Porsche 917K - chassis 13

One of the most iconic race cars of all time – the Porsche 917K. The sports prototype gave Porsche its first overall LeMans wins in 1970 (Hermann/Attwood) and 1971 (van Lennep / Marko). The car was powered by a 912 air cooled flat 12 engine – initially of 4.5 litres but over its development, increased to 5 litres (chassis 13 has a 4.9 unit) - in a spaceframe chassis. Porsche had to build 25 cars to be eligible for the International Championship of Makes. All the cars were designed and built in 7 months and the 917 was launched at the 1969 Geneva Motor Show for 140,00DM or £16,000 – the price then of 10 Porsche 911’s.

Designed by chief engineer Hans Mezger under the leadership of Ferdinand Piech and Helmuth Bott. Remarkable technology was employed in the design – it was Porsche’s first 12 cylinder engine and was constructed using titanium and magnesium – revolutionary for its time. One design flaw - the driver’s feet were positioned beyond the front wheel axle and therefore serious injury was going to be the outcome from a heavy frontal impact. There were 7 variants of the 917 – chassis 13 was a “K” – for Kurzheck or “short tail”. The 917K models were generally used for the shorter road courses such as Sebring, Brands Hatch, Monza and Spa-Francorchamps. For LeMans, Porsche developed “long tail” bodywork providing minimum drag and a higher top speed – these cars designated 917L or “Langheck”. The “short tail” variant came about when factory partner John Wyer Engineering wanted a solution to the high speed handling problems encountered with the early version. A three day test at the Österreichring was held at the end of the ’69 season and the “K” was born.

Chassis 13 has a very interesting history. In 1970, it was used for the classic Steve McQueen film “Le Mans” and was driven by David Piper. It is well documented that David sadly suffered a horrendous crash during filming which resulted in a leg amputation. The car was rebuilt with parts from chassis 34 (a spare frame), but retained number 13. During 1971 the car was raced by the JW Automotive/Gulf team, winning races at Daytona, the Österreichring, Monza and Monthléry with drivers Pedro Rodriguez, Jo Siffert, Jackie Oliver and Derek Bell. The car was sold to a private owner by Porsche at the end of the 1973 season. David Piper went on to become a highly respected racer of historic racing cars and also has a 917 in his private collection - chassis 10 which he has owned from new.

Almost as iconic as the car, is its livery. The sky blue and orange Gulf Oil livery was first seen on John Wyer’s Ford GT40’s. An engineer by profession, in 1950 he was asked by David Brown of Aston Martin to run their race team culminating in the famous 1-2 LeMans result of 1959. Wyer was by then AM General Manager. After an unsuccessful foray into F1 with AM, Ford invited Wyer to join them in 1963...and LeMans success followed in 1968 and 1969. He joined Porsche to run the 917 “works” programme for ’70 and ’71, and although dominating the season, did not win LeMans – the 917K won both years, but in the hands of rival teams. His swansong was overseeing Derek Bell’s first triumph in ’75. Wyer passed away in 1989.

How much would it cost to own one? Well another Gulf Racing car, chassis 4, was advertised for sale in 2017 for offers in excess of $10M.

The car is pictured at the Sherborne Castle Classic and Supercars Show in 2019 - Porsche were the featured marque. There was also a personal appearance from Porsche legend, Derek Bell. This car can usually be seen at the National Motor Museum, Beaulieu where it is on loan by its private owner.