Porsche 911 Turbo
Supercar Saturday EP2:
After a hopeful and optimistic car like the Honda NSX I bring you a maniac, THE WIDOWMAKER! Porsche 911 Turbo. The car that had the ability to kill even the most trained drivers. After writing about Turbocharging, I went down the lane of the most iconic supercars which had this technology. That’s where I found this, one of the best supercars but more on the darker side.
Porsche, just like any other factory out there in Germany, was making army equipment in the second world war. After the biggest war humanity witnessed, Porsche found its place in automobile manufacturing and most importantly Motorsports.
They were challenging companies like ford and Ferrari in the 60’s. This forefront was led by the 917 at the Le Mans which it won in 1971. By the dawn of the 70’s Porsche was a household name in all of the motorsports like Le Mans, Rally, GTP. They even entered the Canadian- American Challenge series. At the Can-Am series held in Atlanta, Porsche created 917/10. A heavily tuned and redesigned version of the Le Mans winning Porsche 917. It had heavily designed aerodynamics and to push these to the limits was the 1100 Hp producing engine. 1100HP! Fourfolds of what supercars used to produce at that time. The interesting part was the car was never driven before nor did the driver have the knowledge of what the track looked like. George Follmer had a serious task on his shoulder, to drive the 917/10 aka the TurboPanzer through Road Atlanta. Even after all of the downsides, the 917 won the Can-Am series in 1972, and it won so big that it was disqualified from the championship. Driving the 917/10 was illegal at the Can-Am series which was eventually shut down totally.
Now, Porsche had to find a new place to showcase what it had. The GT championship in Group 4. To participate in Group 4, the company had to clear the homologation rule. Homologation meant, Porsche had to develop 100s of the car they were planning to race in the championship. They could have just gone for the 911 turbo which was a perfect European sports car, but they saw an opportunity to make history. To build a car so fast nothing could even come close to it. Something of a beast that refused to be tamed. Something that would end up killing anyone who would try to control it.
They pulled out the 3.0 litre engine from the Carrera RS and Turbocharged it. To put things into perspective, the Carrera engine already produced 230hp and 280 Nm of torque which was 76 hp per litre for a car which weighed less than a tonne. If that isn’t mad fast what is? The engine after turbocharging started to make so much power that it couldn’t be handled by the 911 chassis. Every attempt they made to tame the new engine wasn’t working. Widened rear axle, stiffer suspension, bigger brakes, a rear wing mounted on to the engine cover and the list goes on. The power was uncontrollable by any human, so much that only the brave race drivers could use the car to its full potential. Sometimes not even them. But why? What was the reason that even after producing respectable power figures and all of the fancy motorsport equipment in every road going car, the car would eventually kill its owner.
One of the fundamental properties of Porsche designers came in its way. The 3 litre flat 6 engine was on the rear axle. Not to the rear side, but on the rear axle. This created a situation that in every turn the car’s rear would be pushed outside and the car would drift. Imagine this happening on the curvy single lane country roads at that time with a car or a cliff on the other side. Death! To add some spice were the turbos. The turbos present totally changed how the car would behave. Upto 3000 rpm, the 911T was a friendly coupe but once the turbo revved up the car would just drive like a maniac. This bipolar characteristic of the 911T was loved by the youth. The very human nature to control the uncontrollable and enjoy the fear of death along with some money could buy you a Porsche 911T.
In 1975, the green flag was waved for the Porsche 911 Turbo. Every driving enthusiast wanted to have it. The timing of the Porsche 911T was just perfect. No competition at all. The Americans had their muscle cars in the coffins and the Japanese were yet to know what speed and thrill felt like. There it was, the car ready to blow everyone’s mind.
FEAR IS THE RESPECT YOU PAY TO STAY ALIVE
The most talented drivers around the world found this car, at the least, difficult. The early 911’s proved to be a handful even in the hands of experts. The 911 Turbo was the fastest German production car in 1975.
“A ROCKET BRED FOR RACING”
Initially sold to the masses out of necessity now became a status symbol. On and off the track it was something no one ever experienced. Everyone just wanted to buy it but many would come to regret it, or worse. Giving out the 911 Turbo to any idiot was like giving a full fledged sniper rifle to a casual hunter, or a jet to a drone pilot. Even a small wrong input and that could be your last drive. This car claimed about a thousand lives.
Creating machines that propel us to the limits while staying in control and keeping us alive is a monumental task, at which Porsche failed.
Then why is this car on this list? Well, because of the impact it had on the history of the automobile. The feeling of bravery it gave after even a short commute made you feel like a gladiator. Even after everything, the fact was that the people driving this vehicle weren’t ready for it. Just like the Chevrolet Corvelle, the lack of quality in the driving made the 911 Turbo a Villain. The car that eventually was labeled as a “widowmaker”. This car still remains in the hearts of the youth because of everything the more mature people hate it. What do you think? Would you drive it even after knowing that it might be your last drive?
Now, over the years the 911 Turbo has matured. With all of the new driving assistance and a well mannered turbocharger it has become more drivable, predictable and more user friendly. Which one would you prefer to drive?
That’s it for today! Thank you!
