24h Le Mans
During the two years it participated in the 24 Hours of Le Mans (1964 and 1965), the Porsche 904 racked up as many as four class wins. Here is a look back at the short history of a singularly designed car, combining a new aesthetic and performance on the track. Its best result came in 1965 as a prelude to a significant metamorphosis on the horizon.
Debuting one year apart, in 1963 and 1964 respectively, the 911 and the 904's lines were born from the imagination de Ferdinand Alexander "Butzi" Porsche, later founder of Porsche Design.
Originally, the 904 was to be equipped with the 911's engine, but the need to produce 100 units before the end of April, 1964 for approval at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, as well as the slowed pace of production of the 911, forced Porsche's engineers to go with a 4-cylinder in the 904. The engine "transplant" from the 911 was finally realized for the 1965 season and the version was named 904/6.
Also seen in 1965 at the 72 km Silician street circuit at Targa Florio and the 22 km Nordschleife for the 1,000 km du Nürburgring, two 904/6s were entered in the 33rd edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
With the new engine, Herbert Linge and Peter Nocker achieved the 904's best result at the 24 Hours of Le Mans with fourth place overall. A second 904 (4-cylinder version), driven by Gerhard Koch and Anton Fischbacher, finished in the top 5 (fifth).
During those two years of racing, the 904 proved as adept on road tracks (victory at the 1964 Targa Florio and second at the 1965 Monte Carlo Rally) as it fared on circuits as varied as Daytona, Sebring (with several class wins), Monza and of course Le Mans.
The 904 also corresponds to a crucial chapter in Porsche's history, one involving a remarkable sporting metamorphosis from within.
Born of the marriage between Louise Porsche (1904-1999) - sister of Ferry and daughter of Ferdinand - and Australian attorney Anton Piëch, Ferdinand Piëch joined the German manufacturer's engine department in 1964. He ushered the marque created by his grandfather into a new era, convincing his uncle Ferry to establish a racing car study that saw the light of day in 1965.
Also, thanks namely to the reduction of the minimum approval number required in the Sport class to 50 units, Ferdinand Piëch was one of the initiators of the 906, the first true Porsche prototype which made its first appearance in 1966. He would later follow the 906 with the 910, 907, 908...and of course the legendary 917 that in 1970 gave the German marque the first of its 18 victories at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Click below for the first installment in this Porsche 904 series:
The Porsche 904 at Le Mans (1) - 1964, Butzi Porsche's favorite design
Photo: Shortly before the fourth place finish of the Porsche 904 driven by Peter Nocker-Herbert Linge, pictured here, Ferdinand Piëch (who celebrated his 80th birthday on April 17, 2017) became one of the pioneers of a new era for Porsche at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
