What's the most successful endurance racer...?

[marcos_eirik]

Okay, what's the most successful endurance racer that has ever been built and raced...? Name your candidates, and don't forget to comment and tell us why it should be awarded the title...

My first candidate is the Porsche 956/962





Why:
Because it owned every race it entered, both in the european group-c class and the american IMSA LMP-class. It scored victories at Le Mans in 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987 and 1994. (During its last year of official make-racing in 1987 it was beaten only once when Jaguar took 1 and 2 at Road Atlanta...) So the 962 was all but unbeatable...

My second candidate is the Porsche 917





Why:
It made everything we had seen earlyer obsolete in the first race it took part in. The Le Mans victories scored was in 1969, 1970 and 1971. It was so fast that it led to the banning of the 5-litre class at Le Mans (It still holds the lap record...) Since it was banned in Europe the chopped the roof off to make it aligeble in the Can Am series. It blew the competition completely away here too, most cars were using 500cu V8s and they just shook their head when they heard Porsche was comming with a 4,5-litre flat 12 with something called turbos. The 917 swept clean the american racetracks from its entry in 1972 unntill the very end of the 1974 season when turbocharging and ground effects were banned in favor of the stock american V8...

[Hazardous]

My second candidate is the Porsche 917

Why:
It made everything we had seen earlyer obsolete in the first race it took part in. The Le Mans victories scored was in 1969, 1970 and 1971.

Correction: The 1969 edition of Le Mans was won by Gulf-sponsored GT40.

Which is where my vote goes. The GT40.

Why: After three years of development and two failed attempts this beautiful machine won Le Mans four times in a row between 1966 and 1969. That means it won four of the six Le Mans events it took part. Porsche 917 was outlawed when it got to the sport just few years later, but it must be noted that GT40 was also hit by legislation. Originally Ford was supposed to take part in 1968 event with a GT40 Mirage prototype but it was outlawed before it was ever raced. This eventually caused the factory to withdraw, but still in hands of J.W. Racing and with Gulf money GT40 gained victories both in 1968 and 1969.

Porsche 917 and 956/962 are also pretty strong contenders, as well as Audi R8 from modern racers. But considering the short lifespan the GT40 had, the amount of success was phenomenal.

[Ethan]

Agree.. The best endurance car is the Ford GT40, followed by the Porsche 917 and the Audi R8

[Overheat]

Silk Cut Jaguar! Simply because it's the first car that comes to mind when we mention thisform of motor racing

[Kip_6666]

I think the d-type and jaguar should also get a mention, they've had great results at le mans. The d-type won it 3 years in a row.

But aas a whole, if i were to point out a manufacturer, hands down it would be porche.

[jasonchiu]

i liek the nissain LM car the one that made it as a road car. i GT340? i donno, n e one got pics of the raod car? like one that is owned by a normal person?

[Daniel]

GT40 sure is the best looking one.

[Overheat]

i liek the nissain LM car the one that made it as a road car. i GT340? i donno, n e one got pics of the raod car? like one that is owned by a normal person?

you mean the R390?




Currently listening to: The Getaway - High Holy Days - The Getaway (2004)

[jasonchiu]

yeah thats it

[Daniel]

I dont like cars like that one. They're just like..... Jet planes kinda. No soul.

[jasonchiu]

nahhh that nissan one is hot man

[Overheat]

got to agree with jason here I'm afraid - I love the look of that R390 sooooo much


Currently listening to: Man, It's So Loud In Here - They Might Be Giants - Dial-A-Song: 20 Years Of They Might Be Giants (2002)

[The_Finn]

what about the mazda 787B first japanes company to win lemans, then it got outlawed 700bhp from a quad rotor NA motor... not to shabby... then it got outlawed buy the FIA... so technically it's batting 1000...

tho i am going to have to go with the 917 as it kicked ass over time not just a flash in the pan as it were

TF
who is somewhat mazda biased

[Overheat]

Yea, I agree - awesome car, just watched a snippet of that history on the RX-8 review from a 5th Gear ep I've just ripped. Pretty good stuff.


Currently listening to: Gimme All Your Lovin' - ZZ Top - Greatest Hits (1992)

[Hazardous]

I agree, Mazda 787B was a piece if excellent engineering(and good looking too, especially the renown livery that was used by the Le Mans winning car) but due to it's being outlawed it never really was that succesful. Too bad.

-Sam Damage

[TVR_Fan]

The GT40 gets my vote.

[leif]

The GT40 raced at a time when the compitition was simmilar to the years when the C5R was all alone in GTS...very little competition...

Ferrari was still pissed from the shelby Daytona coupe incident (ferrari felt that the coupe did not suit the homoligation rules...as it was never produced, and only loosely based on the AC Cobra, and were pissed cuz they tried the same thing with the 250 LM and Failed, and ferrari boycotted Le Mans)...and porsche was playing around with the small displacement Carrera 90X cars...which were good, but only capable of so much against a car such as the GT40.

The simple fact is that when the 917 and 512 came out...the GT40 was immediately obsolite (despite the fact that the 512 never won Le Mans) despite 4 years of development

then the 917 dominated for many years...till it was banned...at which time it dominated Can Am untill porsche abandoned tube frame chassis in favor of monocoques...and the 956/962 was born

so my vote goes to the porsche 917!

[Dr. Woo]

Audi will achieve another milestone this year as 2005 marks the sixth and final season for the Audi R8, the most successful Le Mans Prototype of all time. Since its debut in Sebring in 2000, the Audi R8 has scored 52 victories from 62 races. In the American Le Mans Series, the prototype has posted 40 LMP900/LMP1 victories, 37 pole positions, the most of any race car in the ALMS history. [admittedly a short one, but still quite an achievement nonetheless]

Team ADT Champion Racing will compete in North America's most prestigious and longest running sports car race, the 53rd Annual Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring March 16-19 in Sebring, Florida. This inaugural American Le Mans Series race continues to attract the finest and most competitive sports car teams from around the world, 2nd only to the renowned 24 Hours of Le Mans race in Le Sarthe, France.

[logo]

i played an endurance race in GT3 and never paused once.. take that !

[Viper007Bond]

GT40 gets my vote.