Most Dominant Porsche Race Cars Ever Hit The Track 40 Years Later CarBuzz

Most Dominant Porsche Race Cars Ever Hit The Track 40 Years Later CarBuzz

Most Dominant Porsche Race Cars Ever Hit The Track 40 Years Later CarBuzz News Features New Cars Used Cars Sell My Car Shopping Tools Car Reviews Car Finder Compare Cars Best Cars Car Dealerships Used Car Reviews Car Advice Home News Most Dominant Porsche Race Cars Ever Hit The Track 40 Years Later

Most Dominant Porsche Race Cars Ever Hit The Track 40 Years Later

Oct. 23, 2022 5:05 PM ET by Chase Bierenkoven Motorsport / 1 Comment Porsche's golden era cars come together for a 40-year reunion. In the 80s, Group C sports car racing was at its peak. Don't think that "sports car racing" means something like certain GT class racing today, where competitors duke it out in modified versions of factory cars, like the Porsche 911. Instead, teams competed in factory-built-and-backed racers, and Porsche was king. At its peak in the late 80s, Group C fielded ex-F1 talent like Jochen Mass, and the sport's popularity rivaled that of the pinnacle of motorsport. Given its dominance in the era, Porsche put together a little reunion, including both the cars and the drivers of the day. Porsche Porsche Porsche Porsche Drivers Bernd Schneider, Timo Bernhard, Hans-Joachim Stuck, Derek Bell, and Jochen Mass were all in attendance at the Porsche Experience Center in Leipzig. Bernhard is not of the Group C era, having won Le Mans with Audi in 2010. He is a Porsche ambassador, however. Porsche brought a handful of cars, including the Le Mans-winning Porsche 956 chassis 002. If you're curious about values, a 956 traded hands about eight years ago for a hefty $9 million. Another chassis, 956-005, won 1,000 KM races at the Nurburgring and Spa. This one was restored by the Porsche Museum, including its 1983 livery. During this era, Porsche fielded a car in IMSA, a 962 from 1984, which was also in attendance. This one won the Supercup in 1987 and has been fully restored. Porsche Porsche Porsche Porsche The number 17 Porsche 962 C also won Le Mans in 1987. The Stuttgart brand also brought a fourth-place Le Mans finisher from 1990, a 962 C with chassis number 962-015. Other notable Porsche folks in attendance included the project manager of the brand's Group C efforts- Norbert Singer, and test engineer Helmut Schmid. "The 956 is the most successful racing car in the history of Porsche. It dominated everyone. And it remained a winner for an unbelievable 12 years," said Bernhard. The 956 was a truly dominant race car by any means, remaining undefeated at Le Mans from 1982 to 1985. For two years after, Porsche's 962 C was the winner, resulting in a five-year span of dominance, something even Toyota hasn't managed to pull off at Le Mans.
Porsche Porsche Porsche Porsche The other cars were just as dominant in their day. Between them, the German Group C cars share five manufacturer's and team titles, 43 individual race wins, five WEC driver's championships, seven overall wins at Le Mans, and four IMSA titles with 52 wins, four of which were at Daytona. With the Le Mans hypercar series in full swing next year, we could be approaching another era of Porsche dominance in WEC. We'll see if Porsche can make another run of it soon. Porsche Porsche Porsche

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Porsche 911 Carrera Chase Bierenkoven Associate Editor Shortly before applying to law school, Chase decided to take a chance on pursuing his dream job: playing with cars and getting paid for it. Law school was just a means to an end, after all. His first writing job was freelance and barely paid his grocery bill. It quickly turned into a full-time position, eventually leading Chase to join CarBuzz in 2022. Chase now tests cars, and sits comfortably at the news desk when he's not in the driver's seat. In his spare time, Chase can be heard trying to play guitar, or out enjoying Colorado's natural splendor in his BMW M3. Contact Chase @bierenkoven @cbier823 LoginSign Up Home News Features Car Reviews Car Advice 2021 CarBuzz Awards New Cars Used Cars Future Cars Compare Cars Sell My Car Car Dealerships Buy Here Pay Here Used Car Reviews Popular Tags Cars # Video # TOP # Spy Shots # Reveal # Rumor # Auto Show # Supercar # Tuning # Car Culture # Industry News # Motorsport Acura Alfa Romeo Aston Martin Audi Bentley BMW Bollinger Bugatti Buick Cadillac Caterham Chevrolet Chrysler Dodge Ferrari Fiat Fisker Ford Genesis GMC Hennessey Honda Hyundai Infiniti Jaguar Jeep Karma Kia Koenigsegg Lamborghini Land Rover Lexus Lincoln Lordstown Lotus Lucid Motors Maserati Mazda McLaren Mercedes-Benz Mini Mitsubishi Nissan Pagani Polestar Porsche Ram Rimac Rivian Rolls-Royce Spyker Subaru Tesla Toyota Volkswagen Volvo By Make Acura Alfa Romeo Aston Martin Audi Bentley BMW Bollinger Bugatti Buick Cadillac Caterham Chevrolet Chrysler Dodge Ferrari Fiat Fisker Ford Genesis GMC Hennessey Honda Hyundai Infiniti Jaguar Jeep Karma Kia Koenigsegg Lamborghini Land Rover Lexus Lincoln Lordstown Lotus Lucid Motors Maserati Mazda McLaren Mercedes-Benz Mini Mitsubishi Nissan Pagani Polestar Porsche Ram Rimac Rivian Rolls-Royce Spyker Subaru Tesla Toyota Volkswagen Volvo By Car Type SUVs Crossovers Sedans Coupes Trucks Sports Cars Wagons Vans Hatchbacks Convertibles Small Cars Luxury Cars Electric Cars Hybrid Cars Future Cars By Price Up to $15K $15K - $25K $25K - $35K $35K - $45K $45K - $55K $55K - $75K $75K - $100K $100K - $200K $200K - $300K Above $300K Back To Top
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