Circuito de Mugello 1968
One of the best Alfa v. Porsche contests this side of the Targa. Bianchi and Vaccarela in Tipo 33/2 or Siffert and Steinemann in 910: who will it be?
Archive for the ‘Porsche’ Category
Racing—The Ultimate Proof
“No proving ground can duplicate the elements which make competition the final test of a car’s performance. The rivalry of premier drivers, the unexpected moments, the constant stress on the entire machine, and the incentive to win are present only in racing.
Research, not publicity, has been the prime objective of Porsche’s competition program since the firm’s founding. Win or lose, Porsche races to prove our engineering and design concepts under the toughest of all possible conditions.
Take one example. The Sportomatic semi-automatic transmission was installed in a Porsche 911 and raced in the Marathon de la Route, 84 hours over the demanding Nürburgring course. It met the test. The car won.
Porsche prototype racers, last year, won the Daytona 24-hour, Sebring 12-hour, Targa Florio, Nürburgring 1000 kilometer and other major races. The earlier developments perfected in these unique cars brought victory to virtually stock Porsche sedans in the Trans-American championship and to hundreds of amateur owner-drivers who race their own Porsches.
Not all Porsches are raced, of course. But the Porsche you drive is raceworthy; able to take the punishment of high speed racing. Engine, brakes, suspension, electrical systems—the total design—are based on race-bred research and built to racing standards.
Can a car be built too good for everyday use? Porsche doesn’t think so.
If you’re serious about your driving, you can have a lot of fun driving a Porsche, the car that’s good enough to race.
Prices start at about $5,100, East Coast P.O.E. See your Porsche dealer or write to the Porche of America Corportation, 100 Galway Place, Teaneck, NJ 07666“
Porsche 904s at the Targa Florio
Was there ever a better marriage than the Porsche 904 Carrera GTS and the Circuito Piccolo delle Madonie?
Porsche 917-010
What do you say we let Porsche Club GB Motorsport and Marketing Director Geoff Turral show us around David Piper’s Porsche 917 #10—the first 917 available to a private team.
Moss’s new Porsche RS61 Crashes out of Monterey Reunion
Oh No! Sir Stirling is ok, but in reasonably poor spirits after his car was involved in a crash during this year’s Monterey races. StirlingMoss.com reports that “On Stirling’s out lap the car stepped out a wheel onto the grass putting it off the circuit, albeit without coming into contact with the barriers. A second car, also on its warm-up lap, left the circuit and hit the RS 61. Happily Stirling was unhurt, the car however suffered considerable damage, rendering it undriveable for the rest of the Monterey weekend.”
What a shame that this debut outing for Moss in the RS61 he purchased earlier in the year will also be the season’s last. Indications are that the car is repairable.
Update:
From other reports on the incident, it appears that the other car mentioned was John Morton’s ’58 Scarab. Morton was taken to hospital, but climbed from the car on his own and waved to the crowd before climbing into the ambulance. From the looks of this photo, it doesn’t look too good for the Scarab itself. Hopefully it too will be repairable.
As Sean points out in the comments, the Moss and Morton crashes were entirely separate incidents. It seems obvious now that the Scarab and Porsche would be in different races but I guess this is what I get for trying to follow along on the weekend’s events from 2 time zones away. I’m sorry for mixing that up.
More updates on the incident as I hear more.
This Has Always Bothered Me
What you see above is an excerpt from the January, 1964 issue of Road & Track’s road test of the then brand new Porsche 904. I’m a huge fan of the 904. So was Road & Track. They give the car’s brakes and handling high marks. But mostly they praise the affordability of the car for the amateur racer.
Wait. What?
Which is why I’ve highlighted the pricing information above. $7425 sounds like a very small number indeed. Of course you’re thinking, “but that’s 1964 dollars. Factor in the inflation and you’ll see that it’s the princely sum we’ve come to expect for a world-class competition car”. Thanks to our friends at The Inflation Calculator, I can tell you that $7425 in 1964 is the equivalent of $50,810.87 today.
Now $50 Grand is no small amount of money, but where can I buy a current racing car that can compete at the international level for $50 Grand? Or $100 Grand? Or $200 Grand—What does a Porsche Cup Car cost these days? The 904 wasn’t just a competitive car, either—It was dominant; taking the World Sportcar Championship in the 2-liter class. Where can I buy a class winning contemporary racing car for $50 Grand? I’m struggling to think of a contemporary club racing car that can be bought for $50,000 – spec Miata not withstanding.
Road & Track had this to say about the 904′s costs. “The price is certainly right, $7245 at the factory, as this means the private owner in the U.S. can obtain a first class racing car and basic spares for something under $9000, dirt cheap for a first-class competition car.” I agree, dirt cheap indeed.
’53 Porsche 550 Coupé 01
Doug Nye says it best: “As 550 chassis 01 it can be described as being the first purpose built competition Porsche”.
Monterey Auction Preview: Which Plastic Porsche?
Bonhams upcoming Monterey spectacular, Exceptional Motorcars and Automobilia auction at the Quail Lodge is selling off the Michael L. Amalfitano Collection of Porsches. There’s such a stunning array Porsches that I couldn’t decide between the two star attractions.
The 910 is a highly desirable ex-factory car that, despite lacking any serious World Sportscar Manufacturers Championship wins, led the 1967 Nürburgring 1000 Kilometers race with Gerhard Mitter and Lucien Bianchi. They led the race right up until the last lap when an alternator failure kept the 910s to only a 1-2-3-4 finish.
Originally raced with an air-cooled 2.2 liter flat 8, the car is currently fitted with a 2 liter 6 cylinder from when Porsche sold the car to be raced by a customer. I adore the factory Porsche team liveries of this era. The Grand Prix White bodies with bold blocks of color on the bonnets is pure utilitarian delight. Complete details on Bonhams lot detail page.
The 917 is every bit as magnificent. Campaigned by David Hobbs and Motorcycle champion Mike Hailwood, this example debuted for the Gulf Wyer team in the 1970 LeMans. The car performed exceptionally well lapping with Hobbs at the wheel at an average lap time of 3 minutes 35 seconds. Hailwood proved he was as able on 4 wheels as 2 by keeping within 15 seconds of that time. Sadly, as the rain persisted Hailwood overran the pit entry, missing the opportunity to switch to rain tires. A hundred yards later, he slid off the Dunlop Curve and into a parked car. Complete history in the lot details.
What do you think? Which would you choose?
Update:
The 910 Sold for $799,000 inclusive of Buyer’s Premium.
The 917 Sold for $3,967,000 inclusive of Buyer’s Premium. Yowza!
Eye Candy: Porsche 911 RSR
Gulf Blue Porsche 911 RSR. Yes, please.
available in wallpaper sizes at GT Porsche via Motoring Con Brio
Excellent Set of LeMans Classic Photos
Gaby participated in this year’s LeMans Classic and despite being busy with her own (gorgeous) car that weekend, still had time to flex her fabulous eye for photography. Head over to Meals n’ Wheels for the complete set.
