Porsche 917 Studio Model Shown to the Public for the First Time
Almost as if by luck, this long lost Porsche 917 studio model was found just in time for the car's 50th anniversary celebration.
First Timer
Among the many iconic Porsche race cars that have graced motorsports over the years, the 917 might just be our personal favorite. And we aren't alone. Porsche recently celebrated the highly successful racer with its excellent "Colors of Speed – 50 Years of the Porsche 917" display at the Porsche Museum. And it was there that we, the public, got to lay our eyes upon a very special studio model of the 917 for the very first time.
Photos: Porsche
Highly Detailed
The model, which dates back to 1970, was discovered stowed away in a garage at the Weissach Development Center. The 1:4 scale model played an important role in the car's development, serving as an early design draft for the short-tail 917. With no wheel cutouts, it was designed to test the aerodynamics of the car and even features a highly detailed interior and removable glass.
Photos: Porsche
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Future Vision
“The designers were really looking to the future with this model," explained Anthony-Robert “Tony” Hatter, Head of Design Quality Style Porsche. "Basically, it followed me from 1986 onwards, when I started at Porsche until the design department moved to a new building a good three and a half years ago. Up until then, our design studio had been situated in the basement of what’s known as the Sechskant, 'the Hexagon,' the first big office building in Weissach."
Photos: Porsche
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Amazing Details
"We went down to our studios via a staircase, where this model was attached by its four wheels to a high crossbeam facing the wall," Hatter said. "It even had cockpit lighting, with a corresponding switch on the wall. In addition to the light, a tiny fan motor in the car came on when the switch was pressed and emitted a humming, roaring noise. Nobody remembers now whether the fan was simply a technical gimmick or whether it was actually used to cool the interior lighting,”
Photos: Porsche
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Found and Found Again
The team certainly knew about this special model, but they never really thought much about it for some time. "Over the decades, the model just became part of the furniture and I no longer consciously paid any attention to it," Hatter said. "It was just there. As part of the move, we took it down and put it somewhere. It was only recently that we found it in an old garage."
Photos: Porsche
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Aero Development
Porsche's Head of Body Development, Hermann Burst, is very familiar with the 917 model's development. In 1969, he joined Porsche as an administrator in the racing department, where he worked on aerodynamics for the 917, 908, and series production vehicles. Along with Charles Deutsch, they developed the aerodynamics of the 917 in the wind tunnels of the FKFS and in the Eiffel wind tunnel of the Parisian Institute SERA.
Photos: Porsche
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Two Pronged Approach
Porsche's objective was to create a car that was equivalent to the long-tail version of the 917 due to its reduced air resistance. Thus, one car body design was created at SERA in Paris, and another devised directly in-house under the direction of Porsche designer Richard “Dick” Söderberg with the help of a small team of Porsche designers.
Photos: Porsche
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Back to the Drawing Board
The SERA design was built in 1971 as the 917/20 “Pink Pig”, started at Le Mans and became one of the best-known Porsche racing cars of all-time. Söderberg’s creation, on the other hand, was far more aesthetic and elegant than the SERA development. But this model proved to be not all that great in the wind tunnel, especially in terms of uplift.
Photos: Porsche
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Long-Term Storage
Thus, the Porsche team decided to revise that particular model in the wind tunnel. With a little work, they were able to achieve a slippery cd value and improve downforce. The team then spent some time detailing the model and making it look realistic. Regardless, it was soon relegated to long-term storage minus an appearance in 1978 for an article entitled "Porsche: the car of tomorrow."
Photos: Porsche
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Moment of Fame
Over 40 years later, this cool little piece of Porsche history was finally given its time in the spotlight at the 917's 50th-anniversary celebration. It appeared alongside ten historic 917 racers and a host of other memorabilia in an unforgettable tribute to one of the greatest racing cars of all time. And we'd say that this special model's moment of fame was long overdue.
Photos: Porsche
>>Join the conversation about the 917 Studio Model right here in Rennlist.com.
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