Injuries to drivers and fierce storms along the route whittled the starting list of 500 entrants down to 80 finishers. Ickx’s teammate Metge won as he had in 1984, and Jacky finished fourth. Rules required support personnel to accompany the entrants, so Porsche’s third entry was Roland Kussmaul and Kendrick Ünger, Weissach’s two development engineers. They finished sixth overall.
Porsche designer Dick Soderberg created the looks of this 911 of the future. He had designed Moby Dick with Norbert Singer, and he understood what racing rules allowed. Soderberg’s Gruppe B show car advanced Moby’s most recognizable styling characteristics. Racing regulations and the prohibitive costs of new body stamping dies limited the designer. He carried over the 911’s existing doors and roof, as he had done with Moby. Bott and Bantle hoped the 959 would emerge from design studios and wind tunnels without spoilers or wings. But when budgets prohibited a new roofline, the rear wing was essential. With his elegant form, Soderberg created a design icon that blended seamlessly into his widened rear fenders. Its effects were more than aesthetic; the wing effectively lengthened and flattened the roofline, manipulating air flowing over the body as though it still hugged the contours. He flush-mounted the windshield; all of this helped reduce the car’s drag coefficient from production figures of 0.39 to 0.32.
Bott and Bantle had hoped to introduce the production version in 1984 as a 1985 model year product. But the advanced technologies engineers developed for the car sometimes went beyond production suppliers’ capabilities. DuPont had to reformulate its aramid-fiber Kevlar to form curved body panels. Bilstein invented electronically controllable “active” shocks that not only absorbed surface undulations but also lowered the car as speed increased, while still allowing drivers manual override. Dunlop developed a tire capable of long runs in excess of 320 kilometers—200 miles—per hour that could also run flat for 80 kilometers (50 miles) at much slower speeds. WABCO Westinghouse perfected anti-lock braking systems (ABS) that worked with four-wheel drive; front tires rotated faster than rears, outside tires moved more quickly through turns, any of these characteristics could change on mixed driving surfaces, and, most importantly, none of this necessarily required braking. Bosch uprated its DME Motronics computers to monitor acceleration, braking, steering, tire traction, and suspension loading 200 times every second.
As complicated as each of these new systems and materials was, it was the 959’s engine that delayed the car longer than any other feature. Engine designer Hans Mezger had introduced water-cooled cylinder heads atop air-cooled cylinder walls on Moby Dick. Next-generation engines powered Typ 956 racers to countless victories. Dual overhead camshafts opened and closed four valves per cylinder. Mezger initially drove these with single-row timing chains. But odd, unpredicted torque loads and chain resonances broke them. However, to accommodate double-row chains, production engine chief Paul Hensler and his engineers had to redesign the engine block. While they were at it, they conceived a progressive water-cooled twin turbocharger configuration that responded to driver inputs the way primary and secondary jets in carburetors had done for decades. At normal engine loads, one turbo took care of engine intake needs. At higher speeds or greater acceleration, the second one came into effect. Early 959 prototypes resembled ducting and plumbing nightmares. When they finished their work, engineers coaxed 450 DIN horsepower out of the 2,849cc (173.8-cubic-inch) engine (with 95mm bore and 65mm stroke).
The 959 “Komfort” model was intended for ultra-high-speed grand touring with exceptional stability and road feel. The six-speed gearbox included an ultra-low creeper gear for getting out of sand or snow.
Porsche was not alone exploring the future of its cars at this time. As Bantle and his engineers developed new systems, they encountered delays from suppliers who were working at capacity testing or manufacturing parts for other carmakers. No other manufacturer was looking 10 years out, and rigid confidentiality agreements kept Porsche’s secrets. Still, new materials and electronics gave everyone new ideas. The delays Porsche encountered with its 959 prototypes led to another problem: The European Union tightened emissions standards for model year 1985 cars. No one at Porsche worried about this when the car was a 1984 desert racer. However, as Bott and Schutz pushed the road car introduction back, new standards became serious issues.
By 1985 Group B rallying had suffered from its successes and its excesses. Cars, some weighing barely 820 kilograms (1,800 pounds) and with 600-horsepower engines, had injured spectators and drivers in high-speed crashes. The highly visible series was losing its appeal. Porsche began to question its participation with its 959, so its role as a vehicle offering the ultimate in street performance became primary. Peter Schutz and Helmuth Bott believed in the car and what it would show the public about Porsche’s capability. Other manufacturers offered attractive, powerful, fast automobiles. But none approached the end-of-century technology the 959 presented.
Schutz knew Porsche could afford this development. The favorable DM-to-dollar exchange rate had helped increase 1984 company profits by 33 percent over 1983. Currency forecasts suggested this rate would raise 1985 profits 30 percent higher still. This was unsustainable economic growth, but few observers perceived it as overinflated. In May 1985, Schutz authorized limited production for the 959. The following September, to display its wonders at the Frankfurt show, Bott sectioned a prototype down the middle and displayed it alongside a complete car on the stand. Deliveries began in August 1986.
The 959’s most significant design elements were not only the wide stance but also the integrated rear wing. Designer Dick Soderberg had to contend with aerodynamic effects without modifying the roofline, so this treatment “tricked” the wind to behave as if the roof were longer.
Peter Schutz presided over Porsche as its U.S. sales swelled to nearly two-thirds of total output. The exchange rate, which had seen American dollars averaging 2.37 deutsche marks in 1983 and 2.85 in 1984, surged to 3.17 on the first day of trading in 1985 and averaged 2.94 for the year. By year-end, however, a new trend was clear, and it was downward bound. January 1986 trading opened at 2.44, and by the next New Year, it had plummeted to 1.92. Model year 1985 had set production records, with 54,458 cars manufactured. For 1986 the total for all Porsche models slipped slightly to 52,939; sales lagged behind economic reality.
E Program 1984 Carrera production was 14,309 cars. An M491 option turned the standard Carrera coupe into a Turbo-look wide body with a front spoiler and rear whale tail. M491 also incorporated Turbo suspension, brakes, wheels, and tires. While this wider stance improved handling, the increased frontal area decreased top speed slightly. Another option mounted a front spoiler and rear wing on the standard body. This lessened front and rear lift at high speed and slightly increased the car’s top speed capability.
Porsche used DuPont Aramid and fiberglass-reinforced epoxy resin to form the rear body, the roof, and the rear wing. The 959 accelerated from 0 to 100 kilometers per hour in 3.9 seconds, and 200 kilometers (124 miles) per hour arrived in 14.3 seconds.
While Weissach developed the Typ 959, it still needed a car suitable for 1984 Group B events for its customers. Jürgen Barth’s engineers introduced a run of 20 “evolution” cars based on the previous generation 911SC platform to meet homologation requirements; these were known as the 911 SC/RS. Weissach fitted 3-liter engines with 935 cylinder heads using Kugelfischer mechanical fuel injection. Forged pistons and 10.3:1 compression helped it develop 255 DIN horsepower at 7,000 rpm. Rules allowed the car to run as light as 960 kilograms (2,116 pounds). The Racing Department reached this weight by fitting plastic bumpers, aluminum panels, and thin side glass to the Turbo body (with its suspension and brakes). Inside it removed the rear seats and trim, the glove box lid, and the clock, and it replaced stock seats with barely padded competition buckets. Barth’s engineers timed the car from 0 to 100 kilometers (62 miles) per hour in 5 seconds and from 0 to 160 kilometers (100 miles) per hour in 11.7 seconds. Porsche sold the car for DM 188,100 (about $66,00
0 at the time).
For F Program 1985 production, the company expanded the M491 option to encompass the Targa and cabriolet, providing Turbo-look bodies for the full Carrera line. The open cars had required an extra year while engineers developed structural reinforcement to cope with the Turbo suspension’s higher cornering potential. In the interiors of all Carreras, Porsche introduced power-adjustable seats and a new four-spoke leather-covered steering wheel. To thwart vandalism, the company embedded the radio antenna in the 911’s windshield. Weissach improved the shifter linkage and switched to Boge dual-tube gas-pressurized shock absorbers all around. Turbo buyers (still not in the United States or Japan) got heated seats, central electronic locking, thicker anti-roll bars front and rear, and a larger master brake cylinder. Manufacturing totals for 1985 model year Carreras and Turbos reached 13,041, including 34 M506 steel slant-nose Turbos among the 1,148 turbocharged cars delivered to rest-of-the-world customers.
Porsche upgraded warranties on G Program cars for the 1986 model year, stretching coverage to 10 years for corrosion, 3 years on paint, and 2 years/unlimited mileage for the mechanicals and body. Inside the cars, engineers and stylists redesigned the instrument panel and dashboard, revising the switch-gear and enlarging air vents. They also lowered the front seats 20mm (0.8 inches) to provide taller drivers greater headroom and incorporated sliding covers over makeup mirrors in the sun visors. A new interior temperature sensor gave 911 cabriolets automatic climate control, which Targas and coupes had incorporated since 1984. Underneath the car, thicker anti-roll bars improved ride and handling, and Porsche offered sports shock absorbers on the cabriolet as well as Targa and coupe models.
Frankfurt-based b+b, best known for engine upgrades and outrageous interiors, had introduced digital instrument panels while continuing with such in-car extras as rear-seat champagne coolers and color television sets. By 1985 demand for such options was waning, and in 1986 b+b and its 45 employees left the business.
While catalytic converters were mandatory on U.S.-destined 911s, Porsche offered the emission-control device as an option to rest-of-the-world customers as well. As with the American Carreras, the converters reduced horsepower from 231 to 207 DIN. Acceleration suffered slightly; the car took 6.5 seconds to reach 100 kilometers per hour.
The Turbo returned to U.S. dealerships for 1986. Bosch modified and reprogrammed ignition and fuel mixture controls, and Weissach added the converter, oxygen sensor, and secondary air injection system. The engine developed 282 SAE net horsepower at 5,500 rpm. The car sold in the United States for $48,000 and for DM 119,000 at the factory.
As Turbos reached American customers, Porsche offered two versions of the 959 to European buyers at the Frankfurt show. The Sport model came with cloth seats and an integrated roll bar. The Comfort version offered heated leather seats and a full leather interior. Each sold for DM 420,000. This was about $140,000 at introduction, but this figure rose as the dollar fell. By the time deliveries began later in 1986 and early 1987, the U.S. price had reached nearly $240,000. Porsche asked for a DM 50,000 deposit (initially $16,500) from each buyer. By March 1986, it had accepted 250 deposits, ensuring a full 200-unit sellout. The company relied on purchasers to drop out, lose patience, or be disqualified. An increasingly reliable cause for disqualification was U.S. residency. After struggling to meet DOT and EPA safety and emission standards for the regular Turbo, Schutz and Bott concluded that they could sell out 959 production in the rest of the world without going through the extra costs, challenges, and delays to obtain U.S. certification. They had, however, accepted 50 American deposits.
Porsche assembled 16 prototypes and 21 pilot production 959s in 1985. The tiny shops dedicated to these cars, including a former bakery space across the street from Zuffenhausen assembly, turned out 113 “production” versions in 1987 and 179 in 1988. (In 1992 the factory manufactured eight final cars from extra parts left over from 1980s production. With these, total output reached 337.)
The desire American buyers felt for a 959 led to hard work and heartbreak. Racer and Pennsylvania Porsche dealer Al Holbert worked with a new company-owned distribution organization called Porsche Cars North America (PCNA). Together they intended to import 30 cars, stripped of all interior appointments and listed on shipping and customs paperwork as racing cars, not legal for public road use. When the first eight vehicles arrived, the EPA inspected them and refused to allow the 959 into the country. PCNA had to crush the cars or return them to Germany. Through the next two years, Porsche sold about 16 to American buyers with the proviso that the cars had to remain outside the United States. For buyers with business operations throughout the world, this proved manageable. And over a number of years, this arrangement allowed at least a dozen cars to find their way into the States, not including the single U.S. 959 Sport that the EPA and DOT did allow.
Compared to the contemporary Carrera at 4,291mm length (168.9 inches), the 959 was slightly shorter at 4,260mm (167.7 inches). The complicated 959 weighed 1,450 kilograms (3,190 pounds).
Sport versions, both U.S. and rest of the world, came equipped with cloth sport seats, five-point harnesses, and roll cages. Sport and Komfort versions sold for 420,000DM, roughly $233,000 at the time.
Otis Chandler, Los Angeles Times newspaper publisher, 935 racer, and vintage car collector, had established a museum outside L.A. to house and display his collection. He obtained a waiver allowing him to show the car at his museum and to transport it to shows and exhibitions elsewhere. He took delivery in August 1988. Over the next decade, a number of owners applied for waivers to possess and drive their cars legally. In 2001 and 2002, Congress enacted two pieces of legislation “legalizing” 959s. An industry dedicated to converting 959 engines, bumpers, seat belt systems, door locks, and lights to meet U.S. regulations arose, but as of 2008, cars at 20 years of age no longer require these changes. A flurry of buyers acquired 959s soon after that.
Porsche’s Typ 961 road racer debuted in 1986 at Le Mans. It ran in the IMSA GTX (experimental) class because the FIA had no four-wheel-drive racing series. And because Porsche’s 959 production had not begun yet, the car was not homologated as a Group B entrant. The 961 differed considerably from the desert rally car. Instead of positioning it high off the ground to avoid rocks and ditches, engineer Ekkehard Kiefer dropped the car 10mm (0.4 inches) below production 959 ride height. He created slots and ducts across the nose to cool the turbochargers, engine, and brakes. Plastic replaced several steel body panels, dropping the weight to 1,150 kilograms (2,535 pounds), still heavy for a race car due to its all-wheel-drive mechanisms. Development engineer Roland Kussmaul made other tweaks, including enlarging the integrated rear wing.
According to historian Glen Smale, the FIA’s conditions for allowing the 961 to race at Le Mans forced Race Engine and Chassis Department chief engineer Günther Steckkönig to develop single-piece water-cooled heads for each bank of three cylinders. Hans Mezger’s racing engineers tuned 640 DIN horsepower out of the 2.8-liter (170.8-cubic-inch) twin-turbocharged engine by retuning the Bosch Motronic system, enhancing the fuel mixture intercooling, running open exhaust, and increasing turbo boost from the 0.8 bar (12 psi) on production models to 3.25 bar (47 psi) for Le Mans. While Porsche originally intended to run 19-inch wheels and tires, according to Jürgen Barth, Dunlop offered a wider selection of compounds in 17-inch sizes, and “this size was well represented in the U.S. where they intended to race the car” in other IMSA Gruppe B races. For Le Mans, Porsche put three-time Paris–Dakar winner (and five-time Le Mans competitor) René Metge in the car with Claude Baillot-Lena. Twenty-four hours later, after few flaws in an otherwise uneventful race, the two drivers finished seventh overall in the all-white race car. (They followed six other Porsches to the checkered flag.) It was the first time an all-wheel-drive race car competed at Le Mans.
Dick Soderberg, who designed the 959, also created the 1978 935-78 Moby Dick for Porsche’s racing department. He adopted the extra-wide wheelwells and large rear wi
ng, updating it for a road car. Photograph © 2011 Dave Wendt
Total production of 959s reached 292 cars, 30 of which were intended for U.S. buyers. U.S. DOT and EPA inspectors denied them entry.
Four months later, Kees Nierop joined Steckkönig as co-driver for a three-hour race at Daytona as a way of introducing the car to North America, where Porsche hoped IMSA would develop a multiseason four-wheel-drive racing series. But the heavy car placed huge loads on the tire sidewalls while up on the high banking, and the 961 finished only 24th overall.
Its second appearance at Le Mans, in June 1987, did not end well either. Engineers coaxed another 10 horsepower out of the engine and switched to 19-inch wheels and tires front and rear (after hoped-for recognition from IMSA and U.S. appearances failed to materialize). But driver Kees Nierop’s accidental downshift spun the car just before 9:00 a.m. on Sunday morning, and he crashed head on into the Armco. The violence of the impact spilled oil onto the engine, and the back of the car burned badly. Nierop was running 10th at the time. He escaped unhurt. Porsche retired the 961 from competition.
YEAR
1986-1988
DESIGNATION
959
SPECIFICATIONS
MODEL AVAILABILITY
Four-wheel drive Coupe, Komfort (Luxury) or Sport
The Complete Book of Porsche 911 Page 13
