Celebrating 70 years of Porsche

Celebrating 70 years of Porsche

Since its debut in 1963, the 911 has been at the heart of the Porsche brand. Few other cars in the world can look back on such a long tradition and continuity as the Porsche 911. It has been inspiring car enthusiasts around the world since its debut as the model 901 and today the 911 is considered as the quintessential sports car, the benchmark for all others.

In 2013, Porsche Cars Great Britain celebrated the 50th anniversary of the 911 by racing a classic example of the iconic sports coupe, in historic motorsport. The 1965 short-wheelbase 911 raced under the ‘Project 50’ banner in selected events alongside appearances at larger festivals such as Silverstone Classic.

Now, in 2018, to celebrate 70 year of Porsche, the 911 will take to the track once again. Dubbed ‘Project 70’, the car has been carefully refurbished and prepared for racing, managed by the four Classic Partner Centres and Porsche Recommended Repairer, Road & Race Restoration. The car will race in various series and events, including at Silverstone Classic, Le Mans Classic, Brands Hatch Festival of Porsche and the Oldtimer Grand Prix at the Nürburgring.

About the Project 70 911.

Celebrating 70 years of Porsche

The ‘Project 70’ 911 is a car that commemorates the road-going and racing pedigree of the famed Stuttgart sports car. With its elegant silhouette the early 911 had a very distinct design purity - a lasting legacy from Ferdinand Porsche. This not only established the coupé as a style icon, but set the template for future generations of the car.

Built in September 1965, ‘Project 70’ is a short-wheelbase Porsche 911 powered by a rear-mounted, 1,991 cc flat-six boxer engine. In these early days of 911 production, right-hand drive was available as a special order factory option and the ‘Project 70’ car features this configuration. Once built, the car was sold to an Italian buyer and after spending some time in America the car was then imported to the UK in the late 1990s where it was subsequently fully restored and converted into an FIA approved race car.

In 2013 Porsche Cars Great Britain raced it as part of the 50th anniversary of 911 celebrations and now, once again, it is being prepared for the track.

The striking new race livery fitted to the car was the winning entry selected as part of a design competition run in conjunction with Oxford Brookes University.

Driven by legends

Richard Attwood

Having raced a 1978 Porsche 928 with the four Porsche Classic Partners in 2017, Richard will once again be taking to the drivers seat to pilot the Project 70 911.

With a career spanning over 50 years across many disciplines of motorsport, from Formula 1 to sports car racing, Richard is most famously associated with his 1970 victory at the Le mans 24 Hours race at the wheel of the iconic Porsche 917K with co-driver Hans Hermann.

Still a regular competitor in classic Motorsport, Richard is also a driving consultant at the Porsche Experience Centre.

Anthony Reid

Best known for his extensive career in touring car driving, Anthony also has significant experience in sports car racing, Formula 3 and endurance racing at Le Mans.

In the 1990 24 Hours of Le Mans Anthony raced a Porsche 962 C with co-driver Tiff Needell, finishing in third place overall in the famous endurance race.

Race reports

Donington Park - 7th April

The first race of the season took place on a wet Donington Park Circuit as part of the HSCC Guards Trophy.

An engine problem during the early stages of qualifying meant that the car would start from the back of the grid, if at all. Thanks to the hard work and expertise of the support team (made up of staff from Hatfield, Swindon and Leeds Porsche Classic Partner Centres) the engine was repaired with less than an hour to spare before the race.

With the 911 back in action, Anthony Reid took the first stint behind the wheel making a strong start and quickly working his way up through the grid. Half way through the 60 minute race, control was passed to Richard Attwood who expertly drove the car home to achieve a first in class win.