When the idea came up of producing a series of race cars for the mainly-amateur racers who drove such GT vehicles in the early 1970s, the factory management was skeptical as to whether it would prove to be a profitable venture. After all, the factory had been in this line...
When I first started writing my book, “R to RSR: The Racing Porsche 911s” in 1987, whilst living in England, I had little or no idea which RS/RSR cars had been raced in France. This was despite the fact that France was only 21 miles away across the Channel. The...
Chassis No: 911 460 9029 Engine No: 684 0053 Prod. No: 104 2302 G/box No: 716 1222 (15/1) Colour: White/Gold First delivered to: Sonauto Dealership , Paris, France Aluminum roll bar fitted First registered as: 556 ACR 75 Awaiting the start of the 1974 edition of the Tour de France...
Ed note: The history of specific chassis used in notable races decades ago can be hard to verify but are significant to fans of Porsche and vintage racing enthusiasts. Information presented are the thoughts, data, and opinions of the author. Enjoy! This is the story of what happened to a...
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In 1985, Porsche prepared 16 prototypes for road testing. No Subscription? You’re missing out Get immediate ad-free access to all our premium content. Get Started Already a Member? Sign in to your account here....
There are 935s, and then there are 935s… Although almost a hundred Porsche 935s were built between 1975 and 1984, with the factory building some forty two cars and customers building the remainder, JLP-4 was by far the most radical of the Group 5 breed. No Subscription? You’re missing out...
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Development of the 1979 Kremer-Porsche K3 Kremer Racing, headed up by the two brothers Erwin and Manfred, from Cologne, Germany, had been heavily involved in racing 911s since 1965 for their customers. They used various factory racing 911s, such as ST, and RSRs as a starting point and they started...
Dauer 962LM Design and aerodynamics — Motorsports Design Consultants (MDC) Ltd Composite body — Lola Composites Prototyp (ex 962-133) No Subscription? You’re missing out Get immediate ad-free access to all our premium content. Get Started Already a Member? Sign in to your account here....
Lined up in the pit lane before the 1994 Le Mans 24-Hours, is from the left: #36 962 Dauer Le Mans GT driven by Mauri Baldi, Yannick Dalmas and Hurley Haywood; centre is the street-legal 962 Dauer with rather appropriate Boeblingen region (Weissach) registration plate ‘P 962’; on the right...
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Mention the name Porsche and motor racing, and minds immediately focus in on one of the famous race cars to pass out through the gates of the Stuttgart manufacturer. Depending on your age or favoured period in racing, the number of ‘best’ racers will be many and varied. However, the...
This story covers the development of the Porsche 911 RS/RSR prototype in the middle of 1972. Surprisingly, the very first Porsche RS/RSR, chassis number 911 360 0001 started life as a rally car—a factory built ST, 911 230 0769, which the factory itself re-numbered after the car had been returned...
#21 Martini Porsche 917 LH (chassis #042) was driven by Gerard Larrousse and Vic Elford in the 1971 Le Mans 24 Hour race – DNF, lost engine cooling fan From 1964 through to 1969, Porsche lifted its game from being a class winner to setting international lap speed and endurance...
1976 saw 31 customer 934 cars built. Chassis numbers run from 930 670 0151 to 0180 (plus 930 670 0540). The Porsche 934, first introduced in 1976, was the Group 4 GT race version of the Typ 930 Turbo road car. Group 4 in 1976 rules insisted that four hundred...
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Prototype 906: intermediate – Porsche 904/8 Bergspyder chassis 906-010 No Subscription? You’re missing out Get immediate ad-free access to all our premium content. Get Started Already a Member? Sign in to your account here....
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1968. The chassis was used at the April test races of Le Mans. In addition, two variants of the tail plumage were used: with a wing and without. No Subscription? You’re missing out Get immediate ad-free access to all our premium content. Get Started Already a Member? Sign in to...
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After participating in the 1971 Monte Carlo Rally, where the crew of Ake Andersson/Bo Thorszelius (pictured right, registration plate SY 7715) retired due to gearbox failure, and training in April of the same year for the Targa Florio Rally, chassis No. 914.143.0140 (engine 6408007) was, on the personal initiative of...
Images by: Virtual Motorpix/Glen Smale and Corporate Archives Porsche AG The Porsche 917 was the culmination of a line of race cars produced by the Stuttgart manufacturer during possibly the busiest decade, from 1964 to 1973, of its (by then) short existence. Just 21 short years after Porsche opened its...
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The invention of the Targa body style and the introduction of the turbocharger for production cars are two key moments in the history of Porsche. Yet a combination of the two only came about in the G-Series 911 Turbo Targa – there was never a Targa version of the transaxle...
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In 1977, to participate in the SCCA Trans-Am championship, American pilot Monte Shelton and, concurrently, owner of Monte’s Motors Co. (it still exists today and sells cars), purchased a used 934/5 from Jim Busby. No Subscription? You’re missing out Get immediate ad-free access to all our premium content. Get Started...
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Porsche 935 chassis no. 009 00030, the Old Warhorse speeds up the hill at the 2015 Goodwood Festival of Speed with Brian Redman at the helm This is a story of the incredible career of Porsche 935 009 00030, one of the most amazing race cars ever, or as someone...
Sports car racing went through some turbulent times in the early 1970’s. At the start (1970) the world championship was decided by the 5.0 liter sports cars such as the Porsche 917 and the Ferrari 512. The FIA /CSI (International rules body) at first did not think anyone would build...
The 1977 #40 Martini Porsche 935/2.0 Baby (chassis #935 2 001) photographed at the Porsche Museum, Stuttgart, Germany in May 2017 Ernst Fuhrmann’s requirement to develop a significantly updated GT race car in 1977, would present a number of challenges for the Porsche race department. Just to make things interesting,...
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936 Beginnings The Porsche 936 was an odd car for Porsche. It was the result of an almost overnight decision by Porsche Managing Director Ernst Fuhrmann in the mid 1975 time- frame. Porsche had spent the past years since 1973 developing cars for the upcoming World Championship of Makes rules...
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Porsche 956-106 (1984) The Canon-liveried 1984 Brands Hatch 1,000 km winner. Sold to Walter Brun in 1985 & won the Team World Championship title in 1986, ahead of the Rothmans Porsche and Silk Cut Jaguar factory teams. One of the seven early customer 956s built, sold new to Richard Lloyd...
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Porsche 956-110 (1983) One of just two privateer 956’s to beat the Works Rothmans 956, 956-110 is a super original, highly successful car and the second 956 bought by John Fitzpatrick Racing in 1983. Sponsored by J David it made its Group C debut at the 1983 Le Mans, running...
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Porsche 956-001 Works (1982) Built as the first Rothmans Team Car, it ran for the first time at Weissach on March 27th 1982, with Jurgen Barth at the wheel. It was then tested extensively by Barth, Jacky Ickx, Roland Kussmaul and Derek Bell. According to “Excellence Was Expected” it covered 4244...
Porsche 956-008 Works (1983) A Rothmans factory 956 newly built for the 1983 Le Mans. Driven by the stellar German pairing of Stefan Bellof and Jochen Mass, the race was story of what-ifs as it qualified third, led the race for the first four hours before a catalogue of issues...
Porsche 956-009 Works (1984) Sometimes, a car’s history is so good that it is never lost track of. Such a vehicle’s every move is recorded, documented, and laid out for the world to see. It is never crashed, it has only a small number of owners, and its provenance is...
Porsche 956-110 (1983) A rare bird, even by 956 standards, this is one of just four chassis built for the world championship to what is now known as 956B specification. Of these just three survive, chassis 956/116 being completely destroyed in the crash at Spa in 1985 which tragically claimed...
Porsche 956B-115 (1984) Mechanically the same as 956/114 it was bought and run by Porsche Kremer. It’s big claim to fame was leading Le Mans convincingly in 1984 as the Kenwood car for many hours, eventually finishing sixth and in fifth place the following year but mainly by winning the...
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RLR Porsche 962-200 (1988-1989) Richard Lloyd and his team were first to go in their own direction with a Porsche, with the hugely successful bespoke, and unique to the team, Nigel Stroud designed honeycomb chassis. The first 962 example, of 5 ultimately built, was the Porsche that looked to take...
Porsche 962-003BM (1989) One of the most successful World Championship 962’s in period. Both the complete 1989 season original FIA Scrutineer’s passbook and the 1990 ONS Wagenpass. Very competitive proposition for historic Group C and raced in period with high downforce nose and short tail, separate rear wing configuration. Full...
Porsche 962-004 Works As the first 962 was the IMSA test bed, next to be built were the first three works 962Cs. Chassis 004 duly lined up in fifth position as car number three at its debut at the 1985 Le Mans driven by Al Holbert, John Watson and Vern...
Porsche 962-007 Works One of just two new lightweight Rothmans Works car built for 1987 and then updated to Shell Dunlop spec’ for Le Mans 1988. Restored to its ‘87 Works Rothmans livery and sprint body spec’. The first of the three famed Shell Dunlop cars that would in 1988...
Porsche 962-008 Works An interesting car, even by works Group C Porsche standards. Not only was it the last 962 to be built to race in Rothmans colours, it was also one of relatively few 962s to race with a PDK, double-clutch transmission. The double-clutch gearbox is a common item...
Porsche 962-010 Works It did two races and won neither but, with the exception of 956/001, it’s still probably the most important car in our story. Unlike its two Shell Dunlop sisters, 010 was not a repainted ’87 Rothmans car but a brand-new chassis (number 962/140) built specifically to win...
Porsche 962-011 Works It was the first chassis built and developed at Weissach for the official factory supported Joest team, to race as their lead car in 1989. It featured relocated front suspension, a greater downforce nose and a short tail with separate rear wing. Raced mainly by Bob Wollek...
Porsche 962 Chassis #962-101 The first customer Porsche 962, chassis number 962-101, was sold to Bruce Leven, team owner and driver of the Bayside Disposal team in 1984. Leven would sell -101 to Dyson Racing in 1985. Dyson Racing would then take 962-101, with Drake Olson at the wheel, and...
Porsche 962-108C (1988-1989) The famous ‘Miller 962’ was rightly seen as the fastest 962 in the world, with wins at the Daytona 24hrs, the Porsche Cup and the Palm Beach GP in 1989. As per IMSA rules, 962 -108 was an air-cooled 3 litre single turbo. Chassis 108 was delivered...
Story by Glen Smale. All images courtesy of © Porter Press Int. Porsche’s Type 956, 962 and 962C is the world’s most successful prototype race car ever produced. Developed specifically for the Group C class that ran between 1982 and 1992, and the IMSA series in the USA, these three versions...
Porsche 962C (1985) Chassis #002 This factory “Werks” car is one the most historically significant Porsche racing cars of all time. It is the second 962 constructed by the factory and competed in the FIA World Endurance Championship for three years as part of Rothmans Porsche factory “Werks” team. In...
Written by: Glen Smale Images by: Virtual Motorpix/Glen Smale and Corporate Archives Porsche AG No Subscription? You’re missing out Get immediate ad-free access to all our premium content. Get Started Already a Member? Sign in to your account here....
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Porsche 904/8 (chassis #008) photographed in the Porsche Museum, September 2020 F.A. ‘Butzi’ Porsche, the eldest son of Ferry and Dorothea Porsche, joined the family business in 1958 having shown great interest in the field of industrial design. Working under the direction of Erwin Komenda, F.A. Porsche set about learning...
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After bodywork testing with the prototype 934, 930 670 0001, the Porsche factory built its first 935 to actually race at the end of 1975. This was known internally as 935-001, or R15. The Chassis number was 930 670 0002. The engine had a bore and stroke of 92.8 x...
Side view of the ANDIAL 935-L ‘Moby Dick’ in the Riverside pit lane 1982 The ANDIAL 935-L ‘Moby Dick’ race car was a one-off creation that raced between 1982-1985. Without any help from the factory, the small team of dedicated professionals at ANDIAL with significant help from Glen Blakely, this...
Porsche 935 JLP-4 at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, 2014 JLP-4 was the final race car in the line of Porsche 935 specials built for the John Paul father and son team. Using this final ‘weapon’, the Pauls notched up several outright victories in IMSA races and, in combination with...
Kremer Porsche 935 K3/80 (chassis #0013) In the mid-70s, Porsche developed the 935 model, a race car homologated on the 930 road car and aimed at the Group 5 ‘silhouette’ series created by the FIA for the 1976 season. As the records will show, the 935 was a formidable race...
Molly ready for the Peking to Paris rally in 2007 © David & Julie Harrison She was manufactured in 1958, and much of her early life is unrecorded. But in 2004, a customer of Gantspeed Engineering, Lincolnshire, England, asked the workshop’s owner, Robert Gant, to find him a right-hand drive...
There are 934s, and there are 934s… The Porsche 934 has long lived in the shadow of its more powerful sibling, the Porsche 935. This is a shame. Not only was the 934 faster than the Carrera RSR that it supplanted (naturally!), but many 934s went on to have very...
The “Perlglanz 928 GTS” We have done lots of research on the Porsche 928 over the years so when we see that a very special Porsche 928 GTS starting to get all sorts of social media attention, we knew we had to find out what was going on. It turns...
ACO Museum, Le Mans 16 September 2020: As it was the 50th anniversary of Porsche’s first win at Le Mans, a special display was set up featuring several of Porsche’s winning cars In 1971 the first ever Starbucks coffee house was opened in Seattle, Washington. That same year, the fourth...
1979 Porsche 935 chassis #009 0004 – Willow Springs International Raceway © Robert Graham Junior The phone rang, it was my old friend Carlos de Quesada. “I’ve just bought a 935 to restore,” he told me. “Great,” I replied, “which one?” “#009 0004,” announced Carlos. Chassis #009 0004? I had...