Thursday, January 17, 2013

Porsche�s 917/20 �Pink Pig� Le Mans Racer is a Tasty Piece of History

Racing cars that don�t win races are quickly forgotten even by their own creators. Winners make history, second is the first loser: that�s the way it�s always been. Surely, nobody remembers a Le Mans contender that didn�t even make it to the finish line, right?


That may be true for most cars but not for Porsche�s 917. The brainchild of current VW Group supremo Ferdinand Piech, it is deeply etched in racing history not only for giving Porsche its first-ever victory at La Sarthe in 1970, followed by another one the next year but also because it starred in Steve McQueen�s 1971 Le Mans film.

There have been at least nine variants of the 917. One of them is the 917/20, a one-off version that was a hybrid between the short- and long- tail versions and took part in the 1971 race.

While the term �pig� is used to describe a car that handles badly, the 917/20 earned that nickname due to its paintjob that was created by Porsche�s own designers. It may have retired halfway through the race but its distinctive paint scheme makes it the most distinguishable 917 after the Gulf-liveried models.

You can watch a video showing close-up details of the immaculately restored �pig� that�s on display at Porsche�s museum right after the break.

Articles Source : Carscoop
Video Source : Youtube

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