WORDS: NATHAN CHADWICK | PHOTOS: AIR|WATER, BROAD ARROW AUCTIONS/MOTORSPORT IMAGES
A Porsche 908/02 LH Spyder driven to a class victory at Le Mans in 1970 leads Broad Arrow Auctions’ sale at the first Air|Water event, a new Porsche show created by Luftgekühlt founder Patrick Long, which takes place on April 27 in Costa Mesa, California.
Air|Water celebrates the wider history of Porsche both aircooled and water-cooled
While Luftgekühlt is a celebration of all things aircooled, Air|Water celebrates not only the wider history of Porsche both aircooled and water-cooled, but also the different subcultures that make up the marque’s ardent following. The event promises everything from diesel tractors of the 1950s right up the hybrid and electrified cars of today, and everything in between, curated and laid out in the manner of an art exhibit.
Broad Arrow is bringing around 70 cars to the event, with the 1969 Porsche 908/02 LH Spyder (pictured above) the first to be announced. Chassis 908/02-005 made its debut in Spyder form at the 1969 Sebring 12 Hours, with Vic Elford and Richard Attwood behind the wheel. The duo would finish seventh overall, which would be the car’s last competitive meeting until August, acting as Elford’s T-Car at the Targa Florio in the meantime. For the Osterreichring 1000KM on August 10, 1969, the car was loaned to the Blau und Geld (BG) Racing Team, and driven by Hans-Dieter Dechent and Gerhard Koch, which would end in retirement.
The 1970 season began with a rebid as a ‘Flunder’ model run in Martini International Racing Team colours. There was also a new driver line-up, with Richard Attwood, Gérard Larrouse and Gerhard Koch behind the wheel at the Sebring 12 Hours, and again the car would finish in 7th. Koch and Larrouse would then take the car to 6th at Brands Hatch, while Larrouse would team up with Lins for the Monza 1000km, with 14th place the result. The duo would then take on the Targa Florio, finishing 13th. Things got better at the Spa 1000KM, with 9th place, while the pair would take 6th at the Nürburgring 1000KM. Better was to come at Le Mans, however. The car was given Langheck (long-tail) bodywork for the 24 Hours, as well a fresh driver line of Dechent, Rudi Lins and Dr Helmut Marko. It completed a podium triple for Porsche in third, and took home first in class, in the process featuring in race footage for Steve McQueen’s Le Mans film.
In 1971 it was entered by Hans-Dieter Weigel’s Team Auto Usdau for the Brands Hatch 1000km, with driving shared with Dieter Spoerry, with 10th place overall and third in class the result. Results tailed off, with a crash at the Monza 1000km, a 25th place at the Nürburgring 1000KM, and a gearbox-related DNF at Le Mans. Stewardship passed to Jo Siffert, who loaned the car to McQueen’s Solar Productions film unit for additional Le Mans filming. After Siffert’s death at the end of 1971, the car was passed to Swiss collector Hans Grell, and then on to Peter Monteverdi. It later entered historic racing under the ownership of Ernst Schuster, who then sold it to Julio Palmaz in California. For the past decade it’s been in a prominent Porsche racing car collection, and for Broad Arrow’s sale the car is estimated at between $4.75m and $5.75m.
For more details on Air|Water, head here, while for more details on Broad Arrow’s sale, head here.
