Porsche racing history · 1969–1975
Porsche 917: History, Specs & Le Mans Wins
By CarWhere Research · Updated
The Porsche 917 is the flat-12 racing car that gave Porsche its first overall Le Mans win on 14 June 1970 and won again in 1971. Porsche built 25 for homologation in 1969. Turbocharged 917/10 and 917/30 spyders then dominated Can-Am in 1972 and 1973, the 917/30 with 1,200 hp.
The 917 started with a rule change. For 1968 the FIA allowed sports cars of up to five liters, and Porsche's three-liter 908 could no longer count on winning. Head of development Ferdinand Piëch approved a new car, and Porsche took it from first drawings to the Geneva Motor Show stand in about nine months. It debuted there in March 1969, with an air-cooled 12-cylinder engine behind the driver.
Porsche had to complete 25 cars to get it homologated. In its first season it was a handful. Drivers struggled with its high-speed stability, and its first win didn't come until the Austrian 1000 km in August 1969. A reworked short-tail body for 1970 sorted the handling. The 917 K then won Le Mans in 1970 and 1971 and took the makes title both years. Once a new rule shut it out of the world championship, Porsche turbocharged the car and moved it to North American Can-Am racing.
917 history, year by year
- 1968 — The FIA raises the World Sportscar Championship displacement limit from three to five liters. Ferdinand Piëch responds by authorizing a new five-liter car.[1]
- 1969 — Chassis 917-001 is unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show. Porsche dates the debut to 12 March in one article and 13 March in another. It is the first of the 25 cars required for type approval.[1],[2]
- 1969 — Jo Siffert and Kurt Ahrens win the 1000 km race at the Österreichring (Zeltweg), the 917's first victory.[1],[3]
- 1970 — The redesigned short-tail 917 KH wins Le Mans outright on 14 June. Hans Herrmann and Richard Attwood cover 343 laps in the Porsche Salzburg car, and a long-tail 917 finishes second.[4]
- 1971 — Helmut Marko and Gijs van Lennep win Le Mans again with a 917 K. Their 5,335 km at an average of 222.3 km/h sets a distance record that stood for nearly 40 years.[1],[2]
- 1971 — Porsche wins the world sports car championship for the second year running. A rule change then makes the 917 ineligible for the series.[1],[5]
- 1972 — The turbocharged 917/10 spyder dominates the Can-Am season, and George Follmer wins the title for Penske.[3],[5]
- 1973 — The 917/30, a 5.4 L turbo flat-12 rated at 1,200 hp, wins Can-Am with Mark Donohue. Porsche notes that the Americans then changed the rules, which shut the 917 out.[3],[6]
- 1975 — The 917 wins for the last time. Porsche counts 37 wins in Can-Am and the European Interserie up to 1975.[1]
How many 917s were made?
| Model / variant | Years | Units | What the figure counts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 917 homologation batch | 1969 | 25[2] | The number of cars required for FIA type approval. Chassis 917-001 was the first of them. |
| 917 (all versions, approx.) | 1969–1971 | ≈ 59[3] | A secondary-source tally: 43 naturally aspirated cars and 16 turbocharged cars. Porsche has not published a single total. The figure includes rebuilt and re-bodied chassis, so other counts differ. |
Road-car totals for every Porsche model: Porsche production numbers.
Porsche 917 specs
| Engine | Air-cooled 12-cylinder, 4.5 L in the 1970 Le Mans winner[1],[7] |
|---|---|
| Displacement | 4,494 cc at launch; later 4,999 cc; 5,374 cc in the turbo 917/30[3],[6] |
| Power (917 KH, 1970) | 580 PS (Porsche figure). Porsche articles also give 580 hp and 620 hp.[1],[4],[7] |
| Power (917/30, 1973) | 882 kW (1,200 hp), turbocharged 12-cylinder[6] |
| Weight (917 KH) | 800 kg[7] |
| Body | Synthetic-resin skin about 1.2 mm thick[7] |
| Top speed (917/30) | 385 km/h[6] |
| Body styles | 917 K / KH short tail and 917 LH long tail coupes; 917/10 and 917/30 Can-Am spyders[4],[5] |
| Years raced (wins) | 1969–1975[1] |
917 race results and wins
| Year | Event | Result | Car / drivers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1969 | 1000 km Österreichring (Zeltweg) | 1st overall (first 917 win)[1],[3] | 917 — Jo Siffert / Kurt Ahrens |
| 1970 | 24 Hours of Le Mans | 1st overall (Porsche's first overall Le Mans win)[4] | 917 KH #23, Porsche Salzburg — Hans Herrmann / Richard Attwood |
| 1970 | 24 Hours of Le Mans | 2nd overall[4] | 917 LH, Martini — Gérard Larrousse / Willy Kauhsen |
| 1970 | World sports car championship (makes) | Champion[1],[5] | 917 — John Wyer Gulf and Porsche Salzburg teams |
| 1971 | 24 Hours of Daytona | 1st overall[3] | 917 K, JW Automotive — Pedro Rodríguez / Jackie Oliver |
| 1971 | 12 Hours of Sebring | 1st overall[3] | 917 K, Martini — Vic Elford / Gérard Larrousse |
| 1971 | 24 Hours of Le Mans | 1st overall, distance record of 5,335 km[1],[2],[7] | 917 K #22, Martini — Helmut Marko / Gijs van Lennep |
| 1971 | World sports car championship (makes) | Champion (second straight)[5] | 917 — — |
| 1972 | Can-Am Championship | Champion[3],[5] | 917/10 (Penske) — George Follmer |
| 1973 | Can-Am Championship | Champion[3],[6] | 917/30 (Penske) — Mark Donohue |
What made the 917 significant
- It gave Porsche its first overall Le Mans victory in 1970, after the company came within 75 meters of winning in 1969.[4]
- Its 1971 Le Mans distance of 5,335 km stood as the race record for close to 40 years.[2]
- The turbo work on the 917/10 and 917/30 went straight into road cars. Porsche showed a turbocharged 911 prototype in 1973 and the production 911 Turbo a year later.[5]
- The 917 kept winning after it was barred from the world championship: 37 wins in Can-Am and Interserie up to 1975.[1]
917 market context: dated sale results
Chassis 917-024 set the fastest time at the 1970 Le Mans test day and later appeared in Steve McQueen's film Le Mans. It sold for $14.08 million at Gooding's 2017 Pebble Beach sale, a widely reported record for a Porsche at the time.
The 917 and Porsche's road cars
The Porsche 917 was built to race. For the road cars that share its engineering, history and factory records, start here:
Porsche 917 FAQ
How many Porsche 917s were made?
Porsche built 25 917s in 1969 to meet the FIA's type-approval rule. Counting later short-tail, long-tail and turbo Can-Am cars, secondary sources put the total at about 59. Porsche has not published one official figure, and some chassis were rebuilt or re-bodied, so counts vary.
Did the Porsche 917 win Le Mans?
Yes, twice. Hans Herrmann and Richard Attwood won in 1970 in the 917 KH #23, Porsche's first overall Le Mans victory. Helmut Marko and Gijs van Lennep won in 1971 and set a distance record of 5,335 km.
What is the difference between the 917 K and 917 LH?
The K (Kurzheck) is the short-tail body Porsche developed after the 1969 season to fix the original car's instability. The LH (Langheck) is the low-drag long tail built for the fast straights at Le Mans. A long-tail 917 finished second at Le Mans in 1970.
How much horsepower did the Porsche 917/30 have?
Porsche rates the 1973 917/30 Spyder at 882 kW (1,200 hp) from a 5,374 cc turbocharged 12-cylinder, with a top speed of 385 km/h. Mark Donohue drove it to the 1973 Can-Am title.
What is the most expensive Porsche 917 sold at auction?
The 1970 917K, chassis 917-024, sold for $14,080,000 at Gooding & Company's Pebble Beach auction in August 2017. The car was used in the filming of Steve McQueen's Le Mans.
Related Porsche race cars and specials
Porsche history, specs and production research
Sources
Dates, production counts, specifications and results on this page come from the sources below. Where sources disagree, the page says so or uses Porsche's own figure.
- In praise of the fast car — Porsche Newsroom
- New special exhibition “50 Years of the Porsche 917 – Colours of Speed” — Porsche Newsroom
- Porsche 917 — Wikipedia (secondary reference)
- Porsche achieved the first overall victory at Le Mans 50 years ago — Porsche Newsroom
- The Porsche story 6 — Porsche Newsroom
- Porsche 917/30 Spyder — Porsche Newsroom (Porsche Museum press kit)
- Six winners from Porsche in Le Mans — Porsche Newsroom
- 1970 Porsche 917K | Gooding Christie's — Gooding & Company
- A Porsche 917K involved in the filming of Steve McQueen's movie "Le Mans" is for sale! — 24h-lemans.com (ACO)
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