![Spa: Porsche 919 LMP1 takes Pole for Spa 6 Hours]()
by John Glynn | May 3, 2014 | Porsche News, Race and Rally
The Porsche 919 LMP1 Hybrid has taken pole position for the 2014 FIA WEC Spa 6 Hours. The race is being run today (Saturday) and will be shown on Motors TV from 1PM UK time.
Wet Qualifying for Porsche at Spa
Spa Francorchamps 6 Hours is the second race for the LMP1 Porsche prototype. Qualifying took place on a drying track: unprepared for in a wet practice 1 and dry practice 2. The number 14 919 of Neel Jani, Romain Dumas and Marc Lieb will lead the field off the grid after Jani set a time of 2:00.334: 2.5 seconds faster than the number 20 sister car.
Behind the 919 are group of winning cars and drivers. Led by Davidson, Lapierre and Buemi in the Toyota, the third place Audi and fourth place Toyota will all be chasing hard, as will Webber, Timo Bernhard and Brendon Hartley.
“Brendon Hartley did improve his lap time as well but had no time left for a second lap,” said Andreas Seidl, Porsche’s LMP1 Team Principal. “What the team did today is just amazing. This result is a great reward for a very tough job.
“We made all the right calls in difficult conditions. It was clear that the track would improve and that is why we decided to get those drivers back in the cars who were running on intermediate slick tyres in the beginning. Their lap times had the biggest potential for improvement.”
“In qualifying I stayed out for a bit too long so there wasn’t enough time left for Brendon to do two flying laps, said Timo Bernhard. “Nevertheless it was a great qualifying. Congrats to the guys of car number 14 – we will keep working to improve our car for tomorrow’s race.”
TV Coverage of the Spa 6 Hours
Motors TV will cover the race with more than 7 hours of airtime scheduled. There is huge potential for proper motorsport drama so get yourself to a comfy chair and enjoy! We will live tweet highlights and updates from our feed at @cultofporsche: Ferdinand Magazine’s motorsport twitter feed.
![Spa: Porsche 919 LMP1 takes Pole for Spa 6 Hours]()
by John Glynn | May 1, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Modified Porsche Hot Rods, Project Cars, Race and Rally
Our fourth post from EB Motorsport this week features these brand new Porsche 911R rear quarter panels, tooled up and ready for delivery from the Doncaster-based historic Porsche superstars.
A direct replacement for original steel panels, the lightweight rear wings bond to your steel shell. It goes without saying just how much weight these lighter composite panels save over solid sheet steel, plus of course you can save the steel rear quarters you take off and refit if the fancy takes you in the future.
Anyone fitting these panels will be aiming at an authentic recreation of the super-lightweight SWB Porsche 911R race car, and already have a full multi-point FIA or similar level roll cage fitted.
Full Range of Porsche 911R Conversion Parts
The 911R rear quarter panels are part of a complete range of 911 R replica conversion parts now offered by EB Motorsport: everything from lightweight Porsche 911R front wings with built-in sidelights and indicators, to deep 6 and 7R Fuchs wheels and all parts in between.
The boys have just taken delivery of another ’68 911 shell and are going for the ultimate lightweight 911R build. I am totally into this plan! Will share build pics along the way.
![Spa: Porsche 919 LMP1 takes Pole for Spa 6 Hours]()
by John Glynn | May 1, 2014 | Porsche News, Porsche People
Porsche CEO Matthias Müller has revealed the carmaker’s plans to spend “significantly more than one billion euro this fiscal year, in substantial investments and significant expenditures”.
Porsche: Sharapova, Webber and record Q1 Revenue
“We are focused on fulfilling the promise of our brand – to offer the sportiest and technologically cutting-edge vehicles in our segments – on a long-term basis,” said the Chairman (above with the sugarcubes, Sharapova and Webber). “The improvement of fuel efficiency as well as a responsible use of resources are integral parts of Porsche strategy.”
2014 has started well for Stuttgart. Q1 deliveries were up almost 5% on last year at 38,663 vehicles. Q1 revenue is up 20% year-on-year to just under 4 billion euro. Operating profit has increased by 22%, while employee numbers have also risen, topping 20,000 people in February.
Record Workforce at Porsche AG
Employee numbers are a good indication of how well things have been going. Three years ago, total employees was 13,000. Since then, the company has increased staff numbers by more than 50%. That is seriously going some.
At the end of March, the total number employed by Porsche was 20,416 people: up 15% year-on-year. Almost 1,000 people were added in Q1 alone and that number will keep rising in the run up to Macan, which will be built at Leipzig. Want to work at Porsche with these guys? See all Porsche jobs here.
“Porsche sales will rise once more in the 2014 fiscal year,” predicted Matthias Müller. “The market launch of the Macan will give us an additional boost.”
Porsche Macan: High Expenditures
To make money, one must spend money, and Porsche has more to spend on Macan. “There are high expenditures for meeting the CO2 requirements and substantial investments in the build-out and modernization of the Zuffenhausen, Leipzig and Weissach locations,” noted Lutz Meschke, the board’s man in finance. “Assuming that sales in Europe will continue to stabilize despite the unresolved structural problems*, our aim is to achieve at a minimum a profit comparable to the previous year.”
I’ve just spent a while looking at government budgets by country. Porsche AG could start issuing passports if it keeps up this level of spending.
*Not sure what this means but am checking it out.
by John Glynn | Apr 30, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Project Cars
The third post in our week of catching up with Yorkshire’s EB Motorsport shares news of these trick Almeras bumper and arch body kits for Porsche 911. Note this picture shows the kit without bumper accordions installed: they would be fitted afterwards.
Almeras Porsche 911 Bumpers: New Deeper Front Spoiler
Formed to fit impact-bumper 911s with standard front wings and SC rear arches, the boys have recently tooled up to manufacture slightly modified front arches and this this deep front spoiler version.
Seen here on the 1975 911S mule used by the manufacturing team to ensure a great fit, the additional depth is obvious. Period pictures from the late ’70s and early ’80s show exactly the same version on Almeras cars of the period.
I know the shallower version looks and works great on rally cars, but the deeper kit was run more in period, as the cars were mainly run on Tarmac events. “What’s the rationale behind producing this deeper version?” I asked Mark. “It looks awesome!” was the answer. Good answer.
Here’s a link to the full range of EB Motorsport Almeras Porsche and 911 SC RS parts.
About Almeras Porsche
Started in 1975 by brothers Jacques and Jean-Marie Almeras, the Almeras Frères soon made a name for themselves on the European rally scene. With two notable wins in wide-arched Porsche 911s on both the 1978 Monte Carlo and 1980 Tour de Corse rallies, the firm became synonymous with a bespoke style of lightweight bodywork, designed to cover wide cut-slick tyres on Tarmac rallies.
Other Almeras wins included the 1978 French and European Rally Championships with Michèle Mouton in a 911 Carrera RS, and the 1980 Spanish and European Rally Championships with Antonio Zanini. I’ve always loved the look of these bodykits and have quite a few Almeras models on the shelves in my office.
![Spa: Porsche 919 LMP1 takes Pole for Spa 6 Hours]()
by John Glynn | Apr 29, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Project Cars
Continuing our week of EB Motorsport news, I recently spoke to Neil who has used EB Motorsport Porsche panels to backdate his Porsche 911 SC.
What is Backdating?
Backdating is taking a later Porsche 911 and converting it to look like an earlier car. As the swooping roof line and much of the structural detail of the classic Porsche 911 body shell was unchanged for almost thirty years, it’s a popular way to get classic looks for a lower price.
Neil started with a 1982 Porsche 911 SC. The SC makes a good base for backdating for a number of reasons.
- The 911 SC shell was galvanised from new, so while there will be rust it is not always terminal
- Some of the rusty bits you change anyway through backdating
- The car is very simple and promotes DIY maintenance
- The 3.0 engine has excellent power and the chassis is ripe for lightening
- The 915 transmission, suspension and brakes are an improvement on an early car
- SCs are still cheaper than 3.2s (i.e. better 😀 )
EB Porsche panels include the ‘longhood’ early 911 bonnet, and early lighter bumpers front and rear. Neil also bought a lightweight roof panel, which he plans to use on the next build stage. “I fitted the panels and vinyl wrapped it in matt black to use the car and decide on the next changes. I also gold plated a few parts and installed a roll cage.
“The plan now is to change it a little, make it more Singer-inspired using EB Motorsport parts, including 911 ST front wings, 911 RSR rear arches and slightly different bumpers. I’ll fit the lightweight roof skin, probably install a centre-fill fuel tank and have it painted rather than wrapped.”
Ferdinand Magazine’s own backdate 911 project – based on the 1976 Porsche 912E shell I have stored in San Francisco – will kick off some time in the future. I will also use EB Motorsport parts, as the quality is so good. I’m looking forward to seeing what Neil does next on this very usable daily driver-style 911 SC base.
