Le Mans week: The Legendary 956/962

Porsche’s awesome racers celebrate their 25th anniversary at Silverstone this summer

By Adam towler / Wednesday, 13 June 2007 / Loading comments

'Works' 956 models triumphed at Le Mans in '82 and '83

As it’s the run up to Le Mans this week, we thought we’d highlight the fact that one of the race’s most famous cars is celebrating a 25

anniversary this year.

The Group C Porsche 956 won the race outright from its debut in 1982 through to 1985, with the 962C scoring two more victories in 1986 and 1987. After that there was the epic struggle with Jaguar in 1988 that the British firm narrowly won over the works Porsche team, and a brave fight from the lead Joest entered 962C in 1989 that eventually faltered against a three car assault from Sauber Mercedes.

Even then, it wasn’t all over, as the Dauer 962 ‘road car’ triumphed in 1994 under GT class rules, and the engine would continue winning in 1996 and 1997 with the Joest TWR-Porsche.

Joest won Le Mans in 1984...

As well as massive success outright, the 956/962 will always be remembered as a hardy race car that provided the back bone of the sport for a decade, with countless private teams entering them in a huge variety of colour schemes.

Even though it achieved success all over the world, it was at Le Mans that it seemed most at home; a magnificent blend of reliability, near-250mph top speed, finely-honed ground effect aerodynamics and 600 - 800+ bhp keeping the car competitive even in its old age.

This summer, up to 10 of these Porsches will be amongst 35 cars competing from the charismatic era of 1980s endurance racing at the Silverstone Classic, in association with Bonhams, taking place on 27^th, 28^th, 29^th July.

Group C metal from the World Sports-Prototype Championship will take on their brethren from the US-based IMSA GTP series in the ACO Plate Award, on Saturday, and the Silverstone Classic Trophy, on Sunday.

...and then did it again in '85 with the very same car

The races, part of Group C/GTP Racing's schedule of events for 2007, will be accompanied by a celebration of the big, bad Porker’s birthday. The very first 956, which Jacky Ickx and Derek Bell drove to Group C victory on its debut in the 1982 Silverstone Six Hours, will be on display, together with other examples of the famous German machine. Among the Porsche 962 drivers will be Derek Bell himself - the 65-year-old sportscar legend will share a 1989 car with Mark Sumpter in Sunday's two-driver, 45-minute Silverstone Classic Trophy.

This actual 962C has a tremendous history: it scored the last World Sports-Prototype win for the 962, at Dijon in 1989, in the hands of Bob Wollek and Frank Jelinski. It also won that year's German Supercup with Wollek, and then raced on into the early 1990s in the Daytona 24 Hours and other IMSA GTP events. Although it first sported Blaupunkt livery, the car is now finished in the FAT Turbo colours with which it finished its racing life in period.