The story of the 911 R begins with Rolf Wütherich, the passenger in James Dean’s “Little Bastard” Porsche 550 Spyder at the time of the actor’s fatal crash. The World War II veteran, who used to be a Luftwaffe mechanic and pilot during those troubled times, turned to racing and engineering in the aftermath of the deadliest conflict in history. Merely an idea in the fall of 1966, the R project was described by Rolf Wütherich as being “superior to the current competition in its power-to-weight ratio.”
This gentleman couldn’t have developed the lightest Neunelfer of them all on his own. As head of research and development, Ferdinand Piech took a liking to the R project. Ferry Porsche’s nephew intended to drop as many kilograms from the S as technically possible, while also sprucing up the air-cooled engine with additional ponies. Come 1967, no fewer than four prototypes were produced, often referred to as the R1, R2, R3, and R4.
Piech intended to homologate the R for Group 3 as the successor to the S, but it was all in vain. The big kahunas in Zuffenhausen told the future big kahuna of the VW Group that 500 cars that would be sold at twice the price of the S is wishful thinking, and the governing body didn’t help either.
The lightweight sports car didn’t make sense in Group 4 either, partly because it required extremely specialized machinery (think Porsche 906) and partly because the German automaker had to sell 50 units of the damn thing. Spoiler alert: the 911 R ended production after only 20 examples.
Since homologation as a regular gran turismo was impossible, and since Piech and Wütherich invested so much time and so many resources into R&D, they didn’t have a choice but to run it in the 2.0-liter GTP class.
Photo: Porsche
The 911 R saw its competitional debut in July 1967 at Mugello, and unsurprising anyone, it didn’t cross the line first. It finished in third place, behind two 910 racing cars. Let’s give a little more context to this result, though, by mentioning that the 911 R finished ahead of the V8-engined Ford GT40, the V12-engined Ferrari 275 GTB/C, and Bizzarrini GT Strada.
Of the 20 production cars that Porsche assembled, five were retained for factory use and the remainder would be sold to customers. Chassis number 11899006R is a customer-spec model that RM Sotheby’s auctioned last year for $3,360,000 even though it originally retailed for 45,000 Deutschmarks. Adjusted for inflation and converted to dollars, that would be $89,175.
At the 1967 Marathon de la Route, an 84-hour endurance race that combined the Nordschleife and Sudschleife circuits, the Porsche 911 R driven by Hans Herrmann, Jochen Neerpasch, and Vic Elford crossed the line first. Second and third places were claimed by a Mini Cooper S and Volvo 122 S. The winning car was equipped with the innovative Sportomatic, a semi-automatic design that’s essentially a four-speed manual transaxle with a vacuum-operated clutch and a flywheel-replacing torque converter. The latter allows the car to remain stationary with the clutch engaged while also smoothening the electro-mechanical shifts of the semi-automatic tranny.
Gerhard Mitter took first place in the sub-2-liter category at the 1967 ADAC Hill Climb Trophy in the Swabian Alps, and Vic Elford won the Rallye Coupe des Alpes that year as well. Gérard Larrousse drove to first place at the Rallye Neige et Glace in 1969, and that fall, Larrousse claimed overall victory at the Tour de Corse. First place at the Tour de France in 1969 also needs to be mentioned, once again with Gérard Larrousse at the wheel.
Photo: Porsche
In November 1967, prototype number 001R broke no fewer than five world records and 14 international class records at Monza at an average of more than 200 kph (124 mph) over a tad more than 20,000 kph (12,427 mph). 002R had been dismantled for parts in case of any mechanical problem.
The 901/22 engine of the R is adapted from the 901/20 found in the 906 racing car. Some cars were fitted with the fuel-injected 901/21 of the 910. In addition to the Sportomatic mentioned earlier, most cars were fitted with a five-speed manual running a single-plate clutch and a limited-slip diff.
Capable of 207 hp (210 ps) at 8,000 rpm, the R is listed by Porsche with an unladen weight of 800 kilograms (1,764 pounds). By comparison, the S tips the scales at 1,030 kilograms (2,271 pounds). The German automaker further quotes 5.9 seconds to 100 kilometers per hour (62 miles per hour) and the standing kilometer in 24.2 seconds. That’s one second faster than the 904 Carrera GTS and five seconds faster than the Alfa Romeo GTA.
Porsche revived the R exclusively as a road-going car in 2016 in the guise of a special edition with GT3 RS underpinnings. Limited to 991 units, which seems arbitrary unless you remember that Porsche calls this generation the 991, the road-going R weighs 1,370 kgs (3,020 lbs). Its 4.0-liter engine cranks out 493 horsepower at an ear-piercing 8,250 revolutions per minute.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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