While Porsche race cars are rare, the road going versions of Porsche’s race cars are rarer still.
Few cars are as coveted at Porsche’s legendary race cars such as the 917 and 935. Rarer still and perhaps just as coveted are the street legal versions of Porsche race cars. While a handful of copies left the factory in street-legal form, some were converted by private owners at great expense. Three versions of Porsche’s legendary racers that exist in street legal form are the Porsche 917, 935 and a 962
The street legal Porsche 917
There are a few Porsche 917s that were converted for street use. The was of course the Porsche of Count Rossi, the owner of the famous racing team from the 1970s, the Martini Racing team.
Running as number 28 in the Zeltweg 1,000 KM race on June 27, 1971 was converted to road use by the Porsche factory. A custom exhaust muffler was created and the rear wings were shaved.
Since a vehicle could only be registered by going through a crash test, registration could only be completed where such a test was not required. Eventually, it was able to be registered in the State of Alabama with license plate number 61-27737 on the condition that it never be driven in the state.
A more recent conversion is that of chassis 917-037 by Monaco resident Claudio Roddaro. Claudio bought 037 in 2016 and immediately went about converting for street use.
Chassis was never raced. It remained in pieces until the early 2000s where it was completed using 95 percent original parts. As a result, it is one of the most original 917s in existence that comes with the added bonus of having never crashed.
Building the car was one thing. Registering it for street use was something else. Mr. Roddaro spent two months navigating the bureaucratic process in Monaco. Eventually, registration was secured and what you have are the images contained herein.
The street legal Porsche 935
Limited to just 77 examples, Porsche recently reintroduced the Porsche 935 based on the 2018 Porsche 911 GT2 RS. Like the 935s of year’s past, the new 935 is not road legal.
One street-legal Porsche 935 is identical to the K3 935 that won Le Mans in 1979.. Commissioned by Formula One driver Walter Wolf, his street-legal 935 shares 98% of the parts with the Le Mans winning version.
Originally built and converted by Kremer, the German builder of the original 935s, the road going 935 has a luxurious interior and Recaro seats from the Porsche 930. It is powered by a detuned version of the 2.85 liter, twin turbo six-cylinder engine that produces 740 horsepower at 8,000 rpm at the wheels.
Converting all that power to motion is a four-speed transmission that has the same gear ratios that were used in the Le Mans race car.
There were many custom parts that were made specifically for this car including a new exhaust system and that took six months to build and a speedometer that displayed in KM/hr. To accommodate this request, Kremer had to invent a special magnetic sensor for the rear axle. The tires are also very special and can only be created by hand.
This particular street-legal Porsche 935 is for sale. However, the selling dealer does not list a price. They request that a prospective buyer ‘inquire’.
Whatever the price, I expect to be in the millions of dollars. When this car was made, it cost Walter Wolf the equivalent of $800,000 at the time.
The street legal Porsche 962
While there is the Dauer 962, it is not a Porsche race car but rather a new car built to specification of the Porsche 962.
There is a man in Japan who loves his 962 so much that he built a street legal Porsche 962C. Built by Vern Schuppan, an ex-Porsche Works driver. What makes x’s Porsche so unique is not only the fact that he can drive it on the street legally but rather that it is has racing parts from real Porsche 956 and 962s.
While the factory 962s had aluminum bodies, x’s 962 has a carbon monocoque body. Additionally, it is powered by a first generation 956 motor. While it may not have monstrous horsepower and torque, it is more than sufficient for street use, he says.
The car in its current form is capable of cruising at 155 miles per hour all day.
