Brought back out of retirement and modified, the Kremer Porsche 917 K/81 was the last of its kind to race at Le Mans, and it’s now available with Ascott Collection.
Restomods are all the rage these days – but even the most meticulously thought out design and build project would struggle to match the creation currently on sale with leading French competition car specialist the Ascott Collection. Because this is unequivocally the last example of the legendary Porsche 917 endurance racer ever to have been constructed.
As 917 buffs will tell you, the mighty machines enjoyed a glorious but relatively short racing career that began at Le Mans in 1969 and ended just four years later when, having evolved into the Can-Am dominating five-litre, twin-turbo, 1,100 horsepower 917/30, the car’s life was cut short when the U.S. series organisers introduced a maximum fuel consumption limit. And it was a tall order to expect a 917/30 to drink less than a gallon every three miles/ five km.
But fast forward a few years to the late 1970s and Erwin Kremer of Germany’s celebrated Kremer Racing, the motorsport team formed with his brother Manfred, is wandering around the U.K’s Midlands Motor Museum when he spots among the exhibits chassis 917-13, the car once raced by Mexican star Pedro Rodriguez. Although the 917 was officially defunct, Kremer experienced a light bulb moment that inspired him to think that the short-lived but famous racer could not only be revived but be re-designed and sufficiently improved to become a competitive force at Le Mans once more – this time by taking advantage of the transitional period between the demise of the Group 5 and Group 6 race categories and the impending arrival of the new Group C in 1982.
This ‘limbo’ state meant few race teams – and, importantly, no major manufacturers – were working hard on development programmes, while the unprecedented (and still unmatched) 1980 Le Mans win by Jean Rondeau in a car of his own making gave the Kremers every reason to be confident that they, too, could make a mark with a self-built car. With that in mind, the brothers began to gather various 917 components, and were even given access to the vital drawings created for the original car after revealing their project to Porsche.
The aim, however, was not simply to build a new version of the old 917, but a seriously upgraded one – an idea that was supported wholeheartedly by the ACO’s then sports director, Alain Bertaut, who spurred the Kremers on to complete the car in time for the 1981 24 Hours. After all, what better draw for race fans than the return of one of the most celebrated models in Le Mans history (not to mention one that had starred alongside Steve McQueen on the silver screen….)? And, with the three-litre engine capacity limit introduced in 1972 now waived, the Kremer car could again take to the track with the fire-breathing flat 12 that had once thrilled crowds on both sides of the Atlantic.
In the space of a decade, however, motorsport technology had moved on apace in every area from basic driver safety to better aerodynamics and vastly more sticky tyre compounds, all of which threatened to put a strain the original 917 chassis design. With that in mind, the Kremers beefed-up the configuration by creating a frame with more and larger diameter tubing, which added rigidity at the expense of only a small weight gain. Other areas to benefit from significant re-designing included the bodywork – which was made smoother and rounder and given an imposing rear spoiler using the original car’s fins as uprights – while the front end was heavily enlarged and the ground clearance reduced.
Without access to a wind tunnel, all such aerodynamic modifications had to be based on a combination of guesswork and intuition – but within a few days of the Le Mans race the car, designated a 917 K/81, was completed and shown to the press at the Nürburgring in advance of final preparations for the main event. Porsche had quietly supplied the Kremer brothers with not one, but two engines for the project – the first a five-litre, 600 horsepower unit from 1971 (which is what the Kremers initially fitted) and an alternative in the form of an earlier, 4.5 litre effort which was ultimately installed for the race.
As expected, the mere sight of a 917 back at Le Mans caused high excitement and, on the basis of the model’s past successes, hopes were high for an impressive performance – but qualifying soon revealed that the new bodywork restricted air flow to the , er, air-cooled engine while the big spoiler kept the car stable but also slowed it down. The result was a maximum speed of 300 kph on the Mulsanne straight, which the original 917s had covered a decade earlier at up to 340 kph. Despite makeshift attempts to make the car more aerodynamic, driver Bob Wollek could only manage 18th spot on the grid for the race proper, or ninth in the car’s particular category.
Once the flag dropped, however, the 917 K/81 held its place in the top 10 during the early stages – but, as time went on and Wollek handed-over first to Guy Chasseuil and then Xavier Lapeyre, the car dropped further and further back before, with Chasseuil back behind the wheel, it ran out of fuel leaving the driver to push it back to the pits – where he duly collapsed. His heroic effort proved to be to no avail. Lapeyre spun off in the early evening, crunching the rear end and causing an oil leak that damaged the engine in the eighth hour, bringing an end to Kremer Racing’s giant-killing dream.
It raced only one more time at the Brands Hatch 1000km where it performed well before being forced out with suspension problems, after which it was quietly retired from competition. Since then the car has starred in various private collections, with its most recent owner using it for multiple track days and displaying it at the Le Mans Classic where, in 2014, it was awarded the Heritage Club’s special jury prize.
What the unique 917 K/81 cries out for, however, is the chance to really prove its worth at La Sarthe – and it still isn’t too late, since it is eligible for Plateau Six at the Classic. All it needs is a new owner who is willing to give it another go. If you think that could be you, head to the Ascott Collection stand at next week’s Retromobile. The car will be easy to spot, not just because of its original yellow ‘Malardeau’ livery but because it will be the newest Porsche 917 at the show. Or, for that matter, anywhere else on the planet…
Keyword: This Kremer Porsche 917 K/81 was the Le Mans legend’s last hurrah