Porsche has won Le Mans a record 16 times. It’s return to the LMP1 category in 2014 brought with it a wave of nostalgia. Xcar ran with that and made this 25 minute video which they have declared is “the definitive history” of Porsche at Le Mans.
[Thanks to John for the tip]
Porsche continues its return to Le Mans series with a look back at the 1980s. Perhaps the best Le Mans racecars of all time, the 956 and 962, enjoyed unprecedented success during the decade. The 936 started it all, winning the race in 1981 and starting a sequence of victories for Porsche that lasted until 1987 (four wins for the 956, two for the 962).
Legendary driver Derek Bell says it best, “This car [956] set the bar for Porsche forever and they have to come back with something like this… they have to come back and do the same. People only talk about outright winners.”
It’s just a shame that Porsche is doing all this talking now and we have to wait until 2014 to see if they can deliver on their promises.
Over the last couple of weeks we’ve had a bit of Porsche 956 content. Raced during the legendary Group C era of the 1980s, it’s a car that’s been described as “the greatest Le Mans car ever.” The 956/962 won the 24 hour race six times in a row from 1982–1987.
But it was more than that, the 956 dominated sportscar racing. At the hands of Stefan Bellof in 1983 the 956 lapped the Nürburgring Nordschleife in 6 minutes 11 seconds; still the fastest recorded lap at the Ring.
To help you get a better understanding of the 956 and the subsequent 962 here’s a short video from Porsche which was filmed at Salon Privé in London earlier this year.
One man synonymous with the 956 is Derek Bell. He won Le Mans five times and in 1982 was the first to do so in a 956. Today is Derek Bell’s 70th birthday, so it’s nice that we get to hear from him in the video too.
In 1983 Australian Vern Schuppan formed part of the winning 956 team at Le Mans. It was the spark for Schuppan to later try and produce a 962-based road car; the 962CR. Ultimately, high production costs and an extreme purchase price, at the time reported to be US$1.5 million, quickly saw its demise after only a handful were built. Although, we can’t think of too many people that would knock back 600hp in package weighing less than 1100kg.