ANDY PRILL
IT HAS LED AN INTERESTING LIFE, INCLUDING HAVING ITS ROOF REMOVED SOON AFTER IT ARRIVED IN THE USA
Porsche has built some of the most outstanding race cars of any manufacturer. With nineteen overall wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, not to mention a class win on the Stuttgart brand’s debut at Sarthe in 1951, Porsche competition cars are also the most successful. They’re tough, too, with many surviving decades of action...
Ever since Porsche distributor, Auguste Veuillet, persuaded Ferdinand Porsche and his son, Ferry, to participate in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the company bearing the family name has fielded modified versions of its production cars in almost every class and discipline. Sadly, Ferdinand passed away five months before four Gmünd 356s were modified into SLS for the daylong enduro in 1951, meaning he missed seeing one of them roar to a class win in the hardest test in world motorsport.
The lead up to the race wasn’t easy, with three of the cars being crashed before the start of the event, leaving all hope of victory on just one 356.
After that first win, however, the die was cast and it soon became a trend for Porsche’s production models to do well in races and rallies all over the world, scoring numerable GT class and overall wins along the way.
It didn’t take long for Porsche to recognise the link between success in competition and success in dealer showrooms. A spin-off was when technical developments required to win races found their way into Porsche road cars, thereby creating a perfect circle of success. Of course, this is easy to say. In practice, it was much harder to achieve, requiring a high level of commitment and investment. Identifying the best engineers was essential from the beginning.
Komenda, Reimspiess and Fuhrmann were among the prominent figures creating a legacy continuing to this day. Purpose-built facilities followed when Porsche’s dedicated motorsport development facility in Weissach was established, complete with its own test track. A new generation of engineers carried on the tradition, with successors in the form of Norbert Singer and Roland Kussmaul reinforcing the foundation on which the company’s racing dominance had been forged.
Like the majority of Porsche enthusiasts, I was disappointed when the 919 Hybrid programme came to an end. Thankfully, Porsche GT cars have continued the winning tradition. We also now have the all-new Porsche LMDH prototype being readied for action. I look forward to seeing the car take on all comers for victory at Le Mans in 2024. In the meantime, the brand’s production-based GT cars will continue to fly the flag and undoubtedly take their share of more wins and more championship titles.
Incidentally, Porsche’s first Le Mans class-winning car still exists. It has led an interesting life, including having its roof removed soon after it arrived on the USA’S West Coast in the late 1950s. Now restored to its original Le Mans specification, the car will be a star attraction as part of the Le Mans centenary celebrations we can expect to witness in 2023.
We’ve lost a few important race cars over the years, but many have survived and are now enjoying a fresh round of success in the realm of historic motorsport. My company, Prill Porsche Classics, has had the privilege to work on some of Porsche’s best GT production race cars and we will shortly complete the restoration of another, which you can expect to see in these pages soon.