The Porshce 917 can be considered one of the popular racing cars to grace the racing circuit. Introduced at the Geneva International Motor Show forty years ago, the car has since gone through a number of upgrades. Not only that, it also managed to amass a number of victories. These include multiple World Championships, a first overall victory in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and a win at the Can-Am series held in North America.

Also, aside from collecting victories, the Porsche 917 was also successful in breaking into Hollywood. Its most notable appearance was in the racing movie Le Mans, which starred Steve McQueen. Thanks to its success both in and out of racing, the Porsche 917 has been recognized as the greatest car in racing history.

If you want to celebrate its forty years of existence on this God-green Earth, check out the press release posted at TopSpeed about the Porsche 917. It contains pretty much everything you need to know about the famous racing car in a nutshell.

Source: TopSpeed

Ever heard of the Snorkel Car? Sounds like something taken from a scientific novel, right? Well, before you chalk it up as pure fiction, we’d like to make it clear that the Snorkel car is very, very, real. However, it’s not meant to be used to dive underwater. The car was actually designed and built for racing.

Created in 1966, the Lotus Snorkel Car or the Type 47 was produced in 1966. A variant of the Lotus Europa, the car was used by Team Lotus and will be fondly remembered for taking the first and second place positions after racing for the first time in the Brands Hatch racing competition. So what helped the Lotus Snorkel Car achieve its winning ways? Well, it was able to do all this thanks to its powerful 1594 cc twin cam engine. This engine used a modified Kent block and a Hewland FT 200 5-speed gearbox. This allowed the Snorkel Car to produce a whopping 165 horsepower at every outing.

Despite its unique look and powerful engine, only a handful of these babies were produced from 1966 to 1970. How many? Well, 55 to be exact. And given that it’s been around for more than 40 years, we’re pretty sure that the total has pretty much dwindled.

So if you happen to find one being sold and you’ve got the money to spend, don’t think twice about getting it. It’s definitely going to be one of the highlights of your collection.

Source: Wikipedia

Porsche was just one of the many companies that used to dabble in racing before it focused solely on developing street-legal sports cars. And during their time on the track, their cars were able to perform exceptionally well. One of these vehicles is the Porsche 904 or the Carrera GTS as it would be known.

The Porsche 904 was released in 1964 and was tagged as the successor to the company’s previous release, the 718. Although it first carried the 904 name, Porsche was forced to change the vehicle’s name to Carrera GTS due to some naming rights problem (the same problem that prompted them to change the name of the Porsche 901).

When the vehicle first came out, the Porsche Carrera GTS was one of the first cars to sport a white fiberglass body. Prior to the use of fiberglass, most race cars made in Germany were equipped with unpainted aluminum bodies. Aside from this distinction, the Porsche Carrera GTS is also considered the pioneer race car that led to the development of the Porsche 917.

After having the Porsche Carrera GTS compete at various FIA-GT international racing events, the company decided to launch a street-legal version of the race car. This was done in compliance with GT regulations requiring that participating companies were to create a number of road-ready versions of their race cars. As a result, Porsche released a limited number of 100 Carrera GTS.

Just like its racing sibling, the street-legal Porsche Carrera sported a fiberglass body that was connected to a steel chassis. It carried a mid-engine layout that shared similarities with the Porsche 718.As for its engine, the Porsche Carrera GTS was equipped with a version of the four-cylinder Fuhrmann engine. Originally used by the 550 Spyder, this engine allowed the race car to produce a total of 180 horsepower at every outing.

Due to popular demand for the vehicle, Porsche had to produce a new set in 1965. But compared to the 100 units they produced the previous year, the company opted to just put out 20 units, giving the race car a touch of exclusivity.

Nowadays, replicas of the Porsche Carrera GTS or 904 are being produced. This just shows how much of an impact this race car made to the automotive world. It’s just too bad that Porsche decided to produce only a limited number of units. We sure would’ve loved to have one of these babies parked in our backyard.

Source: Wikipedia

The Alfa Romeo 6C can be considered one of the pioneer vehicle lines produced by this well-renowned automotive company. With bodies made by popular coachbuilders, it’s no surprise that it’s been able to give us six generations with a number of variants in between. In our last two entries, we’ve already shown you what the first four generations of the 6C could do. Now let’s focus our attention on the last two generations of 6Cs to see if they’re as good as their predecessors.

6C 2500 – Considered the last road car of the brand, the 6C 2500 was introduced in 1938. Although the impeding Second World War caused manufacturers to stop production of vehicles, the C6 2500 was able to bounce back from 1940 to 1945. Although only a hundred of them were made, it helped the car establish itself to the public. This resulted in it being offered again in 1946 with bigger results, allowing Alfa Romeo to produce 680 of them until 1981. It also attracted the attention of celebrities such as King Farouk, Alì Khan, Rita Hayworth, Tyrone Power, and Prince Rainier, all of which ended up owning a 6C 2500. Even though this vehicle line enjoyed the production of a number of variants (the Coloniale, Turismo, Sport, Super Sport, Super Sport, Freccia d’Oro, GT, Competizione), the one people will remember is the Villa d’Este variant. Produced from 1949 to 1952, this vehicle was made for the Concours d’Elegance which was held in Villa d’Este. Only 36 units of this hand-built model were made.

6C 3000 – Even though the 6C 2500 was meant to be the last 6C vehicle to be built, Alfa Romeo came up with a prototype of a 6C in the 1950s. It was a 6C 2500 that carried a 3-liter engine. This prototype is what gave birth to Alfa Romeo’s CM or Competizione Maggiorata. Despite being a prototype car, this vehicle was given four variants: the 6C 3000, the 6C 3000 50, the 6C 3000 CM, and the 6C 3000 PR.

Thanks to the six generations and variants spawned by the 6C, Alfa Romeo has been able to establish itself as being one of the top car manufacturers worldwide. This has helped the company become a recognized brand that’s synonymous to creating the best luxury, sports, and racing vehicles to date.

Sources: Wikipedia, Velocetoday

The Alfa Romeo 6C is one of the earliest vehicles produced by the company. Since it first came out, this mix of luxury, sport, and race cars has been able to provide us with six generations. In our last entry, we talked about the first two generations of 6C’s that was produced by Alfa Romeo. For this one, we’ll be focusing on the second batch of 6Cs.

6C 1900 – Introduced in 1933, this vehicle sports a 1917 cc engine and an aluminum head. The engine gave the 6C 1900 the ability to produce up to 68 brake horsepower and reach the maximum speed of 81 mph. Although this generation didn’t spawn a number of variants, it is considered quite rare. That’s because about 197 of these cars were produced when it first came out. It was then later replaced by the next model, the 6C 2300.

6C 2300 – The 6C 2300 spelled the demise of the 6C 1900. Sporting a 2309 cc engine, this vehicle was designed by Italian automobile designer Vittorio Jano. The 2300 is most known for being an economical alternative to the more expensive Alfa Romeo 8C. During its run, the 6C 2300 was able to sport seven variants. The first is the 6C 2300 Turismo, which was able to produce 68 bhp and the maximum speed of 75 mph. Second is the 6C 2300 Gran Turismo. This version was able to give off 76 bhp as well as the top speed of 81 mph. Third is the 6C 2300B Gran Turismo, which was able emit 76 bhp when on the road. The fourth variant is the 6C 2300 Pescara, which enabled the car to hit 95 bhp and the maximum speed of 89 mph. The fifth 2300 is the 6C 2300B Pescara. Its engine was capable of producing a maximum of 95 bhp. The last two variants released for the 2300 was the 6C 2300 B Corto/Lungo and the 6C 2300 B Mille Miglia.

Now that we’ve gone through four generations of the Alfa Romeo 6C, we’re down to just two. If you’d like to learn more about them, be sure to check back with us for our last entry on the various generations of Alfa’s 6Cs.

Source: Wikipedia

Alfa Romeo is no stranger to producing fast cars. Through the years, it’s been able to give us the very best in road, race, and sports cars. One of the earliest vehicles that helped establish the company among car owners everywhere is the Alfa Romeo 6C.

The Alfa Romeo 6C takes its name from the fact that it’s a vehicle that uses a straight 6 engine. Aside from being popular for the use of a straight 6 engine, this luxury vehicle is also known for being produced by top coachbuilders during its time. These coachbuilders included James Young, Zagato, Touring, Castagna, and Pininfarina. It also has 6 variations tucked under its belt, which were all produced from 1925 to 1954. For this entry, we’ll be setting our sights on the first two versions.

6C 1500 - This vehicle sported a dual overhead camshaft and was packed with a 1487 cc engine. It’s had four variations of its own. First is the basic 6C 1500 which emitted 44 bhp and hit the speed of68 mph. Next is 6C 1500 Sport, which produced 54 bhp and allowed the car to hit the speed of 78 mph. There’s also the 6C 1500 Super Sport compressore, which produced 76 bhp and the speed of 87 mph. The last is the 6C 1500 TF, which was able to give off 84 bhp at every outing.

6C 1750 – Introduced in 1929 in Rome, this model sported a single overhead cam and had six available variants. First is the 6C 1750 Turismo which produced 46 bhp and the speed of 68 mph. Second is the 6C 1750 Sport/Gran Turismo, which gave off 55 bhp and the speed of 78 mph. Third is the 6C 1750 Super Sport/Gran Sport. It’s able to produce 64 bhp and hit the top speed of 81 mph. Fourth on the list is the 6C 1750 Super Sport/Gran Sport compressore. It’s able to emit 85 bhp and give up a maximum speed of 89 mph. Fifith is the 6C 1750 Gran Turismo compressore, which can emit 80 bhp at 84 mph. The sixth and last variant is the 6C 1750 Super Sport/Gran Sport/TF. This version can give you 85 bhp and the top speed of 106 mph.

To get more info on the other generations of the Alfa Romeo 6C, check out the second part of our entry regarding this unique sports vehicle.

Source: Wikipedia

World Rally Championship cars aren’t just built for speed, they’re also built to withstand the ruggedness of the course that they drive in. While fans have always dreamed of owning one, there doesn’t seem to be any opportunities to actually own or buy one. That is until now.

Owner Paul Donnelly has decided to let go of his 1997 Subaru Impreza WRC. Now before you think that this is just one those run-of-the-mill World Rally cars, think again. Prior to being part of Donnelly’s collection, this 1997 Subaru Impreza was driven by the tandem of Colin McRae and Nicky Grist, two popular WRC drivers. It was first introduced in 1997 when it was driven in the Rallye Monte Carlo competition in 1997.

Originally, the vehicle was registered as a P555 WRC. It was then re-registered when the car was sold to SWRT. After the registration, the car now sports a new registration number, P18 WRC. It also carries a chassis number of chassis number PRO-WRC-97-001.

Now since this car has been around for more than a decade, plus the fact it has had it shares of driving through rough roads, it has undergone a complete rebuilding process under the hands of McKinstry Motorsport. This Irish company used bare metal paint to restore this 1997 Subaru Impreza WRC back to its original form.

While its mileage, engine, and transmission details have yet to be announced, given the years it’s been driven in competitions, expect it to be a little banged up. But since you won’t be using this vehicle to compete in a Word Rally event, that wouldn’t matter now would it?

So if you’re looking to add a prominent World Rally Championship car to your proud collection, here’s your chance to get one. Priced at £85,000 or roughly $123,000, this ride is a steal especially since it’s been driven by two of the sports renowned racers. For further details about the car and how to get in touch with Mr. Paul Donnelly, be sure to visit Prodrive’s web site.

Sources: Autoblog, Prodrive

Everybody dreams of owning a Ferrari. And while some would like a brand new model, others prefer the classic beauties the company produced during its yesteryear. And if you happen to be one those people, then this is something you should look forward too.

RM Auctions, in partnership with Sotheby’s, will be auctioning off a very rare 1957 Ferrari 250TR, with chassis number 0714TR. The event is part of the third “Ferrari Leggenda e Passione”, which will take place on May 17, 2009 at Maranello. The auction itself is scheduled to take place during the latter portion of the Mille Miglia retrospective. Aside from this vehicle, other Ferrari models will also be offered as well.

Produced from 1958 to 1961, and initially owned by race car driver and coachbuilder Piero Drogo, the 1957 Ferrari 250TR is one of the most coveted Ferrari racing cars ever built. One reason behind this is that only 22 of these beauties were made, making it very difficult to come by and acquire during its time.

Another reason was its success on the race track. After it was produced, the 1957 Ferrari 250TR was entered into 19 international championship races and managed to win 10 of them. Notable events include the 1000 km Buenos Aires competition in January 1958 - which was the first race it competed in - where the vehicle landed in the fourth place. Other racing competitions include the Grand Prix of Cuba and Portugal.

The 1957 Ferrari 250TR sports an all-black shiny exterior, with the number “124” placed on both sides of its body. Its seats are covered using red leather while its interior stays predominantly black. This helps make the seats stand out. Brown belt buckles are also used as hinges for its hood and trunk.

So if owning a vintage Ferrari is one of the things you’ve always wanted, here’s your chance to nab one. Just be sure you’re present at the “Ferrari Leggenda e Passione” on May 19. Otherwise, you can just kiss your hopes of owning one good-bye.

Sources: 0-60 Mag, Italiaspeed