The First Porsche 917 – Chassis 001

The 50^th anniversary of Porsche’s 917 has triggered a wave of interest and appearances for the cars.  Porsche has led the way with a significant display at its museum.  The centerpiece of the ‘Colours of Speed’ exhibit is the newly-restored 917 Chassis 001.

Ferdinand Piech reveals the 917 at the Geneva Salon. Photo: Porsche Archive

Chassis 001 was the first 917 to appear in public.  According to Walter Naher’s authoritative book, 917 Archive, there is no record of the exact date of completion, but it was likely March 10, 1969 allowing just one day for transportation to Geneva.  The car was unveiled at 3:09 PM local time on March 12 in the Swiss Auto Club booth at the Geneva Motor Show press day.  The original body shape may now look slightly dated but it must have been stunning to the assembled journalists.  Looking similar to a longtail, 3-liter 908, but more purposeful and menacing, the real news was under the tail.  Since the development of the 917 was a well-guarded secret, few could have guessed Porsche would be showing and offering for sale a Group 4 ‘Sports’ racer with an air-cooled flat 12 engine displacing 4.5 liters.  The price was listed at DM 140,000.  That was about $35,000 or a little under $250,000 in today’s money.

Porsche competition manager Rico Steinemann made a brief statement before Ferdinand Piech, as head of R&D for Porsche and the father of the 917, removed the cover himself.  Several of the Porsche factory team drivers were also present for the unveiling.  Jo Siffert, Gerard Larrousse and Gerhard Mitter can be seen in the photos along with Vic Elford.  Elford was particularly enamored of the 917, a case of love at first site.  In his book, Reflections on a Golden Era in Motorsports, Vic wrote:  “I fell in love with its curves and the sensation of power that emanated from it, even while it sat still and silent.”

Twenty-five Porsche 917s lined up for homologation inspection. Photo: Porsche Archive

Chassis 001 made its next appearance on April 21, 1969 in the forecourt of Porsche’s race shop in Zuffenhausen, first in line of course.  The occasion was the homologation inspection of the initial run of 25 917s.  As a Group 4 ‘Sports’ racer, the rules required that Porsche build 25 cars in order to race in the World Sports Car Championship.  The FIA/CSI representatives (Delamont and Schmidt) duly reviewed the line-up with Ferdinand Piech and the Porsche team.  001 was then used for some testing duties in 1969.  Walter Naher lists tests at the Nurburgring Sudschleife (May 14 with a short tail, engine damaged) and Weissach (in June, an extended wheel bearing test over 220 kilometers on the skid pad).

Chassis 001 in IAA Frankfurt Motor Show colors. Photo: Porsche Archive

Chassis 001 in Gulf announcement colors. Photo: Porsche Archive

In early September, chassis 001 was shown at the IAA Frankfurt Motor Show (International Automobil Ausstellung).  The car was white with orange stripes, orange wheels and wore race number 3.  The car was then painted in Gulf colors for the announcement of the partnership between Porsche and JW Automotive on which took place on September 30, 1969, at the Carlton Tower Hotel in London.  After this press reception, the car was put on display at the Earl’s Court Motor Show.  A discreetly small John Wyer signature appeared on the left front wheel arch.  Although Herr Naher doesn’t list it, at least one photo exists showing 001 at the Jochen Rindt Motor Show in Vienna (in Gulf colors with a large Porsche badge on the nose).  Likely this would have been in November of 1969.  The Rindt event moved to Essen after Rindt’s death and continues to this day as the Essen Motor Show.

Historic Porsche display at Courtanvaux Castle. Photo: Porsche Archive

The next appearance was at Le Mans in 1970, but not for racing.  Chassis 001 was part of a display of historic Porsche racing cars at Courtanvaux Castle.  A 917 engine was also part of the display and at this stage the car still wore its 1969 Le Mans-style, longtail bodywork and Gulf colors.

In September of 1970, chassis 001 was converted to 917K bodywork.  For the Paris Motor Show of October 1970 it was painted in red race number 23 Porsche-Salzburg livery to replicate the appearance of Chassis 023, the actual 1970 Le Mans-winning car.  Herr Naher lists October 6, 1970 as the official date for 001 to be transferred to the Press Department as an exhibition car.  It also appeared at motor shows in London, Brussels and Germany (Essen) during this period.  In the spring of 1971 it came to the US for the New York Auto Show.

For many years it was thought that chassis 001 might have been re-numbered 009, possibly in preparation to replace the damaged chassis 009 after the Sebring race in 1971.  There is no evidence currently to support this, however.  The car remained in the Porsche Museum collection, standing-in for the 1970 Le Mans winner for the next 45 years.  001 came back to the US in 1998 for the ‘Double 50’ celebration at Watkins Glen, organized by Brian Redman.  This event celebrated Porsche’s 50^th anniversary as a manufacturer and the 50^th for racing at Watkins Glen.  Also in 1998 the car was shown at Laguna Seca during the Monterey Historic Races.  The most recent appearance in the US was in 2015 at Rennsport Reunion V.

Chassis 001 at Rennsport Reunion V. Photo: Jay Gillotti

The restoration project began in January of 2018 with a technical assessment that established feasibility and the originality of many components.  Disassembly began in February of 2018.  3D scanning and CAD technology along with the original factory drawings were used to recreate the nose and tail.  The frame for the 1969 long tail also had to be recreated along with the rear axle kinetic lever system.  This was designed to actuate flaps moving up or down depending on the direction of a turn.  As ‘moveable aerodynamic devices’ the flaps were outlawed after the 1969 Le Mans race.  The roof section, windscreen and doors were original and did not require rebuilding.  The new body was completed and painted by January of 2019, leaving only a few weeks to reassemble the car.  The Porsche Newsroom article on the restoration can be found at:  https://newsroom.porsche.com/en/2019/history/porsche-917-001-disassembling-restoration-museum-17525.html.

The restored chassis 001 poses with Concorde 002. Photo: Porsche Archive

Prior to the opening of the new exhibit, Porsche debuted the restored Chassis 001 at the Retro Classic show in Stuttgart.  This was in March, almost 50 years to the day since the car was first shown in Geneva.  Porsche then took Chassis 001 to the Goodwood Member’s Meeting for exhibition runs along with four other 917s.  While in England, it posed with Concorde 002, also celebrating a 50^th birthday, at the Fleet Air Arm Museum.  The YouTube video link (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqBA1JIJ5l4) shows 1970 Le Mans-winning driver, Richard Attwood, visiting with Concorde pilot Tim Orchard.  ‘Colours of Speed’ runs until December 8^th at the Porsche Museum and all the 917 fans in the US hope that Chassis 001 will make an appearance in the US sometime in the next few years.

-Jay Gillotti

Jay is the author of “Gulf 917,” a comprehensive history of the Porsche 917s associated with the JW Automotive/Gulf Racing Team.  The book is available at www.daltonwatson.com.