was on its first race, but was destroyed.

Porsche 904 Bergspyder
1965 May 9, Targa Florio, 904 Spyder chassis 906-008
904 Spyder
1965 Targa Florio: the Porsche factory team has arrived. The headlamps of the 904 Spyder could be popped out when needed – a feature that would be seen 12 years later on a Porsche 928. © Porsche
904 Spyder #182
1965 Targa Florio, 904 Spyder #182

Targa Florio 904 Spyder
The Targa Florio 904 Spyder chassis 906-008 does not exist anymore (was destroyed at 1965 Cesana-Sestriere Hillclimb). © Porsche
904 Spyder
904 Spyder, probably chassis 906-004 or -009. © Porsche
904 Spyder chassis 906-004
1965 July 18, Solitude, 2-litre prototype race winner Gerhard Mitter, 904 Spyder chassis 906-004. © Porsche

904 Bergspyder Race Results

The 904 Bergspyder was entered into 14 (including 1 race where did not start), which worked out to 17 entries. Overall, the 904 Bergspyder had 12 finishes and 2 retirements and an effective finishing ratio of 85%. It had 5 wins and 4 second place finishes.

Date Race Team No. Chassis Drivers Result
09-May-1965 Targa Florio Porsche System Engineering 182 #906-008 Davis / Mitter 2nd
23-May-1965 1000 km Nürburgring Porsche 21T #906-003 Mitter / Davis / Bonnier / Rindt T-car
13-Jun-1965 Hill Climb Rossfeld Porsche System 2 Gerhard Mitter T-car
13-Jun-1965 Hill Climb Rossfeld Porsche System 2T #906-007 Gerhard Mitter 1st
04-Jul-1965 Norisring [P2.0] Porsche K G 2 #906-007 Gerhard Mitter 1st
18-Jul-1965 Solitude [P2.0] Porsche 1 #906-004 Gerhard Mitter 1st
25-Jul-1965 Hill Climb Cesana-Sestrières Gerhard Mitter 2nd
08-Aug-1965 Hill Climb Freiburg Porsche System 60 #906-004 Gerhard Mitter 2nd
08-Aug-1965 Hill Climb Freiburg Porsche System 61 #906-009 Herbert Müller DNF
29-Aug-1965 Hill Climb Ollon-Villars Porsche System Engineering Ltd. 171 #906-010 Gerhard Mitter 2nd
29-Aug-1965 Hill Climb Ollon-Villars Porsche System Engineering Ltd. T #906-004 Gerhard Mitter T-car
03-Dec-1965 Governor’s Trophy 3 #906-004 Charlie Kolb 4th
05-Dec-1965 Nassau Trophy 3 #906-004 Charlie Kolb 4th
06-Feb-1966 24 h Daytona John Fulp 10 #906-004 Fulp / Kolb / Jennings / Rutan DNA
27-Feb-1966
SCCA National West Palm Beach
10 #906-004 Charlie Kolb 1st
06-Mar-1966 SCCA Regional Sebastian [Main] #906-004 Charlie Kolb 1st
26-Mar-1966 12 h Sebring Keymo Motors Corporation 87 #906-004 Kolb / Fulp DNF
04-Dec-1966 Bahamas Cup 86N #906-004 Hans Schenk 11th