1973 saw a return to normality for the Daytona 24-hour race. The distance was set back at 24 hours, after running only a 6-hour length in 1972. Ferrari in 1972 had petitioned the FIA to keep races at 6-hours, as the reliability of the 3.0-litre prototype cars (312PB) was suspect over a 24-hour distance. For 1973, Bill France petitioned to have the Daytona race returned to … [Read more...]
Yesteryear
Arno Bohn – The Porsche Outsider
Arno Bohn was managing director of Porsche from 1990-92. An outsider who came from the computer industry, he arrived at a company seared by falling sales and riven by internal division about future direction. He left a Porsche which though still weak, had a new 911, the 993, in the wings and had conceived the 986/996 platform, a strategy which would be the beginning of its … [Read more...]
The many lives of the 935 K3/80 Red Baron
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 car and it quickly dominated the Group 5 class, becoming the weapon of choice for numerous privateer teams. Because of the flexibility of … [Read more...]
Porsche Museum and Archive – Then and Now
Have you ever been to the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen? If not, you would do well to plan a visit to this modern and welcoming facility in the heart of Porsche-land. As a Porsche driver or just an enthusiast, your eyes will be out on stalks as you explore the halls of this heritage rich site. My first trip to the Porsche Museum and Archive was back in 2004, … [Read more...]
911 GT2 RS – A Wolf In Sheep’s Clothing
The GT2 has been Porsche’s top performing roadgoing turbo model since ‘95, but the addition of the ‘RS’ lifts this special model into a class of its own. Every now and then you come across a car that just stands out from the crowd. When that car is one of a limited production run, you would expect it to be kept in good nick, and looked after in a rather special way. But when … [Read more...]
50th Anniversary of Porsche’s first victory at Le Mans
Today, Porsche can boast a total of 19 overall victories together with countless class successes in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the world's most respected and revered endurance motor race. Porsche’s first year of participation at Le Mans was back in 1951 when the company was just three years old, but it would have to wait nineteen years before it could claim its first overall … [Read more...]
Kremer’s Uber 935 – the ultra-rare K4
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 short active racing life, it has gone down in history as one of the most iconic 935s of all time. Despite winning only one race, … [Read more...]
Mini-Series Porsche GT Racing Part 3
This feature, the third in our four-part mini-series, picks up where we left off last time (Part 2: 2010-2012) and highlights the continued growth and success of the evergreen Porsche 911 on the UK and European motorsport scene between 2013 and 2016. Having benefitted from full media and photographer access at these races, PORSCHE ROAD & RACE was able to get trackside as … [Read more...]
Reaching Maturity – Porsche’s 964 Turbo 3.6
Porsche’s era of dominance at Le Mans was over, that innovative period in motor sport during the mid-70s, which saw Porsche cars occupying half the grid at Le Mans (in 1975, of the 55 entrants 27 were Porsche with 24 of those 911s). The winning years of the 956 and 962 race cars were also a distant memory, the 962’s last Le Mans win was in 1987 followed by a second place the … [Read more...]
Porsche 911 Cup 3.8 RSR – last of the breed
There were just thirty Porsche 911 Cup 3.8 RSR (Type 993) race cars produced for the 1997 season. This model was the last of the breed of air-cooled, naturally-aspirated 911 race cars to come from the Weissach race department before the introduction of the Type 996 water-cooled cars. To find a 993 3.8 RSR that participated in some of the world’s toughest endurance races in … [Read more...]
