The late 1970s and early 1980s were a trans-formative time for Porsche. After a long string of successes with the Porsche 911 and 917 on the race track, they were moving into new territory with a series of front engined cars. Not only were these cars appearing on the race track, though; Porsche intended the 928 and 924 to be the replacements for its aging 911/912 lineup. The result was a special time for water-cooled fans, as Porsche spent a considerable amount of time and resources in between the end of the 917 project and the beginning of the new 956 project on the front engined 924. In order to tie the model to performance and wins on the track, Porsche undertook an ambitious racing schedule, entering the 924 in everything from showroom production-based “D-Production” in SCCA to the World Rally Championship and Le Mans. The resulting lineup of impressive turbocharged 924s have become legendary, but ultimately they’re much more rare to come across than their 911/934/935 counterparts. Still, in the early 1980s they were cutting edge – 2,000 lbs, 400+ horsepower and massive flares hiding 935-spec BBS center-lock magnesium wheels. Sound awesome? You better believe it:
CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1981 Porsche 924 Carrera GTR on eBay
Year: 1981
Model: 924 Carrera GTR
Engine: 2.0 liter turbocharged inline-4
Transmission: 5-speed manual
Mileage: Not Listed
Price: Reserve Auction
1981 Porsche 924 Carrera GTR Race Car
Chassis #004
The early eighty were a turbulent time in Stuggart. It was thought that the new “Front Engine “ 924/928 platform cars were going to replace the time tested 911 as the top of the line for Porsche Racing. The Porsche factory built a wild Turbo 924 Carerra GTR. With its front engine and massive KKK Turbo it was either win or break for the Porsche teams. 19 full race 924 Carrera GTR’s were built by the Porsche factory, of which 9 raced or qualified for Lemans. These were raced in Group 4 or later GTP FIA classifications. In the US Al Holbert built 6 cars with Porsche parts and design to race in the Trans Am and IMSA series. This car is chassis #004. This car was campaigned in races driven by Hurley Haywood 1981-1982 and other team mates from Holbert Porsche – Audi team.
In 1983 the car was sold to Bayside Racing owned by Bruce Leven. The crew chief was Don Istook. Bayside changed the car around and set it up to run in IMSA Camel GT, in GTO and GTU. According to Don the car was a rocket. It set several track records, and was a contender for the championship if it did not have the mechanical failures it suffered. This car after the modifications had to up 600HP out of the 2 liter four cylinder. This car has the latest of bodywork, wing, wheel and tire package as raced in the class when it retired.
The car ran under several sponsorship liveries, Currently it is in the Lowenbrau scheme that Elliot Forbes Robinson and Schneider raced it. The car had sponsors from Bayside disposal and Performance Motorsport.
The car was retired after the 1986 season and was put in privateer collector hands. This car has been here in the Northwest and with the same owner since 1989. It was recently gone through and checked out completely. It is in excellent running condition, and would need very little to be put back on the track. The car is amazing to look at, you will appreciate the exotic racing design and build to this historic racing Porsche.
The car does come with an impressive spares collection that can be itemized upon request. In the list are a couple sets of wheels with BBS brake fans, transmission gears, engine parts, suspension bits, and some specialty tools.
This 924 Carrera GTR is an excellent historic car for many Vintage and Classic race events such as Rennsport, Monterey and theDaytona Classic.
If you have questions please call 503 819 9007 Matt
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The early history of the car seems to be a bit hard to place; I wasn’t able to track down the original livery though the Al Holbert cars at that time ran the dark blue/gold/red color scheme. The first picture I was able to track down was November 1983 at Daytona, which seems to sync with the story of the car being sold to Levens. Levens, though not as well known as some of the other Porsche factory racers, was quite active in the IMSA series racing 934s and 935s until the switch to 924 Carrera GTRs. The marriage proved successful, as at that Daytona race Levens took first in class. Only a few months later, the car had been revised to the newer high-downforce setup with a larger rear wing. This coincided with a change in the rules that resulted in the car being partially tube-frame with clip-on bodywork as opposed to the more production based way they were originally delivered. Elliot Forbes-Robinson and John Schneider drove the car to victory in class at Riverside and Watkins Glen in 1984 in this configuration, making this one of the more successful chassis produced. The 924 Carrera GTRs in this configuration continued to be raced, though less successfully for the next year or two. Later in 1984, Levens changed the color scheme back to the white/orange/red Bayside color pallet until it was retired. Unsurprisingly, it’s the winning color scheme that reappeared on the 924 after restoration, and I think it’s really quite pretty. If you have some time and love race cars, take a few minutes to stroll through the comprehensive photos with the listing. While a car like this is an expensive undertaking to buy, maintain and race, it’s a very important part of Porsche’s history and the ultimate 924 that’s still capable of incredible speed. The 1980s were a magical time for race fans and Porsche in particular and this car is one very special piece of the puzzle. With legendary Porsche and IMSA names attached to its ownership and historic wins under its belt, this is one serious bit of kit with the history to back it up and justifiably will be valued in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
-Carter
Ditto to taking the time to look at the photos, wow.