Porsche 917: Books - History and Models

Porsche 917, 935, 956, 962 Sports Racers - Brooklands Portfolio

Brooklands Portfolio book featuring Porsche 917, 935, 956, 962 racing cars.

• The period articles, brought together from leading British and American car magazines, provide much information about history, model changes and engineering.
• Also driving impressions, original road tests, comparison tests, technical data, etc.

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Porsche 917: Zuffenhausen's Le Mans and Can-Am Champion

After knocking on the door for decades, Germany's Porsche finally stepped into the big time of international auto racing with its Type 917 in 1969. Its phenomenal air-cooled flat-12 engine powered the 917 to 15 wins in world sports-car championship races from 1969 to 1971, after which it was outlawed by a rules change. Included were two wins at Le Mans in 1970 and '71.

First built in a series of 25 coupes that Volkswagen chief Ferdinand Piech called the biggest risk he's ever taken in business, the 917 was raced in both short- and long-tailed forms, pumping out 630 bhp by 1971. It went on to even greater glory in turbocharged roadster form in Can-Am racing as the 917/10, series champion in 1972. In '73 the incredible 1,000-horsepower 917/30 Porsche dominated the Can-Am series in the hands of Mark Donohue, who called it "the perfect racing car."

The 917 stands proud in Porsche's history as the costly and daring machine that decisively ended the company's underdog status in international motorsport.

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Porsche 917 x 17

Renowned photographer Jeffrey R. Zwart perfectly captures exactly 17 examples of the legendary Porsche 917, the most innovative racing car of its time. An extraordinary homage to a motorsport legend.

Hardcover with dust jacket in a decorative slipcase. Limited to 1 000 copies - individually numbered!

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Porsche 917: 917-023 - eine Auto-Biographie

Since its founding in 1948, Porsche has strived to be the top sports car manufacturer. Ultimately, this was only achieved through victories in racing, particularly in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, which was dominated by Ferrari and Ford in the 1960s. When a rule change allowed small series of racing cars, Porsche development chief Ferdinand Piech took a big risk with the Porsche 917. This car gave Porsche the long-awaited breakthrough to the top of the sports car manufacturers.

On June 14 1970, a Porsche 917 won the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the first time. Long-distance specialist Hans Herrmann drove the Porsche 917 short-tail with car number 23 over 4 607.81 kilometers to victory.

This triumph marked a turning point for Porsche and made the Porsche 917 the most glorious Porsche of all time. The opulent illustrated book by Ian Wagstaff presents a comprehensive collection of data, facts and anecdotes about the Porsche 917-023 and is also the book about the most exciting era in motorsport.
Wagstaff is a renowned motor journalist and motorsport expert with decades of experience.

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