1973 Porsche 914 Base 2.0l on 2040-cars

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Chris Harris gets filthy in a WRC-ready Porsche 911 RGT

Last time we rode with Chris Harris we were shotgun in the tan leather seat of his used-yet-immaculate Ferrari FF. This time we're strapped into a black racing bucket of a filthy Porsche 911 rally car, one that led Harris to effuse, "I don't think I've driven a more exciting car this year, hypercars included." The thrills come courtesy of a 997-series Cup Car that's been reworked by Tuthill Porsche to run in the RGT-class rally series that will piggyback on five World Rally Championship and European Rally Championship races this year. It's not quite the Rothmans Dakar monster, but the RGT series gives privateers an affordable way into rallying with cars that look different and are different from one another. This one kept its 3.8-liter, 444-horsepower 997 Cup engine, but the 39-milllimeter restrictor drops that to about 350 hp. Beyond that are a new rollcage, gear ratios, suspension, fuel tank, underfloor protection and just about everything else. Said the man who built it, it cost "a lot, and it's still costing." But Harris says even though you "have to have your wits about you," it's a hoot to drive. And this is one of the few times you'll hear the phrase "What a tool!" used as a compliment. Check it out in the video above. News Source: Chris Harris on Cars via YouTube Motorsports Porsche Coupe Off-Road Vehicles Racing Vehicles Performance Videos fia rally WRC chris harris porsche 997

Historic race cars highlight the RM Sotheby's 2023 Le Mans sale

Auction house RM Sotheby's is celebrating 100 years of the 24 Hours of Le Mans by organizing a big sale on the day before the race. The cars scheduled to cross the auction block have all spent time on the track, and the catalog shows how racers have evolved since the 1930s. Browsing through RM's auction catalog is like taking a five-minute course in the history of racing. The oldest car is a 1932 Aston Martin Le Mans 'LM8' that's had a remarkable life. It was developed and built for competition and entered in the 1932 24 Hours of Le Mans by the Aston Martin factory team, where it finished seventh. It was ultimately sold to a private owner but it survived, which shouldn't be taken for granted: teams often destroyed obsolete race cars, and the list of special vehicles that didn't survive World War II is longer than you'd think. Paul Sykes bought the car in 1955 and used it as his daily driver. Imagine walking out of a shop in a British village in the 1960s and finding a 1932 race car parked next to your Mini. Sykes ultimately bought another daily driver, but he kept the Aston Martin for a total of 55 years. The second-oldest car is a 1936 Delahaye 135 S with a body by coach builder Pourtout. RM notes that this is one of the most significant pre-war competition Delahaye models and adds that it finished second in the 1938 edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. It continued racing until 1956 and then spent several decades hidden in storage. It was fully restored in 2005, and it's now eligible to compete in historic races such as the Mille Miglia and the Le Mans Classic. Restoring it was easier said than done: the car was rebodied twice before being tucked away. None of the cars crossing the block were built in the 1940s, so we skip ahead to the 1950s with a 1954 OSCA MT4 by Morelli. It's one of 72 built, according to RM, and only 19 of those were fitted with the twin-cam, 1.5-liter 2AD engine. It raced at Le Mans in 1954 but ended up disqualified following an accident. Another highlight from the 1950s is a 1958 Lister-Jaguar 'Knobbly' finished in yellow and green. We said that all of the cars crossing the block have spent time on the track, but that doesn't mean they were built to race. The 1963 Ferrari 250 GTE 2+2 Series III is a street-legal model, yet it's included in the auction because it was used as a safety car during the 1963 edition of the race.

Porsche 911 with VW turbodiesel prepares for LeMons assault

LeMons racing is a wonderful example that setting limits can actually breed creativity. The series mandates that all entries must cost $500, not counting safety equipment, and that cap forces teams to be ingenious in how they build a racecar. Take for example this diesel-powered Porsche 911, which its creators have dubbed Ferkel the Nein-11, that will be racing in the Sears Pointless race this weekend in Sonoma, California.
This Frankenstein combines a 911 chassis that was originally bought just for its European powertrain and a Volkswagen TDI diesel engine mounted in the rear. After deciding the shell could still be of some use, the team decided to go racing. "We began brainstorming what replacement drivetrain to use for maximum offense and there was really only one answer: a diesel," said Philipp von Weitershausen, one of the team captains, to Jalopnik. They bought a 1998 Jetta TDI on the cheap and started figuring out a way to hack the engine into the bay. To pay respect to the donor, the VW's trunk was highly modified (and drilled) and grafted onto the back of Ferkel.
This team isn't a newcomer to LeMons. Its last car was a classic VW Beetle with a Subaru engine and dual controls, named Ferdinand the Bug, which could be driven from the left or right side. It's quite a sight.