1970 Porsche 917 Long Tail Coupé

This Porsche 917K has a flat-twelve air-cooled engine mounted amidships, twin-overhead camshafts and fuel injection. The car is displayed in late 1971 configuration and is quite conservative given the raiment provided other 917s during the two championship years. A Martini car was modishly decorated in psychedelic colors. For LeMans, Porsche Styling painted an experimental 917/20 pink with dotted lines representing the various cuts of meat available from swine. It was named Big Bertha, The Truffle Pig of Zuffenhausen. One can be cheeky when one is a champion. The car was part of Porsche Salzburg in 1970. In 1971 it raced at Le Mans as a member of the Martini Racing Team, sponsored by Martini and Rossi and driven by Helmut Marko and Gijs van Lennep. It sported numerous experimental features including a magnesium tube frame.

This original 917 was part of Porsche Salzburg in 1970. In 1971, #917-019 raced as a member of the Martini Racing Team, the new name Louise Piech gave her organization following sponsorship from Martini & Rossi. Again the Piech team took Le Mans, the winning car driven by Helmut Marko and Gijs van Lennep and sporting numerous experimental features including a magnesium tube frame. Marko and van Lennep raced 917 #019 three times in 1971, although the results were not as fortuitous as they enjoyed at Le Mans. At Daytona's 24 Hours, wîth Rudi Lins as the third driver, a crash put the car out on the 462nd of 688 laps. At the Monza 100 Kilometers, a throttle linkage was the culprit shortly after mid-race. Engine failure put 718 #019 out at Spa, its last race. The car, preserved in late 1971 configuration, is quite conservative given the psychedelic raiment which graced other 917s during the two championship years.

Source - Collier Collection

This car was built as Porsche's first foray into the North American Can-Am series, and it ultimately competed in more Can-Am races than any other 917. Sponsored by Porsche-Audi and driven by Jo Siffert, it competed respectably against much more powerful McLarens and Lolas, recording five top-5 finishes in seven races during 1969. In 1971, the car was sold to Vasek Polak and was driven by Milt Minter in the Can-Am series. It was raced twice in 1972 by Sam Posey, and in 1973 it was upgraded to near-917/10 specification. It was driven by Steve Durst and Brian Redman four times each that year. The car was sold to Randolph Townsend and maintained by Andial. Next, it was sold to John Bond Jr., then to Kerry Morse until being acquired by its current owner in 1983. Chassis 028 was restored to 1969 'PA' configuration in the 1980s. The most recent restoration of 028 was completed in 2018 by Gunnar Racing, and the car remains in the Collier Collection at the Revs Institute.