Porsche in Le Mans

Press Information Meet the Heroes of Le Mans Mission 2014. Our Return. Porsche at Le Mans Meet the Heroes of Le Mans • Porsche and the 24 Hours of Le Mans 1 Porsche and the 24 Hours of Le Mans Porsche in the starting line-up for 63 years The 24 Hours of Le Mans is the most famous endurance race in the world. The post-war story of the 24 Heures du Mans begins in the year 1949. And already in 1951 – the pro - duction of the first sports cars in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen commenced in March the previous year – a small delegation from Porsche KG tackles the high-speed circuit 200 kilometres west of Paris in the Sarthe department. Class victory right at the outset for the 356 SL Aluminium Coupé marks the beginning of one of the most illustrious legends in motor racing: Porsche and Le Mans. Race cars from Porsche have contested Le Mans every year since 1951. The reward for this incredible stamina (Porsche is the only marque to have competed for 63 years without a break) is a raft of records, including 16 overall wins and 102 class victories to 2013. The sporting competition and success at the top echelon of racing in one of the world’s most famous arenas is as much a part of Porsche as the number combination 911. After a number of class wins in the early fifties with the 550, the first time on the podium in the overall classification came in 1958 with the 718 RSK clinching third place. In 1968, Porsche turns the fastest qualifying lap for the first time. It is the 908 driven by Jo Siffert and Hans Herrmann, who go on to clinch third in the race. In 1969, the mighty 917 makes its debut and is running in the lead when clutch failure forces it into retirement. In 1970 the time has come. Hans Herrmann and Richard Attwood win in a 917 short tail. One year later, Gijs van Lennep and Helmut Marko repeat this feat. In 1976 and 1977 the Porsche 936 Spyder is victorious on the Circuit des 24 Heures with a turbo engine, just as all other victories will be achieved with turbo technology. The triumph of the 935 K3 in 1979 marks the first victory for a customer team and the only overall win for a rear-engined car. After the next win of the 936 in 1981, Porsche fields the 956 in 1982. It is the first racing sports car from Porsche to feature an aluminium monocoque. The body generates ground effect, known from Formula 1, achieving previously unheard of cornering speeds. The 956 and its 962 C successor win the races from 1982 to 1987 without interruption. In 1994, Porsche wins again with a modified version of the 962, before the Joest TWR-Porsche WSC Spyder Meet the Heroes of Le Mans • Porsche and the 24 Hours of Le Mans 2 snatches first in 1996 and 1997. Porsche clinches its most recent overall victory in 1998 with the 911 GT1 98. The most successful Porsche race drivers in Le Mans are Jacky Ickx and Derek Bell with four victories apiece. Hurley Haywood and Al Holbert net three overall wins each. More than six decades in Le Mans represent more than six decades of technical change and pioneering achievements. Traditionally, the organising body Automobile Club de l‘Ouest (ACO) formulates arguably the most innovation regulations at the top level of racing. Porsche never fails to use the chance to put new technologies through a trial by fire that no test drive could offer. The 904 of 1964 showcases the durability of extremely light metal-plastic composite technology. In 1974, the first turbocharged 911 easily passes the endurance test with long periods at full throttle, like on the 5.8 kilometre Hunaudières straight. From 1982 onwards, cutting-edge solutions for the engine electronics and aerodynamics help the 956 to achieve an unparalleled streak of wins. In 1986, Porsche campaigns the racing version of the ground-breaking 959 (Type 961) featuring all-wheel drive, sequential turbo - charging – and a standard gearbox. Sophisticated aerodynamics for the long straights and ultra-fast corners, exceptional suspen - sions and brakes, the lightest yet high-strength design as well as superior engine per formance are the ingredients for racing success. In Le Mans – and the ACO attaches the greatest importance on this – the magic word “efficiency” is another decisive factor. It belongs to the tradition of the 24 Heures to curtail the amount of fuel used for the marathon sprint yet at the same time leave the door open for alternative power units. The path to victory at Le Mans is, more than at any other race, a question of intelligent performance. Only the cleverly-bundled total package of high, sustainable speed and the lowest possible consump - tion has the chance to succeed. Efficiency wins. The ACO rewards the best efficiency with prestigious accolades like the Index of Performance or the Index of Thermal Efficiency. Here as well, Porsche can be proud of its unmatched success. As early as 1955, the 550 Spyder won the fuel consumption classification. Even the 917 netted the efficiency prizes at its historic victories in 1970 and 1971. More recently, from 2007 to 2011, the 911 GT3 proved unbeatable in its class in terms of fuel efficiency and won the Michelin Green X Challenge. In 2014, Porsche again takes up the gauntlet in the fight for overall victory utilising ground- breaking technologies that combine the highest performance on the race track with the highest efficiency. Meet the Heroes of Le Mans • Over 100 Porsche victories since 1951 3 Over 100 Porsche victories since 1951 A record: 16 overall victories in the Le Mans race The 24 Hours of Le Mans is the greatest challenge that exists in endurance racing. Porsche race cars have taken up this challenge every year since 1951. No other marque has managed to take on the demands of this marathon with such stamina. 102 class wins including six - teen overall victories scored by the works team and international customer squads repre - sent an unparalleled record. The Circuit des 24 Heures – this is the arena for the sporting competition at the highest level. Here is the story of Porsche at Le Mans. 1951 to 1959 From “aluminium can” to first podium 356 SL – 550 – 718: Maiden victories, debut of the Fuhrmann motor, Maglioli’s nocturnal rescue operation and the first podium in the overall classification At the third running of the Le Mans 24 Hours after the war in 1951, Porsche is the first and only German manufacturer to compete. In the autumn of 1950, Charles Faroux, one of the ‘inventors’ and the current race director of the Grand Prix d’Endurance les 24 Heures du Mans, teams up with the French Porsche importer Auguste Veuillet to convince Professor Ferdinand Porsche of the idea to field his sports cars in 1951 on the high speed circuit in the Department Sarthe. The small race squad of Porsche KG lease a workshop not far from the circuit in the town of Teloché, where for decades Porsche prepared the race cars and in the village’s Café du Sport celebrated their victories – and digested the odd defeat. For the race on the circuit 220 kilometres west of Paris, Porsche fields the 356 SL (Sport Light) “Gmünd-Coupé” with its streamlined aluminium body and covered wheels, lovingly nicknamed the “aluminium can” by the mechanics. With its 1,086 cc four-cylinder boxer engine delivering 46 hp (34 kW), the coupé achieves an impressive 160 km/h top speed. Already at this point, the basic idea of Porsche’s technical philosophy is apparent: systema - tic lightweight design and a sophisticated aerodynamics are at least as important as a healthy engine performance. Meet the Heroes of Le Mans • Over 100 Porsche victories since 1951 4 The premiere is a resounding success: Veuillet and his friend Edmond Mouche win the class 751 to 1100 cc and receive the flag as 20th overall. Their Porsche covers a distance of 2,840.65 kilometres without a single technical problem, averaging 118.36 km/h. Class victory secures a grid spot for the following year. And the success is not just a lucky break: seven subsequent class wins will follow. Porsche returns in 1952 with three 356 SL Coupé. The newly-appointed Head of Press and Motorsport, Huschke von Hanstein, shares the cockpit of one of the rear-engined sports car with Petermax Müller, but has to throw in the towel after six hours with gearbox failure. Up until this point, the starting number 51 silver coupé had been running 25th in the over - all classification. Equally bad luck also hampers the first customer team. Frenchman Auguste Lachaize enters his own 356 SL and is doing well in the race with teammate Eugène Martin – until their disqualification on Sunday morning because they refuelled with the engine running. Veuillet and Mouche save the day: They win their class in the 356 SL with the starting num - ber 50 and set a new distance record: the pair complete 2,955.410 kilometres with an average speed of 123.14 km/h. The Porsche squad returns in 1953 with the 550 1500 S Spyder prototype featuring a coupé hardtop. This first factory-run, thoroughbred race car is – at 3.60 metres long, 1.55 metres wide and just on one metre in height – even more compact than the 356 SL and weighs in at just 540 kilograms – that is almost one hundred kilos less than the aluminium coupés.

Load more