EB Motorsport has just added a 100-litre steel fuel tank to its ever-expanding range of classic Porsche 911 parts.
Recreating the classic 911 sports purpose tank, which was available as a factory option on pre-1973 road and race 911s from the end of 1966, the all-steel fuel tank is internally baffled to keep the contents under control on track or in press-on motoring.
“We’d been looking for a top quality fuel tank for our 1965 SWB 911 race car for a while,” says EB’s Mark Bates, sideways hero of last month’s Goodwood Aldington Trophy. “As with so many Porsche parts nowadays, it’s hard to find something that will last as long as the original parts. After speaking to various people, we found a supplier who could manufacture to our specifications in high grade steel that would not start to rust soon after fitment.”
The 100-litre steel tanks for Porsche 911 were originally available as either side- or centre-fill. Side fill using the standard wing-mounted petrol filler flap was normally used on road cars, but was also seen on a number of ST rally models. Centre fill was more common on racing cars, including the 911R.
EB Motorsport offers both options. The standard tank comes fitted with the side filler neck and is finished in black, ready to fit in the car. The tank can also be supplied with a blank top, finished in grey primer, ready to be fitted with the optional centre filler neck or professional quick release race fittings.
The 100-litre fuel tank with or without side fill costs £2200. The optional centre filler neck and cap are priced at £285. An extended fuel sender, to allow accurate reading of the fuel level in the larger capacity tank, adds £295 to the total.
All prices plus VAT and postage. Contact EB Motorsport for more details via the website at www.eb-motorsport.com.
Dale Lomas of the Bridge to Gantry blog has just shared pics of an un-camouflaged Porsche 991 GT3 RS at the Nürburgring, a visit coinciding with rumours of an attempt on the Nürburgring lap record this evening.
“We’ve all seen the new 991-based GT3RS,” writes Dale Lomas, a driving instructor with RSRNurburg, who hosted our most recent track day at Spa Francorchamps. “I’ve seen the camo-clad test cars, and recently the stationary show-queens at Geneva and New York. But there’s nothing like seeing a hot new car in the wild, undisguised. And that’s what happened tonight at the Nürburgring Nordschleife car park.”
Dale’s pictures show a GT3 RS in Silver arriving at the circuit just before the close, then taking to the track during what photographers call ‘Golden Hour’ for pictures shot in end-of-day light. As the Porsche 911 started its laps of the Nürburgring, the track management cancelled this evening’s public touristenfahrten sessions, marking the circuit as closed.
I’m not sure that Porsche would try a speed record in the evening: early morning light and that cold, damp air would make for a better chance of breaking the Nürburgring lap record, if the track was dry enough. Maybe they want to do some more pictures: the evening light is superb for that. Either way, Dale’s pictures are exciting, showing the Porsche 991 GT3 RS in a normal, run-of-the-mill public situation.
Porsche 991 GT3 RS build slots selling over list price
Of course the Porsche 991 GT3 RS is already sold out. Preferential purchase options went to Porsche 918 owners, many of whom seized the option to buy. The cars that were left quickly sold out, and my Facebook feed has thrown up a few Porsche 991 GT3 RS buyers unsure of what colour to go for.
I have steered clear of discussions on what colour to order for maximum residual value, as that sort of stuff drives me nuts, but no doubt those buyers lucky enough to nab a build slot have already done well for their money. Slots that came available just after launch were changing hands at something like £20k over list price, but I now hear that some slots have been making more than £100,000 over list. Nice work if you can get it.
Edit 23/04/15: just spoke to a guy who has sold his for considerably more than £100k over. Ridiculous.
Porsche Racing had a disappointing run at yesterday’s Long Beach Grand Prix in California. Racing in the Tudor IMSA series ‘showcase’ at Long Beach, the 100-minute street race left little time to fight back from a low starting position.
While Richard Lietz and Patrick Pilet initially went well in qualifying, running P2 and P3 early on and driving the wheels off their Porsche 911 RSRs (see the video below), the cars started the race further down the field. The tight and twisty street circuit is tough for overtaking, so when Lietz put a move on Oliver Gavin’s Corvette at the start, there was no room for error. Sod’s Law, that is what happened.
“An accident at the start is something you can really do without, particularly on a street circuit like Long Beach,” said Lietz. “You know that the race is short and that overtaking is difficult, so you try everything to make up positions at the start. That didn’t work this time. I didn’t expect the Corvette to swerve towards me. I couldn’t avoid him and ended up in the wall.”
Looks more like he ended up in the Corvette (above), but Pilet made the most of his team mate’s misfortune, to come home in fourth place. “I was lucky in the first corner after the start. While Richard’s car was forced into the wall, I just managed to scrape through. Our car wasn’t easy to drive in the first laps, but it improved over the course of the race and the balance got better. In fact, we weren’t far off the top with our times. Still, on this narrow circuit it was impossible to overtake.”
IMSA Porsche Racing California
The number 911 RSR eventually finished eighth overall, with local driver and polesitter Bill Auberlene on the top step in the BMW Z4. No surprise to see a win from pole on this super short race. If you’re wondering why teams put all that time and money into racing an almost nonexistent event, look at where Long Beach is situated, just south of Los Angeles central. It’s the easiest place to market to those who won’t come to a circuit.
Not done the maths yet, but I think this keeps Porsche at the bottom of the championship table in the GT Le Mans class of the Tudor IMSA series. Next round is Laguna Seca at the start of May: another short race of just 2 hours 40 minutes, but with more room to get past the rest. We’ll have to see how things pan out with Michael Christensen in the number 911 RSR, while some of the boys come home for Spa WEC.
Watch the IMSA Tudor Sportscar Showcase Long Beach qualifying on video here:
Watched some Variant 1 KW Suspension going on a Grand Prix White Porsche 964 Targa earlier this week. It was interesting to follow the Porsche project as the rusty old factory dampers came off the 911, to be replaced by KW kit.
When it comes to upgraded Porsche suspension, KW kits are amongst the best available. The German brand with a penchant for finding fine detail on its ex-Formula 1 hydraulic test rig is a favourite of many winning race teams, particularly in the exhilarating VLN championship, so it’s no surprise that KW Suspension Variant 3 kits are common on Porsche cars used for fast road and track days.
The new three-way KW Clubsport adjustable coilover kits are one of my favourites amongst the firm’s 997 GT3 RS track day crowd, but the cheaper V1 and V3 kits are an affordable, quality upgrade for worn-out original suspension.
With prices starting at just over £1,000, the KW Suspension Variant 1 coilover kit is hard to beat. The struts are made from stainless steel, with corrosion resistant springs and bump stops. They also come with the top mounts, which are usually ruined on old 911s. This saves a few quid.
Variant 1 is TUV-approved, so maximum lowering is restricted to no more than 70mm: not that you would want to go quite this low in a classic 911, assuming you were serious about driving. Experienced suspension tech Ricky (above with old and new) carefully set the ride heights before fitting the kit, but the rust-resisting trapezoid thread and composite collar will move freely at any stage in the future, so a new owner could easily raise or lower the car using the supplied KW toolkit.
KW Suspension says that each Porsche suspension kit has been specifically tuned for the car in damper setup and spring rate. The new dampers reduce body roll when the suspension is in compression and give much sharper handling than anything fitted to 911 road cars as standard.
It probably sounds like I have swallowed the KW blurb on this, but I’ve road tested quite a few KW cars and no doubt they feel better to drive. One interesting comparison would be the Bilstein setup fitted to the 964RS I lived with for a few months. That was special, but there seems very little in it when the cars are on track.
The awesome Kévin Estre will join the Porsche works drivers for the second round of this year’s World Endurance Championship (FIA WEC) at Spa Francorchamps. The current McLaren factory driver has been let off Woking’s leash to come play with 911s in Belgium.
Estre is a proper racing driver, as proved by his 2013 Carrera Cup Deutschland title. Anyone who wins this series – undoubtedly the world’s most challenging one-make championship – is a monster behind the wheel, especially when they beat Nicki Thiim as their Attempto Racing team mate.
Estre and the Porsche Works Drivers
I was surprised when Kévin did not get a Porsche works drive after winning that championship in such fine style. Stuttgart was rammed with pilots at the time, so I can see why they picked the lineup they went with. It is very exciting to have the 26 year-old Frenchman back in a 911: and the full-fat number 92 factory Porsche Manthey Racing RSR, at that.
Estre went to McLaren at the end of 2013 and made the most of the opportunity, outperforming expectations for the chassis. He also kept his hand in with Porsches, sharing a GT3R with Jaap van Lagen in GT Masters and picking up a couple of wins last year (below at Zandvoort).
Alongside the GT Masters wins and that 2013 Carrera Cup DE championship, Kévin was runner up in the Porsche Supercup that year, Rookie of the Year in 2012, and French Carrera Cup champion in 2011. Estre excels in the wet, so if it rains in Spa (not that unlikely), we are in for a proper 911 race.
Sharing the car is Sven Müller, the quick Porsche Junior who was very impressive in testing following his maiden win in Porsche Supercup at Monza last September. Muller was impressive at Spa, qualifying fourth and finishing just off the podium, behind Bamber, Thiim and Bachler. No shame there.
The Spa-Francorchamps round of the 2015 WEC season runs from May 1-2. You can watch the race live online if you know where to go: WEC rounds are also shown in full on Motors TV and Fox Sports.
Kevin Estre versus Sean Edwards Nürburgring video
Now for some video! Here’s Kévin racing Sean Edwards at the Nürburgring during his 2013 season. Christian Engelhart won this race, but the real action was behind, as Estre and Alex Riberas gave Sean a hard time. Running wide across the grass in the duel with Alex earned Sean a stop/go penalty, hence what happens at the end. Fantastic driving – Edwards was an old-school Nürburgring hero.
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