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PANORAMA
Photo Gallery from our current issue.

June 2008

Each month, Panorama magazine brings you the best from the world of Porsche. Races, vintage car shows, technical articles, we cover it all!

At Panorama, we never have room for all the pictures we'd like to share with our readers. Here are some photos that just wouldn't fit into the magazine this month.

Featured in the June issue is the story of how Porsche R&D chief Helmuth Bott’s personal archive has found a permanent home in PCA’s Executive Office.  Among the legendary engineer’s favorite projects was the 959, a no-limits exercise in what could be done with a rear-engine car.   For this month’s Gallery we bring you a photo essay on Helmuth Bott’s signature project.  Photos are by Leonard Turner with some help from Bill Warner

We refer you to the magazine for even more articles. How do you get your copy? Join PCA, Porsche Panorama is a prime benefit of membership!

When Porsche released the cutaway drawing of the radical 959 in late 1985, Porsche enthusiasts issued a collective gasp.  Virtually every element was new on the twin-turbo, all-wheel-drive sports car.

 

Parked in the courtyard at Ludwigsburg Castle, the red 959 belongs to Peter Porsche, while the silver gray one in the foreground was the personal transportation of Helmuth Bott.

With the rally version of the 959, Porsche finished first and second in the grueling Paris-Dakar Rally in 1986—an astounding feat for a sports car of any kind.

Engine compartment reveals a 450-hp, water-cooled-head, twin turbo, twin ignition, four-valve 2.85-liter flat six derived from the 956 race motor.

Though the interior of the 959 looks very familiar to fans of the 911, the center console with its all-wheel-drive controls gives it away as something special.

On display at a Porsche media event, the road-going red 959 and its Paris-Dakar competition variant continue to represent a pinnacle in Porsche developmental history.

Cutaway clarifies detail of hollow spoke rims that connect to the air cavity of the tires, big brakes and double shock absorbers, one with hydraulic height control device.

Bill Warner captured this rare photo of the circuit racing version of the 959, known as the 961, at Daytona in the fall of 1986.
935 Interior

What set the 959 apart?  It is a car that explored new ground, a territory somewhere between the production car as it had been known and the pure racing vehicle.
Blitzen Benz

Shown to the press for the first time at the Nürburgring in spring of 1986, the 959 shows off its signature integrated rear spoiler.

Check out the June issue for all the details on the Helmuth Bott Archive.   You can also read about the rare Porsche 968 Turbo RS, the ultimate expression of four-cylinder, front engine design from Weissach; enjoy an account of PCA Club Racing through the eyes of an 87-year-old father/columnist; and take a botanical garden trip with the ladies of Diablo Region.  European Editor Michael Cotton brings you up to date on the latest news as Porsche raises the stakes in its fight to gain control of the Volkswagen Group.  It’s all Porsche, all the time, in the pages of Panorama.