The Porsche 914/6 GT was a

race car Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organi ...

built by

Porsche Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, usually shortened to Porsche (; see #Pronunciation, below), is a German automobile manufacturer specializing in high-performance sports cars, SUVs and sedans, headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany ...

, based on the 914 model with a 6-cylinder engine and GT package.

History

Paris - RM Sotheby’s 2018 - Porsche 914-6 GT - 1970 - 003

The 914/6 GT was a race configured version of the 914/6. The factory offered the GT option, which was distinguishable by its box-like steel fender flares. It quickly became known as the 914/6 GT and was raced employing different engine configurations. This included the 'T' specification, which was a basic

911 911 or 9/11 may refer to: Dates * AD 911 * 911 BC * September 11 ** 9/11, the September 11 attacks of 2001 ** 11 de Septiembre, Chilean coup d'état in 1973 that outed the democratically elected Salvador Allende * November 9 Numbers * 91 ...

engine. Another popular configuration was to use a converted Carrera 6 engine. In 1970, Porsche entered a 914/6 with the factory's GT option in the grueling

24 Hours of Le Mans The 24 Hours of Le Mans (french: link=no, 24 Heures du Mans) is an endurance-focused Sports car racing, sports car race held annually near the town of Le Mans, France. It is the world's oldest active Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance r ...

race. The car, identified as #40, was driven by

Claude Ballot-Léna Claude Ballot-Léna (4 August 1936 – 9 November 1999) was a French racing driver born in Paris. Career He won the 1969 Spa 24 Hours in a Porsche 911 and the 1983 24 Hours of Daytona in a Porsche 935 Turbo owned by Preston Henn. He also entered ...

and

Guy Chasseuil Guy Chasseuil (born 26 January 1942 in Paris) is a French former racing driver. During his racing career he specialized in rallying and endurance racing. Career Guy Chasseuil's first major race was the 1966 24 Hours of Spa, driving an NSU ...

. It finished sixth overall, preceded only by prototype racecars like the V12 Ferrari 512S and Flat-12 Porsche 917K. In addition, the #40 won its class ahead of several

Porsche 911 The Porsche 911 (pronounced ''Nine Eleven'' or in german: Neunelfer) is a two-door 2+2 high performance rear-engined sports car introduced in September 1964 by Porsche AG of Stuttgart, Germany. It has a rear-mounted flat-six engine and origin ...

S entries. 914/6s also competed in some of the most important race competitions of its era, e.g.

Targa Florio The Targa Florio was a public road endurance automobile race held in the mountains of Sicily near the island's capital of Palermo. Founded in 1906, it was the oldest sports car racing event, part of the World Sportscar Championship between 1955 ...

with

Brian Redman Brian Herman Thomas Redman (born 9 March 1937 in Burnley, Lancashire and educated at Rossall School, Fleetwood, Lancashire), is a retired British racing driver. Racing for Carl Haas and Jim Hall's Chaparral Cars, Brian Redman won the 1974, '7 ...

Monte Carlo Rally The Monte Carlo Rally or Rallye Monte-Carlo (officially ''Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo'') is a rallying event organised each year by the Automobile Club de Monaco. The rally now takes place along the French Riviera in Monaco and southeast ...

and

Daytona International Speedway Daytona International Speedway is a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. Since opening in 1959, it has been the home of the Daytona 500, the most prestigious race in NASCAR as well as its season opening event. In addition to NA ...

. Walt Maas successfully campaigned a 914/6 "GT" in the

IMSA The International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) is a North American sports car racing sanctioning body based in Daytona Beach, Florida under the jurisdiction of the ACCUS arm of the FIA. It was started by John Bishop, a former executive direc ...

race series. The Porsche 914/6 was introduced in September 1969 and was a collaborative effort between

and

Volkswagen Volkswagen (),English: , . abbreviated as VW (), is a German Automotive industry, motor vehicle manufacturer headquartered in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. Founded in 1937 by the German Labour Front under the Nazi Party and revived into a ...

. Short lived, only 3360 examples were produced between 1970 and 1972. Sitting very low, the 914/6's suspension is a combination of a 911-type torsion bar front suspension with a rear coil spring suspension. It also features Porsche disc brakes. The headlights hide in the hood and pop-up when needed. Its targa top can be stored in the rear trunk. The 914/6 received the ram-tuned Weber carbureted 2.0-litre flat six 110 hp Porsche engine that had been previously used with the basic 1969 911T. Weighing just under , the 914/6 proved to be considerably faster. A five-speed

manual gearbox A manual transmission (MT), also known as manual gearbox, standard transmission (in Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States), or stick shift (in the United States), is a multi-speed motor vehicle transmission system, where gear changes ...

was standard equipment on all models. In 2020, a 914/6 GT was sold for $995,000 at the

Gooding & Company Gooding & Company is a classic car auction company headquartered in Santa Monica, California. Incorporated in 2003, the company holds three of the top ten all-time records for most expensive cars sold in auction. The company also provides private ...

auction in Scottsdale, Arizona, the most valuable 914 ever sold.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Porsche 914-6 GT Coupés Rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive vehicles 914-6 GT Volkswagen vehicles Roadsters 1960s cars 1970s cars 24 Hours of Le Mans race cars 914-6 GT Cars powered by boxer engines