1966 Porsche 906 Coupe

1966 Season
This Porsche Carrera Six was delivered new on March 23, 1966, to Japanese entrant/driver Shintaro Taki. During the 1966 Japanese racing season, Taki drove the Carrera Six in five significant events. It failed to finish in its inaugural outing - at the Japanese Grand Prix for sports cars on May 3 - but rebounded by winning the Clubman round at the Suzuka road circuit on July 17. Another retirement occurred at the third event - the Mt Fuji Tourist Trophy race the following weekend - but won the All-Japan race at Fuji on August 14. At Funabashi, Taki and the Porsche placed second overall. A third-place finish was earned at the Macau Grand Prix in the Portuguese colony on the China coast on November 20, 1966.

1967 Japanese season results:
- 5th at the Japanese Grand Prix at Mt Fuji (driven by Taki)
- DNF (classified 36th overall) at the Fuji 1,000Kms (drivers Taki and Tadashi Sakai)
- 1st in feature race at Mt. Fuji on August 6 (driver Kenjiro Tanaka)
- 1st in feature race at Mt. Fuji on August 20 (driver Kenjiro Tanaka)
- 1st at Fuji 2-Hours by Taki
- 1st at the 1,000 Kilometers race at Suzuka (driven by Taki and Tanaka)
- 1st at the November All-Japan race at Fuji (driven by Taki)
- DNF at the Suzuka 2-Hour race (driven by Shintaro Taki)

1968 Season
Future Japanese Formula 1 driver Masahiro Hasemi drove the Carrera Six to victory on January 15, 1968, at the Suzuka 300Kms race. Sakai drove the Porsche on March 24 at the Fuji 300Kms, earning another victory. The following week (on March 31), Masahiro Hasemi drove '120' to top honours in the Suzuka 500Kms. New driver Mitsumasa Takano earned the car's final victory during the 1968 season in the Fuji Champion meeting on August 11, by which time it was being entered by the Tudor Racing Team, not Taki. It contested four other events during the season - retiring from the Fuji 1,000Kms when driven by Takano/Jiro Yoneyama, and again from the All-Japan race at Suzuka, driver again Takano. Hiroshi Katahira placed seventh in the Japan Grand Prix, and in the season-closing Suzuka 1,000Kms Takano/Yoneyama finished second in it under the colors of the Rolex Tudor Racing Team.

1969 Season
During the car's fourth season of racing, the Porsche placed second overall at the Suzuka 1,000Kms (June 1), co-driven by Tomohiko Tsutsumi/Jiro Yoneyama for the Tudor Watch Racing Team. Driver Yoneyama won the All Japan race at Suzuka on March 9 and at Fuji on September 21. In between these two races, he took two third places (both at Fuji), plus a fourth there, and a 12th in the Suzuka 12-Hours. Additionally, two DNFs occurred at Fuji.

1970, 1971, 1972, and 1973 Season
For the 1970 season, Japanese-based enthusiast drivers Peter Bellamy and Bob Hathaway competed in at least nine events with the Porsche. Hathaway scored a third place first time out in the All Japan Suzuka event, while Peter Bellamy later matched that podium place in the Fuji Speed Cup race.

Hathaway raced the Porsche in at least six events during the 1971 season, with the best-place finish being a second at Tsukuba on April 18, followed by a third there on June 27. He had also finished fifth in the car after a solo drive in the Fuji 300 Miles on June 6.

1972 was the Porsche's seventh season of competition. Peter Bellamy raced '120' in the Fuji 200-Miles, the All Japan Suzuka event, and both 250Km and 200Km Fuji events, finishing 14th first time out on that circuit.

Bellamy finished tenth in the Fuji 300Kms in 1973 but was forced to retire at Atsu and non-starting in the Fuji 300Kms. Keith Dinnerville drove the Porsche in its final event - the 1974 Macau Grand Prix - where it placed fourth overall.

Post Competition
After the Porsche's competition career ended, ownership subsequently passed to Japanese Porsche enthusiast Takashi Yasunaga of Yokohama. In 1992, the German factory was commissioned to commence a sympathetic restoration. During the process, it was determined that there was no possible way to rebuild the engine to an original engine 2.0 liter due to the crankcase for this engine being no more available. Instead, the engine was rebuilt in 2.5-liter confitguration. At some point, the Porsche had been upgraded to 2.5-liter configuration, and this is how it was delivered to the Porsche factory for its restoration.

The 2.5-liter air-cooled SOHC flat six-cylinder engine is fitted with twin 46IDA 3C Weber carburetors and produces approximately 260 horsepower at 6,600 RPM. It has a five-speed manual transmission, four-wheel disc brakes, and a fully independent suspension.

A total of sixty-two Porsche Carrera Six vehicles were manufactured in period.

By Daniel Vaughan | Apr 2024