Incredibly successful in Le Mans Porsche was incredibly successful with the 917 in Le Mans and in the World Championship for Makes in 1970 and 1971. However, the governing body’s decision to only accept engines with a maximum displacement of three liters meant Porsche could not compete in the following...
Background Since the 1960s, Porsche has been optimizing the aerodynamics of future racing and production vehicles in the wind tunnel with the help of special miniature models. The example of the legendary Porsche 935/78 shows how this works. Model vehicles feature in many a display case as diminutive dream cars....
Much of what Porsche learns in motor racing benefits the production models and thus the customers. The story of the sports car manufacturer is full of notable examples – clearly illustrated with turbo technology and the 24 Hours of Le Mans through to the new 911 Carrera GTS T-Hybrid. The...
In a garage full of legendary vehicles, one in particular stands out: the Porsche 935. The Porsche 935 was the first rear-engine race car to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans. On the occasion of the classic car’s centennial, we visited the 1979 winning vehicle in its current owner’s...
They say that the cream always rises to the top, an expression used to illustrate that if something is really great, then by virtue of its superior qualities, it will rise to a level above its contemporaries. This then surely describes what a superb example of the iconic Porsche 935...
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On the list of most intoxicating objects in the history of collecting, Porsche racing cars are certainly near the top. As proof is this unique Fabcar 935 from the Porsche 75th Anniversary Race Car Collection from WOB CARS. No Subscription? You’re missing out Get immediate ad-free access to all our...
As Rolf Stommelen climbed behind the wheel of the front-running Andial/Meister Porsche 935K3 after co-driver Derek Bell had pitted to refuel and take on four new tires, rising American star Bobby Rahal found himself leading Mid-Ohio’s $50,000-to-win “all-comers” Lumbermens 500 in the Group 6 Red Roof Inns Ralt RT-2 he...
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...
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...
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...
The premise was disarmingly simple: a race bringing together the best drivers in motorsport, all competing in identical cars, in a spectacle designed around the requirements of television. It would consist of three forty-five-minute races over a weekend at the end of the 1973 season, followed by a final in...
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...
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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...
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...
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...
1981 Porsche Kremer 935 K4 – chassis #K4-01 In the mid-1970s, Porsche developed the 911 for racing, and in the process, it created the all-conquering 935. In 1978, Norbert Singer was responsible for building the ultimate factory 935, the Moby Dick 935/78, and although this race car had a very...
A huge banner adorns the side of this high bay warehouse in Werk 2, announcing the 25th anniversary exhibition of Exclusive from 1st March to 1st May 2011 Rolf Sprenger was a versatile engineer whose Porsche career was founded almost entirely on customer service. “If I want a trailer (caravan)...
The cars come around for the start – Fitzpatrick (left) and Moretti (right) lead the pack By the time the Dick Barbour Racing team arrived in Portland for the Rose Cup IMSA race in August of 1980, we were in good spirits. The week before at the Sears Point IMSA...
Kremer Porsche 935 K3 – chassis #930 890 0021 The Porsche 935 was the Stuttgart manufacturer’s answer to the FIA’s Group 5 class regulations, making it eligible for the World Championship of Makes. The first Porsche car in this so-called ‘Silhouette’ series, was introduced for the start of the 1976...
Le Mans 24 Hours, 13-14 June 1981: Team photo following a successful technical inspection A lack of testing proved to be the downfall of the Porsche-Lola T600 in the 49th running of the Le Mans 24 Hours in 1981. But let us not get ahead of ourselves… The 1981 season...
Le Mans 24 Hours, 23-24 June 1951: In the foreground of the workshop at Teloché is the #46 Porsche 356 SL driven by Edmond Mouche and Auguste Veuillet, while in the background is the #47 Porsche 356 SL which was damaged in practice by Rudolph Sauerwein Porsche has been represented...
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12 Hours of Sebring, 18 March 1978: The #9 Dick Barbour Racing Porsche 935 driven by Brian Redman, Charles Mendez and Bob Garretson In the early to mid-1970’s I had been working part time (race weekends) as an IMSA tech inspector at some of the races, mainly the ones that...
Porsche 935-78 Moby Dick (chassis 935/78.006 ), photographed at the Porsche Warehouse in May 2017 Group 5 rules offered manufacturers a great deal of freedom to modify their cars in the Silhouette class. At Porsche, Norbert Singer pushed the rules to the limit, and gave us the Porsche 935/78 Moby...
Le Mans 24 Hour, 10/11 June 1978: The Porsche 935/78 ‘Moby Dick’ pulls away at the start of the race – this car was third fastest in qualifying Dick Barbour went to Le Mans as an entrant for the first time in 1978. He entered two Porsche 935s at the...
#5 Porsche 908/3 – Juan Fernandez/Francesco Torredemer/Eugenio Baturone – NRF The 1972 season broke, ushering in with it a new era of racing. The Porsche 917 had reigned supreme for two years, but the race authorities (read FIA) had had their fill of Porsche interpreting the rules their way, and...
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,...
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...
Daytona 24 Hours, 31 January/1 February 1981: Bob Garretson, Bobby Rahal and Brian Redman driving the #9 Porsche 935 (chassis #009 00030) would go on to win the race by 13 laps, having started from 16th on the grid The Flying Tigers strike again! Being the best on the planet in...
Official Daytona ’85 poster By 1981 at the earliest, and for sure by the 1983 season of sports car racing, it had become clear to most that the Porsche 935 was reaching the end of its useful racing life. While it had been a great car, it just could not...
Sixty-six years ago, on 24 June 1951, the first Porsche was pushed tentatively onto the starting grid of the 1951 Le Mans 24 Hour race. The lone, diminutive 356 SL would finish in a remarkable twentieth place overall. Fifty-one years ago, on 19 June 1966, the first Porsche 911 would...
Martin Raffauf and Chris Hill look under the car with the ACO inspectors. Mechanic Jeff Lateer looks on with the camera. Tech inspection went very well for the 935 as we had Annie Verney with us to “discuss” any issues with the ACO as we proceeded. The Garretson Developments Sports...
Bob Akin’s 935, one of the major protagonists in the 1983 Sebring 12 Hour race. It was driven by Bob Akin, John O’Steen and Dale Whittington and finished second overall. (©Brian Cleary) The 1983 Sebring 12 Hour was an epic event. Back then the race was run on the ‘old...
The #6 Barbour, Stommelen, Mears car, a 935-78 (935-77A), enters the Sebring front straight. While this was the fastest car there, it was delayed for some laps with a brake issue and finished fourth The IMSA season in the 1970s always started with the two toughest races on the calendar,...
Porsche’s 1981 Daytona 24-Hour winning poster A lot of people have asked me over the years, what is it like to plan, prepare for and run a 24-hour sports car race. It has changed somewhat over the years from the days of the Porsche 935 at the 1981 Daytona 24...
The #8 Kremer K3 Porsche 935 entered by Dick Barbour and driven by John Fitzpatrick, in the pit lane ahead of the 1980 Norisring race. The author, Martin Raffauf, is at the car’s right front wheel The Race for the Pork Cutlets… The end of June 1980 was a busy...
All four of the Dick Barbour Racing Porsche 935s line up in the pits ahead of the 1979 Le Mans race, each with the Stars and Stripes draped over the rear wing. From left to right: #73 935/77 (934½) – John Hotchkiss, Bob Kirby and Bob Harmon; #72 935/77 –...











































