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Month: April 2015

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Motorsports Monday Special: Racing to Sell – The ‘Silberpfeil’: Part 6

Motorsports Monday Special: Racing to Sell – The ‘Silberpfeil’: Part 6

Published April 13, 2015 by Carter

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Start of the 1939 German Grand Prix with Auto Union Type D and Mercedes-Benz W154 M163s – their last meeting in the nation of their birth

Yesterday saw an interesting comparison in racing; in F1, Mercedes-Benz once again dominated the field with seeming ease, dictating the pace and watching the strategy of its competitors from Maranello. While truth told my focus remained squarely on the Formula 1 race, there were several other popular race series running concurrently; both wildly popular Moto GP and World Endurance Championship races were contested as well. Notably, Audi won the WEC Silverstone 6-hour contest, continuing its quite remarkable run in endurance series amidst rumors that they could be heading to Formula 1. The question posed by me in my conclusion to the investigation of the Silver Arrows period is simply if the racing was necessary? There were other options in terms of racing for both companies to explore, and indeed they could also have taken the Opel strategy in no racing at all. Did the companies choose the right route?

I’d like to take this opportunity to thank our readers for the positive feedback to this feature. It’s been wonderful for me to revisit this research and have the enthusiast community enjoy it. I’d also like to thank Dan and Paul at GCFSB for not only affording me the opportunity to put this research up, but indeed for encouraging me to do so. Though they’re not likely to be paying attention I’d like to thank the Saxony State Archives in Chemnitz and the staff at the Mercedes-Benz factory archives, both of which were very welcoming and accommodating during my time there. Lastly, I’d like to thank my family who has been both encouraging and patient while I’ve spent countless hours working on this site. Without further ado, please enjoy the conclusion!

Link to Part 1

Link to Part 2

Link To Part 3

Link To Part 4

Link To Part 5

CONCLUSIONS : WAS RACING NECESSARY?

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1966 Porsche 912

1966 Porsche 912

Published April 13, 2015 by Rob

I have expressed my fondness for the Porsche 912 for its overall simplicity as well as the potential it offers to buyers seeking vintage Porsche 911 style, but without the 911 price. These were entry-level cars that bore a strong resemblance to their more famous big brother, but were fitted with a flat-4 rather than the 911’s flat-6. There were even claims that the 912 was a better-handling performer than the 911 due to its lower rear weight and thus better balance. For the most part, any 912 will fit that bill. The example we see here will be somewhat of an exception to the typical rule. Due to their entry-level nature few 912s have survived in excellent condition so most of those that do survive tend to come at a nice value. Now and again we come across one that appears to have been kept in much better condition throughout its life. While values for those examples still won’t come close to a similar-condition 911, they still command pretty good money. Here we have one aiming for the top of the market: a Bahama Yellow 1966 Porsche 912, located in New York, with 75,000 miles on it.

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1966 Porsche 912 on eBay

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1989 Audi 200 quattro

1989 Audi 200 quattro

Published April 13, 2015 by Carter

The Type 44 Audi was a car that was, in many ways, ahead of its time. Aerodynamic and technically advanced, the Audi 100/200/5000 offered automatic climate control, ABS, the normal host of electronics and on board diagnostics you’d expect from a top-flight executive sedan. But what it was best remembered for was a turbocharged motor connected to all four wheels via a manual transmission and all-wheel drive. Early models had twin locking differentials, just like the Quattro and smaller 80/4000/Coupe quattros, but Audi streamlined things in 1989 with the revision to the model line. Sporting new dashboards, new badges, and new BBS wheels, the real change was under the skin where the now worldwide “200” model featured a revised drivetrain. Gone were the twin locking differentials; instead, Audi simplified things for drivers by switched to the Torque-Sensing limited slip center differential, better known as Torsen. In the rear was still a manually locking differential; however, instead of vacuum operation like the early cars, it was now electronic, which allowed Audi to program in a feature which disabled the lock at 25 m.p.h.. While the 200 was a refinement of the early cars, the reality is that most remember it for the last-of-the-run 20V models that introduced the new 3B motor to the legendary platform. But the earlier 10V units in both MC1 and MC2 configuration have proven to be long-lived, well built classics that are rarely seen too:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1989 Audi 200 quattro on Craigslist

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Motorsports Monday: 2001 Porsche 911 Carrera

Motorsports Monday: 2001 Porsche 911 Carrera

Published April 13, 2015 by Carter

The Porsche 996 is arguably the best deal going in the rear-engined Porsche world. I say arguably because there are many who utterly detest the water-cooled replacement for the venerable air-cooled 911. On top of the revision in power, the 996 power unit has come under scrutiny for potential failure of the intermediate shaft bearing. But let’s be honest for a second; Porsches are expensive cars that can be very expensive to maintain, regardless of chassis and configuration. And in terms of driving experience, the 996 was quite fun. It was not the fastest or wildest version of the 911, but in two-wheel drive Carrera form it was great fun. I was lucky enough to drive a brand new 40th Anniversary Carrera around a race track, and though it was certainly a road-biased machine, the brakes, suspension, transmission and importantly engine and soundtrack were a stirring experience. Add some real track-dedicated modifications to one, then, and it should be a great dual-purpose weapon:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 2001 Porsche 911 Carrera on eBay

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1992 Porsche 911 America Roadster – REVISIT

1992 Porsche 911 America Roadster – REVISIT

Published April 12, 2015 by Rob

$_57

The Silver 1992 Porsche 911 America Roadster we featured back in January is up for sale again. The price has been reduced from $95,000 to $89,000, but I still feel that’s going to be too high given that the interior is not in the best shape. However, like many of the 964 variants, the America Roadster has seen a serious increase in value over the past year so it’s always possible that someone decides to take the chance that this can be returned to beauty and offer a nice return at some point in the future.

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1992 Porsche 911 America Roadster on eBay

The below post originally appeared on our site January 20, 2015:

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