A superb and rare photo taken during the 1968 edition of
the 24 hours of LeMans endurance
roadrace. Shown in this great image is the factory Porsche 908 LH of the Rolf Stommelen.
The Porsche
908 was a racing car from Porsche, introduced in 1968 to continue the
Porsche 906/Porsche 907/Porsche 910 series of models designed under Ferdinand
Piech. As the FIA had announced in 1967 to change the rules for the World
Championship for Marques by limiting the displacement of prototypes to 3000 cc,
as in Formula One, Porsche designed the new 908 as the first Porsche sports car
to have an engine with the maximum size allowed. The previous Porsche 907 only
had a 2200 cc flat-8 engine with 270 hp. The new 3 litre Flat-8 engine
produced initially 257 kW (350 hp) at 8400 rpm, as well as some teething
problems. Also, being traditionally air-cooled and with only 2 valves per
cylinder, it was still down on power compared to more modern F1 designs which
delivered over 400 hp (300 kW), but were not suited to last in
endurance races. The 908 originally was a closed coupe to provide low drag at
fast tracks, but from 1969 on was mainly raced as lighter open spyder named
908/2. In 1970 and 1971, a
more compact 908/3 was intended to complement the heavy Porsche 917 on twisty
tracks tracks that favored nimble cars, like Targa Florio and Nürburgring. Sold
off to privateers for 1972, various 908 were entered until the early 1980s,
often retro-fitted with Porsche 934-based 2.1 litre turbo engines.
Despite winning the 1000km Nürburgring, the 908 was anything but convincing in
1968. The older and smaller 2200 cc 907 had started the season with dominating
wins and later delivered better results than Porsche's first serious attempt in
the top prototype category. Meanwhile, old 4.7-litre Ford GT40 were winning
several races on the faster tracks, with the Ford P68 being a failure, Ferrari
remaining absent, and the Alfa 33 still with 2000cc. As sports cars with up to
5000 cc would be allowed in 1969 if at least 25 (compared to 50 in 1968) of them had been
produced, Porsche decided to go one step further and build the required 25 cars
for the 5000 cc sports car category - the new Porsche 917. This risky
investment should take about a year, though, and the 908 was supposed to
deliver results in the meantime. The 1968 24 Hours of Le Mans were postponed
from June to end of September due to political unrest in France, setting up the
stage for a showdown between the 908s and the GT40s. For the first time, these
Porsche 908 LH Long Tails were the fastest in qualifying and the early stages
of the race, but it showed that Porsche had not taken advantage of the
additional time to improve the 908. Troubles with the alternator caused delays
and even disqualifications as the new Porsche team leaders had misinterpreted
the repair rules. Once again, a V8-powered Ford won, a 907 Long Tail came in
second in front of the sole surviving 908. In addition, Ford had again taken the
World Sportscar Championship, too. For 1969, the prototype rules were changed,
and Porsche lowered the weight of the 908/02 spyder by 100 kg (220 lb), removing the
roof and the long tails. Aluminium tube frames were used, with air pressure
gauges to check them. The 1969 24 Hours of Daytona were a disaster for Porsche,
as all three 908/02 failed, and two Lola T70 won. At the 12 Hours of Sebring, a
Ford GT40 and the new Ferrari 312P Prototype was faster. At that time, the more
powerful Porsche 917 was introduced in Geneva,
and it seemed that the career of the 908 was now over. But with the big brother
having arrived, the 908 started to succeed. The next race was the BOAC 500 at
Brands Hatch, were the 908 finally were successful, winning 1-2-3. With additional wins at the
1000km Monza, the Targa Florio, the 1000km Spa and an overwhelming 1-2-3-4-5 at
the 1000km Nürburgring, the 1969 World Sportscar Championship season was
secured by the 908/02, while the Porsche 917 had teething problems. On the
other hand, the all-important 24 hours of Le
Mans were again won by a Ford GT40 in 1969, as the
917s had gearbox troubles after leading for many hours. Yet, a 908 challenged
for the win, as Hans Herrmann came in as a very close 2nd behind Jacky Ickx.
Herrmann's 908 low drag coupé was fast on the straights, but near the race end
the brake pads wore down, indicated by a light that was introduced with the
908s. The team gambled on not changing the pads, which allowed Ickx to pass
under braking. Despite the more powerful 917 getting better towards the end of
1969, the career of the 908 would continue. On rather twisty and slow tracks
like Nürburgring and Targa Florio, the 917 was not suited well even after being
modified to the "917K". So rather than trying to make "one size
fit all", Porsche built dedicated cars for each type of racing track.
Based upon the lightweight and short Porsche 909 which was used in
hillclimbing, the new open cockpit version named 908/3 was an even shorter
spyder than the 908/2. In 1970 and 1971, this version was entered successfully
in the 1000 km
and the Targa, where typical speeds were only about half of the 240 mph (390 km/h) which the
917LH long tails could achieve at Le
Mans. With the combination of the powerful 917 and the
lightweight 908, Porsche dominated the championships from 1969 until 1971. The
908/02 in which Steve McQueen finished second at the 1970 12 Hours of Sebring
was also used as a camera car for the Le
Mans (film) in the race itself. Steve McQueen was not
allowed to drive a Porsche 917, though. In 1971, fins were added to the 908
which were now outpaced at the Targa by two Alfa Romeo Tipo 33. All entered
908s crashed, but Vic Elford had managed to set fastest lap. The next race at
the 'Ring saw a 1-2-3 of the 908
in front of two Alfas, but with Alfa scoring wins in
Brands Hatch and at Watkins Glen, it was proven that these prototypes could
even beat the 917s. For 1972, the 5000 cc loop hole rule was discontinued, and
the 917 as well as its main rival Ferrari 512 became obsolete. In the 3000cc
prototype category, Porsche's main advantage was the low weight, as the engine
was underpowered with 370 hp (280 kW). The new rules required a much
higher weight (650 kg
(1,400 lb)) than Porsche could achieve (well under 600 kg
(1,300 lb)), giving the advantage to Ferrari 312PB, Alfa Romeo T33TT and
Matra with their more powerful F1-derived engines that had 420 hp
(310 kW) or more even in endurance trim. Porsche decided to discontinue
the 20 year old history of factory racing and sold the 908/03 cars to
customers. Besides developing the 917/10 turbo for CanAm, Zuffenhausen focused
on the development of the already aging Porsche 911, testing the 911 flat-6
with turbochargers. Yet, a Porsche 908LH Coupé was entered by Reinhold Joest in
the 1972 24 Hours of Le Mans,
finishing a strong 3rd with the 3 year old car. Customers continued to race
several 908/3, fitted with extra weight as required by the rules. In 1975, some
908 were fitted with turbo-engines, similar to the one used in the Porsche 934.
Even with 2.1 litre
and a turbo factor of 1.4, the turbos by now outpowered normally aspirated 3 litre engines. Taking
advantage of that, the factory developed a new spyder, the Porsche 936 of 1976.
Unlike the 934 and 935, they did not offer the 936 for sale, entering it in a
few races only, mostly at Le Mans.
Several customer-908s were upgraded with 936-style bodywork. The Porsche 908/80
Turbo of Joest and Jacky Ickx which finished 2nd in the 1980 24 Hours of Le
Mans turned out later to have a real Porsche 936 chassis, though. The 908 has
won the 1000km Nürburgring in three decades, four years in a row from 1968 to
1971, and again in 1980, now with Turbo-Power. Porsche 908s were still run
competitively in 1982, a
remarkable feat for a car that was introduced in 1968 and at that time intended
to become obsolete after 1969! 908s are still raced today in eg. the Classic
Endurance Racing (CER) series.
This is a very nice and very rare non period photo that reflects
a wonderful era of Porsche ‘s automotive history in a wonderful way. This is your rare chance to own this
photo, therefore it is printed in a nice large format of ca. 8" x 12"
(ca. 20 x 30 cm). It makes it perfectly suitable for framing.
Shipping costs will only be $ 7.00 regardless of how many photos you
buy. For 5 or more photos, shipping is free!
(Note: A. Herl, Inc. does not appear on
photo, for ebay purposes only)
No copyright
expressed or implied. Sold as collectable item only. We are clearing out our
archives that we have gathered from various sources.
All items always sent well
protected in PVC clear files and board backed
envelopes.
We have
photographs that came from professional collections and/or were bought from the
original photographer or press studio! They are all of professional and
excellent quality.
After many decades
of professionally collecting photographs and posters we are clearing out our
archives. They make the perfect gift and are perfectly suited for framing. They
will look gorgeous unframed and will be a true asset nicely framed with a
border. They are a gorgeous and great asset in every home, workshop, workplace,
restaurant, bar or club!
First come -
first served. And you can always contact us for your requests. Please ask any
questions before the auction ends.