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Porsche 911, And The People Who Made It A Champion, Celebrate 50 Years Of The 911 At Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance
The Porsche 911 has defied common automotive design wisdom, outliving its competitors and, from roots in the early Sixties, continues to lead Porsche into the future as the only car built today that carries its engine behind the rear axle.
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At 4:00 PM on Friday, March 8, 2013, the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance will present "The Porsche 911 Seminar: Porsche’s Flagship at 50." In addition to display of special 911 race and rare street models, the seminar will feature the people who took the novel 911 design, now in its award-winning seventh-generation, and created the world’s most successful racecar.
Moderated by SPEED-TV’s Bob Varsha, who has seen a few 911 victories since the 70’s when he began broadcasting, the panel will include the following experts:
Peter Schutz - President of Porsche AG, 1981 – 1986, the only American to serve on the Porsche Board of Management, oversaw a dramatic world-wide sales increase and critical years of 911 development - retired
Alwin Springer – co-founder of ANDIAL, specialized Porsche tuning shop and builder of countless 911-based racing engines, and former president of Porsche Motorsport North America (PMNA) – retired, but continues to consult for PMNA
Harm Lagaay – Porsche AG Director of Design – has influenced the look of more Porsche models than any other designer in the company's history. Everything from Porsche 924 to the original Boxster and the transition of the 911 from air-cooled (Type 993) to water-cooled (Type 996).
Hurley Haywood – Porsche’s most successful endurance race driver, with most of his Le Mans, Daytona, and Sebring wins in Porsche 911-based race cars. Celebrating the 40th Anniversary of his victories at the 24 Hours at Daytona and 12 Hours of Sebring (1973)
Jack Atkinson – crew chief on the record breaking and highly successful 1973 to 1980 Peter Gregg Brumos Porsche race team. Starting with the surprise 1973 24 Hours of Daytona overall win with Porsche 911 Carrera RSR, this famous race team achieved the impossible under Atkinson:
4-time winners of 24 Hours of Daytona ('73, '74, '78, '79)
2-time winners of 12 Hours of Sebring ('73, '74)
2 SCCA Trans Am Championships ('72, '77)
5 IMSA/Camel GT Championships ('73, '74, '75, '78, '79)
Vic Elford – perhaps most versatile Porsche sports car driver ever, winning major events in both rally and road racing events, including the Monte Carlo Rally in a 911 and the 24 Hours of Daytona in a 908 on back-to-back weekends in 1968. Gave the Porsche 911 its first - ever racing victory ( in England in 1965), winning a hill climb with the Porsche distributor’s press fleet demo. Elford also excelled in Can-Am, Trans-Am, F1, off-road and even four NASCAR events at Daytona.
Jeff Zwart – seven-time Pike's Peak Hillclimb Champion – all in Porsche 911s; also, SCCA PRO Rally champion. Commercial film producer including many of the well-know Porsche TV ads. Published definitive book of photos of Porsche race cars 1949 - 2004
Patrick Long – Porsche’s only American factory driver. Won three American Le Mans Series championships in Porsche 911 GT3 RSRs; Rolex 24 at Daytona, 12 Hours of Sebring and 24 Hours of Le Mans class wins.
“For a celebration of 50 years of the 911, I cannot think of a more distinguished panel to impart their knowledge of how this unlikely sports car success story has become the world’s most successful race car legacy as well,” said Detlev von Platen, president of Porsche Cars North America, Inc.
“We understand the importance that our motorsports heritage plays in the Porsche customer’s choice to buy the 911, and our racing efforts around the world today reflect that priority,” said von Platen.
Several special racing Porsche 911s will also be on display at Amelia Island, including a Jeff Zwart-owned rally car which was one of only three built. British collector Philip Basil owns the Haywood/Gregg//Helmick 1973 Porsche 911 Carrera RSR that won the 12 Hours of Sebring, while the Porsche Museum has provided the 1984 Paris-Dakar Porsche 911 4X4, the company’s first foray back into rally after a decade away.
1971 Porsche 911 STR Safari
This 1971 Porsche Factory Werks 911 STR, was built by the Porsche factory for the 1971 East African Safari Rally. This car was one of the three Factory Werks entries and was driven by the long time rally driver Björn Waldegård. Jürgen Barth headed the program for the Porsche team. The East African Safari was considered the most difficult motorsport challenge of the day. Sears Tires partnered with Porsche in an effort to prove the toughness of their tire at the event. The rally took place over 5 days and traversed some of the most difficult terrain in East Africa with temperatures topping 100 degrees Fahrenheit in the deserts to sub freezing over the 10,000 foot passes the teams encountered. This car was discovered in South Africa and eventually brought back to the United States for a complete restoration to exact original specifications in 2007.
1973 Brumos Porsche 911 Carrera RSR
The Porsche 911 Carrera RSR 2.8, the racing version of the classic Carrera RS 2.7 street car, This car on display at Amelia Island, now owned by British collector Philip Basil, was ordered from the factory by Dr. David Helmick. He hired Brumos Racing to prepare the car, and teamed up with Peter Gregg and Hurley Haywood to run the 1973 edition of the 12 Hours of Sebring. Gregg and Haywood had won the 24 Hours of Daytona two months before in a prototype RSR, but the Porsche factory took the car back for a complete teardown after the race. Helmick’s car was subsequently upgraded with features learned from the Daytona winner. Their overall victory at Sebring was one of the few times in history that a race team has won both races the same year. The car underwent a major restoration at Gunnar Racing in Florida in 2001.
1984 Paris-Dakar 911 4X4
During the winter of 1983, three 4WD 911 rally cars (type 953) were built in the Weissach R&D department and entered in 1984 Paris-Dakar Rally. The 911 rally versions were powered by 3.2 liter boxer engines with reduced engine compression to compensate for poor fuel. The body was considerably modified with reinforced suspension attachments, dual shock absorbers and engine mounts. Front fenders, trunk lid, doors, rear deck lid and spoiler were made of GFK and carbon fiber. A 10 mm thick Kevlar plate served as undercover protection. In addition to a 120 liter gas tank in front, a second 150 liter tank was installed behind the driver seat. To optimize the balance of the car, gasoline could be pumped between the two tanks during driving. Porsche’s return to rally motorsports proved successful with an overall victory, a 6th place as well as a 26th place in the 1984 Rally. The success of this car led to all-out Porsche 959 Paris-Dakar rally cars that won championships over the next several years.
Other Porsche 50th Anniversary Activities
Besides this Amelia Island display and seminar, Porsche will celebrate the 50th anniversary of this iconic sports car as a central theme for 2013. There will be a wide variety of anniversary events, starting with the “Retro Classics” automobile show in Stuttgart. From March 7-10 the Porsche Museum will ring in the anniversary year with four special exhibits: an early-model 911 Turbo Coupe, a 911 Cabriolet study from 1981, a 1997 street version 911 GT1 and the pre-series Type 754 T7. This chassis by Professor Ferdinand Alexander Porsche was a milestone on the way to the 911 design.
The company is also sending an authentic 1967 model 911 on a world tour. Over the course of the year, this vintage 911 will travel to five continents where it will be shown in places like Pebble Beach, Calif., Shanghai, Goodwood, U.K., Paris and Australia. As an ambassador for the Porsche brand, this vintage 911 will be in attendance at many international fairs, historical rallies and motor sport events. Fans and interested individuals can follow the car’s progress at http://porsche.com/follow-911.
The Porsche Museum is celebrating “50 years of the Porsche 911” from June 4 - Sept. 29, 2013, with a special exhibition featuring the history and development of the 911. In the spring, the museum’s own publishing house will publish an anniversary edition entitled “911x911.”
PaddockTalk Perspective
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