Video History of Porsche Racing

July 11, 2008

As I was doing additional research for my ongoing series on the history of the Porsche 917 I came across the following series of videos. The end of the third video in this series, and most of the fourth, does a better job than I ever could in completing the history/documentation of the 917. The rest of the videos are here for your enjoyment. It’s quite a long series, but definitely worth the watch. You may want to bookmark this page and come back a few times as each video (and there are 10 of them) is nine to ten minutes long. Definitely worth the watch! If you only want to finish up the history of the 917, then the end of the third video and most of the fourth is for you. Otherwise, start at the beginning and enjoy.

I’m surprised at how much is still available to find on the internet. If you like these videos, please let me know. I will continue to scour and search and post up what I find. Thanks for looking and thanks in advance for the feedback.

Written by 993C4S · Filed Under Porsche 917, Videos | 2 Comments

History of the Porsche 917. Part II

July 9, 2008

In the first part of this post I explained how the 917 came into production and how it made Porsche synonymous with endurance racing. This post, Part II on the history of the 917, explores some of the early problems Porsche ran into prior to their win(s) at LeMan and how the fix for those problems turned the 917 into one of the most storied Porsches ever.

When the 917 was first tested in 1969 it was anything but stable. The new “long tail” styling of the car left it very skittish and unsuited for racing. “It used all the road at speed,” according to Brian Redman (winner of the 1970 Targa Florio in a Porsche 908.) At first pass, most felt the problems resulted in an overpowered engine on an under-strengthened frame. However, after repeated modifications the problems remained. Remember, at this time Porsche was used to producing cars with low drag in order to compensate for their underpowered motors. Now, with the new 4.5 litre, 12 cylindar motor, the car was anything but underpowered. It was soon determined that all the extra power was creating additional lift on the straights (the car was 19 mph faster than anything yet raced at Le Mans.) Despite these problems Porsche pushed ahead with their racing schedule.

The 917 was entered into many races in 1969 with little to show for their efforts, expense and appearance. In fact, the instability of the 917 combined with the inexperience of British prviateer John Wolfe, resulted in a deadly first lap crash in the 1969 24 Hours of Le Mans. Even though Wolfe was not a “works” or factory driver, his death was a black spot for Porsche that took a long time to get past.

Porsche’s First Win in the 917

Porsche’s first win in the 917 didn’t come until the last race of the 1969 championship season, the 1000 km Zeltweg. Two privateers, Jo Siffert and Kurt Ahrens, succeeded in the privately entered Porsche 917 of German Freiherr von Wendt. The factory, being much more focused on development, left the racing to customer teams.

It wasn’t until 1970 when Porsche officially partnered with John Wyer and the famous Gulf Team that things started looking up for the Porsche 917. Immediate improvements/changes made to the tail of the 917 added much needed downforce, greatly improving stability and Porsche’s chance to capture the checkered flag.

In the next post I’ll explore the various 917 models. Their racing history and what’s become of the 917 today.

Written by 993C4S · Filed Under Porsche 917 | Leave a Comment

Porsche 917, Possibly the Best Race Car of All Time

April 6, 2008

Ever since Porsche took the overall win at Sebring a few weeks ago, I’ve been exploring the history of Porsche racing more and more. Out of my research has come a fascination with the Porsche 917. I am in love with both the aesthetics of this car and its impressive track performance capabilities.

So much has been written about these great cars, their development, their race history and the people responsible for them that I could never give them the proper respect they deserve in the format of this web-site. In no way is this meant to be a complete history of the 917. Instead, this is a multi-part story that should provide the casual enthusiast with enough background to pique your curiosity and links to resources where you can learn more.

Part I on the History of the Porsche 917

The 917 is best known as the race-car that put Porsche on the map in endurance racing with their first overall win(s) at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1970 and again in 1971. Based on the Porsche 908 and powered by a 4.5, 4.9 or 5.0 liter flat 12, air-cooled engine, the 917 posts performance figures on par with almost any race-car of the modern era.

We can thank the Commission Sportive Internationale (CSI) as the catalyst for the creation of the Porsche 917. Looking to bring manufacturers who were currently building 3 litre motors for Formula One Racing into the endurance racing fold, the CSI opened enrollment to the World Championship of Makes for a 3 litre cars across a four year period from 1968 to 1971.

As there were very few manufacturers who could accept the challenge in the time frame provided, the CSI opened the category up to those 5 litre cars that would be able to meet the homologation requirements of at least 50 cars. This new group, known as Group 4, became part of the Sport category. Shortly thereafter, CSI reduced the minimum production requirements from 50 to 25 (at the request of Ferrari) so the 250LM could compete.

An Open Door for Porsche

This reduction in homologation requirements opened the door for Porsche. Although it would turn out to be extremely difficult and expensive, it was one of the best decisions Porsche made, with regard to racing, ever. The 917 was conceived, designed and manufactured in only 10 months time. This is an amazingly short period for the development of any vehicle, let alone one subject to the homologation rules of the time. The first 25 cars are pictured below:

Despite the 917’s short but storied history, its career as a racer did not start well. I’ll explore the beginning of Porsche’s race history in the 917 more in-depth on my next post in this series. In the interim, please enjoy this great video that showcases just how amazing these cars truly are.