The focus at this year’s Rennsport Reunion VI may have been Porsche’s new GT2 RS–based 935 and its attempts to break the Laguna Seca lap record with the 919 Evo, but it was also so much more than that. Everywhere you looked, there was a seemingly endless number of incredibly cool Porsches. And at the center of the event, the organizers gathered a collection of the rarest of the rare—true legends from Porsche’s racing past. Let’s take a look at a few of them.
1939 Porsche Type 64
Long before development began on the first 911, there was the Type 64. Built on the Volkswagen Beetle platform, the Type 64 was intended to compete in an 800-mile race from Berlin to Rome. Unfortunately, due to the outbreak of World War II, that never happened.
1951 Porsche 356 SL
The 356 was originally introduced in 1948 and quickly earned a reputation as a competitive race car. This particular example took first in its class at Le Mans in 1951. That same year, it also set a land speed record at Montlhery, driving for 72 hours at 94.66 mph.
1956 Porsche 550A Prototype
With a tubular steel frame and a 135-hp engine, the 550A was designed to turn the ladder-framed 550 into a winner. And at the 1956 Targa Florio, the 550A shown here did exactly that. Not only did it win its class, it also won the race outright, beating both Ferrari and Mercedes.
1958 Porsche 718 RSK Spyder
The 718 RSK Spyder took the 550A’s racing success and ran with it. In 1958, this particular car won first in its class at Le Mans and the Nurburgring Grand Prix. It also took first overall in the 1959 Targa Florio, conquered multiple hill climbs, and either won or placed near the top of several other races.
1961 Porsche 356B Abarth Carrera GTL
Today, Abarth is almost exclusively associated with high-performance Fiats. But in 1960, Porsche hired Carlo Abarth to turn the 356 into a Ferrari-beater. Most notably, the car shown here took first in class at the 1961 24 Hours of Le Mans and 1962 12 Hours of Sebring.
1967 Porsche 910/6
The 910 may not be the most famous Porsche race car of all time, but advancements in engineering allowed it to take first, second, and third place at 1967’s Targa Floria. Not long after, the 910 did the same thing at the Nurburgring 1,000 km. The car seen here, however, is the one that won first in its class at the 1969 24 Hours of Le Mans.
1969 Porsche 908 LH
Porsche’s successor to the 907 may have gotten off to a slow start, but in time, it began to rack up an impressive number of wins. This particular car placed first in the 1969 Spa 1,000 km and took second at Monza 1,000 km. Other 908s were just as, if not more, successful.
1969 Porsche 917K
In the world of Porsche race cars, the 917 is about as famous as they come. But while early cars were poorly built and uncompetitive, the 917K changed all of that. The car shown here is the first 917 to compete in a race: 1969’s Nurburgring 1,000 km.
1972 Porsche 917/10
When Porsche adapted the 917 for Can-Am racing, it did a lot more than remove the roof. It also twin-turbocharged the 5.0-liter flat-12 engine, giving the car 1,150 hp and a top speed of more than 220 mph. This particular 917/10 won the entire 1972 Can-Am championship and nearly won it again in 1973.
1972 Porsche 911 ST
Over the years, 911s have competed in every type of racing, from rallying to Le Mans. In 1970, the FIA introduced new regulations that allowed for a wider track and wider wheels and tires, which prompted Porsche to build two-dozen 911 ST race cars based on the 911S but equipped with widened front and rear fenders. So if you like the flared bodies of the 930 and RSR, you have the 911 ST to thank for blazing that trail. The 911 ST shown here competed in the European GT Championship where it placed first at Hockenheim, Estoril, and the Nurburgring.
1973 Porsche 917/30
The 917/10 may have been a dominant race car, but the 917/30 took things to a whole new level. Some cars made more than 1,500 hp and could hit 200 mph in less than 11 seconds. In one race, the 917/30 even managed to lap the second-place 917/10. But although it did win the championship in 1973, it also became known as “the car that killed Can-Am.”
1974 Porsche 911 Carrera RSR 3.0
Using a few donated parts from the 917, the 911 Carrera RSR proved to be another dominant Porsche race car. This particular RSR 3.0 won the 1975 European GT Championship and racked up first-in-class wins at Spa, the Nurburgring, and 24 Hours of Le Mans.
1979 Porsche 935 K3
When Porsche gave its engineers free rein to turn the 911 into the best race car they could, the result was the now-legendary 935. Other cars won big, but this Kremer-modified 935 K3 is one of the most famous. In 1979, when it placed first overall at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, it became the first production-based car to do so since 1953.
1980 Porsche 936
After the success of the 917, there were big expectations for its successor, a car that would eventually be known as the 936. Rule changes meant it was less powerful than the 917, but the 936 still became Hurley Haywood’s favorite car. The one shown here even won the 1982 German Sportscar Championship with seven first-place finishes that season.
1984 Porsche 911 SC/RS
Safari 911s are extremely popular these days, but this particular car is an actual rally car. Between 1985 and 1987, it racked up three first-place wins and two second-place finishes before winning the 1987 Middle East Rally Championship.
1985 McLaren MP4/28
At first glance, it makes no sense for Porsche to have a McLaren Formula 1 car at Rennsport. But if you dig a little deeper into the history of the MP4/2, it becomes a little clearer why it was at the world’s most prestigious Porsche gathering. That’s because even though McLaren’s engines were officially labeled Tag, Porsche was actually the company that built them.
1990 Porsche/March IndyCar
Like with Formula 1, Porsche has also dabbled in IndyCar racing. Unfortunately for Porsche, it was never very successful. The team struggled from 1987 to 1990 before finally giving up.
2007 Porsche RS Spyder
In 2005, Porsche returned to prototype racing with the RS Spyder. It then proceeded to win the ALMS LMP2 Championship three years in a row. The car shown here, however, didn’t win anything. That’s because it’s the only unraced RS Spyder in existence.
2009 Porsche 911 997 RSR
With only a sixth-in-class finish at 2011’s 24 Hours of Le Mans, this particular RSR’s competition record is far from stellar—at least by the standards of some of the other cars on this list. That said, the Flying Lizard livery is about as cool as it gets.
2015 Porsche 919 Hybrid
For most race cars, it would be a huge accomplishment to place second at Le Mans. And the car you see here did exactly that in 2015. But other 919s managed to win Le Mans overall, and not just in 2015. Porsche won three years in a row before retiring the 919 after the 2017 season.
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