Porsche has always marched to the beat of its own drum and rarely paid attention to the activities of others. This was never more evident than in their range of sports racing cars starting with the Type 550 in 1953. Designed for competition purposes, it featured a complex flat four (a so-called boxer) that produced 110bhp from just 1.5 litres. Imagine that in 1953—more than half a century ago! Not only was it light, it was very quick and soon became a class winner in major long distance races. It also became quite a collector's piece. For much of the subsequent sixty years Porsche's sports and racing cars have been powered by boxer engines of varying cylinder count and complexity, from flat fours all the way up to a monster flat-16. The most charismatic of the company's sports racing cars were, in the opinion of many enthusiasts, those from the period that embraced the Type 550 and its subsequent developments through to the RS61. A new era was ushered in with the release of the stunning Type 904 that was shown to the media towards the end of 1963 and entered competition the following year. The 904 was powered by a 2-litre development of the quad cam boxer engine that was first seen in the 550. Engine apart, the 904 was a new ball game: fibreglass body of exquisite beauty, and a totally new chassis with coil spring suspension. It was to have a long and successful racing career and spawned more great racing Porsches over the next decade beginning with the fabulous Carrera 6, the first Porsche to be powered by a flat six engine. The Porsche sports racing cars from this era were that rare combination of athleticism and beauty. They were classically elegant in their proportions, were technically interesting, very powerful for their engine size, very quick and extremely reliable. They were also versatile, particularly the 904 that won countless races on the track as well as many rallies. Thankfully many of the small numbers of these cars that were built have survived and are often seen in classic events around the world. And they still look and sound great. 69 articles tell the story via road, comparison & track tests, performance data & histoy. Models covered: 550, 718 RSK & RS, Abarth GT & Carrera, 904, 906 Carrera 6, 910, 907 & 908.

Publisher: Brooklands Books

Status: Bought to Order Only

Condition: New

Number of pages: 208

Colour images: 60

Black & white images: 250

Binding: SBD

Language: English

Origin: CHN