The Porsche WSC-95 (sometimes referred to as the TWR WSC-95) was a Le Mans Prototype built for Porsche by Tom Walkinshaw Racing and run by Joest Racing, yet can trace its origin to a Jaguar sports car designed in 1991. A Le Mans Prototype (commonly abbreviated as LMP) is a type of custom-built Race car intended for Sports car racing and Endurance racing, most Porsche SE or Porsche ( German, ˈpɔɹʃə is a German manufacturer of automobiles which is majority-owned by the Porsche and Piëch Tom Walkinshaw Racing, also known simply as TWR was a racing team founded in 1976 by touring car racer Tom Walkinshaw. Joest Racing (currently Audi Sport Team Joest) is a racing team that was established in 1978 by former Porsche works Jaguar Cars Limited is a luxury car manufacturer based in Coventry, England, now operated as part of the Jaguar Land Rover business Originally intended to race in the IMSA World Sportscar Championship, the WSC-95 actually saw very little race action even though it managed to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans in both 1996 and 1997 without actually being acknowledged as a factory supported project. The International Motor Sports Association (generally referred to as IMSA) is an American Auto racing sanctioning body based in Braselton Georgia IMSA GT was a Sports car racing series organized by International Motor Sports Association. The 24 Hours of Le Mans ( 24 Heures du Mans) is a sports car endurance race held annually since near the town of Le Mans, Sarthe, The 1996 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 64th Grand Prix of Endurance and took place on June 15 and 16, 1996. The 1997 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 65th Grand Prix of Endurance and took place on June 14 and 15, 1997. It would later be upgraded to the Porsche LMP1-98 before being retired. Only two cars would ever be built.
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Development
In 1995, Porsche approved the beginning of a project to develop a prototype for the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) series, running under the World Sports Car (WSC) regulations. Porsche SE or Porsche ( German, ˈpɔɹʃə is a German manufacturer of automobiles which is majority-owned by the Porsche and Piëch The International Motor Sports Association (generally referred to as IMSA) is an American Auto racing sanctioning body based in Braselton Georgia The car would not be a factory-backed effort, yet would be approved by Porsche and use some of their expertise and most of all their powerplant. Porsche turned to Tom Walkinshaw Racing (TWR) to develop a car, yet would not put forward the money in order for a new car to be built from scratch. Tom Walkinshaw Racing, also known simply as TWR was a racing team founded in 1976 by touring car racer Tom Walkinshaw.
TWR would therefore turn to a chassis which was remaining in their shop, a spare Jaguar XJR-14 which had never completed its sale in 1992. The Jaguar XJR-14 was a Sports-prototype racing car introduced for the 1991 World Sportscar Championship season This car was deemed suitable enough to be used in the new prototype, although it would require extensive modifications. First and foremost, the roof of the cockpit was removed in order to comply with WSC regulations. A large rollhoop was retained in order to keep structural rigidity, with a large air scoop to feed the engine being placed underneath this in order to replace the large air scoop that had originally been on the roof. Since the motor was to be a turbocharged Porsche unit, instead of the Cosworth HB V8, two scoops had to be added to the sides of the car in order to feed air to the turbochargers. Finally, the rear of the car was modified, replacing the large two tier wing with a more normal setup that fit with the current regulations.
For an engine, Porsche would use one of their longest running motors, the Type-935 turbocharged Flat-6. Originally used in the Porsche 956 in the 1980s, the engine was still powerful enough to power modern prototypes. The Porsche 956 was a Group C Sports-prototype racing car built by Porsche in 1982 for the FIA World Sportscar Championship. While Porsche's new 911 GT1s would use a 3. History Porsche debuted the 911 GT1 in 1995 announcing that it would compete at the 1996 24 Hours of Le Mans. 2 Litre engine, the WSC-95 would use a smaller 3. 0 Litre engine. Although smaller, this gave the WSC-95 a better fuel economy then the 911 GT1, which would be useful over long race distances.
Unfortunately, the IMSA WSC regulations were changed prior to the 1995 season, leading to Porsche canceling the project. However, in February 1996 Reinhold Joest of the Joest Racing team convinced Porsche to give the unused prototype to his team, and for them to compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Reinhold Joest (born 1937 is a former German Race car driver and current team owner The 24 Hours of Le Mans ( 24 Heures du Mans) is a sports car endurance race held annually since near the town of Le Mans, Sarthe, With approval from Porsche, Joest put forth the money to allow for the construction of a second car from scratch, as well as the slight modifications to the existing car in order to meet the Le Mans Prototype (LMP1) regulations. A Le Mans Prototype (commonly abbreviated as LMP) is a type of custom-built Race car intended for Sports car racing and Endurance racing, most Porsche would agree to help in the development of the car only if Joest agreed to pay for the services.
Following the success of the WSC-95s in winning both the 1996 and 1997 24 Hours of Le Mans, Porsche decided to take over the project themselves. The 1996 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 64th Grand Prix of Endurance and took place on June 15 and 16, 1996. The 1997 24 Hours of Le Mans was the 65th Grand Prix of Endurance and took place on June 14 and 15, 1997. Porsche SE or Porsche ( German, ˈpɔɹʃə is a German manufacturer of automobiles which is majority-owned by the Porsche and Piëch Both WSC-95 chassis underwent major revisions to their bodywork. The nose was raised in the middle, while to the sides sculpting allowed for the moving of the air intakes for the engine, necessitating the removal of the large scoop underneath the rollbar. The sides of the car were also redesigned, with the large opening for the radiator vents covered up while exhaust vents were also rearranged. The Type-935 Flat-6 was also upgraded, expanded out to 3. 2 Litres. While now considered an official Porsche project, the cars became officially known as the Porsche LMP1-98s.
Racing history
The two WSC-95s were completed just in time for Joest Racing to go to the Le Mans test session in May. Joest Racing (currently Audi Sport Team Joest) is a racing team that was established in 1978 by former Porsche works There, the two cars showed their pace early by setting the fifth and tenth fastest times, easily beating the factory Porsche 911 GT1s. History Porsche debuted the 911 GT1 in 1995 announcing that it would compete at the 1996 24 Hours of Le Mans. A few weeks later at Le Mans, the WSC-95s showed their improvements and the #8 entry actually found itself in pole position, while #7 was seventh. The term " pole position " comes from the Horse racing term where the number one starter starts on the inside next to the inside pole However the 911 GT1s had also improved, taking the fourth and fifth fastest qualifying positions. During the race, the #7 WSC-95 lead for nearly the entire race, although closely followed by the factory 911 GT1s. The #8 entry remained towards the front as well, although it would succumb to mechanical failures caused by a collision on the track during the closing hours. In the end, the #7 entry of Davy Jones, Alexander Wurz, and Manuel Reuter would take the overall victory, a mere lap ahead of the following Porsche 911 GT1. Davy Jones (born June 1, 1964 in Chicago) won the 1996 24 Hours of Le Mans together with Manuel Reuter and Alexander Wurz BMX Wurz first tasted competition in the BMX World Championship and won it outright in 1986 Manuel Reuter (born 6 December 1961 in Mainz is a former German Race car driver. History Porsche debuted the 911 GT1 in 1995 announcing that it would compete at the 1996 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Although Joest had originally intended to run the car just at Le Mans in 1996, it was decided that the team would attempt once again in 1997 with a single car. A few weeks prior to Le Mans, Joest decided to showcase their car at the inaugural International Sports Racing Series event at Donington Park, where the car took a dominant victory. The FIA Sportscar Championship was a Sports car racing series created by John Mangoletsi and was eventually taken control of by the Fédération Internationale Donington Park is a site near Castle Donington in North West Leicestershire, England, owned by Donington Ventures Leisure Ltd Upon returning to Le Mans they still showed their pace by once again taking pole position. Although still facing competition from the factory Porsche 911 GT1s as well as the new McLaren F1 GTRs, Nissan had now entered and were keen to take an overall victory. History Porsche debuted the 911 GT1 in 1995 announcing that it would compete at the 1996 24 Hours of Le Mans. The McLaren F1 GTR was a racing variant of the McLaren F1 supercar first produced in 1995 for grand touring style racing such as the BPR Global GT Series However, unlike the previous year, the 911 GT1s suffered various difficulties, both in the hands of the factory team but also for the privateers. The finish therefore came down to a close race between a McLaren F1 GTR and the WSC-95, with Joest Racing once again coming out the victor by a single lap. The McLaren F1 GTR was a racing variant of the McLaren F1 supercar first produced in 1995 for grand touring style racing such as the BPR Global GT Series Joest Racing (currently Audi Sport Team Joest) is a racing team that was established in 1978 by former Porsche works Michele Alboreto, Stefan Johansson, and Tom Kristensen would take the victory this time. Career 1976-1981 Junior Formulae Michele Alboreto started his career in 1976 racing in Formula Monza with a car he and his friends built known as the "CMR" Stefan Nils Edwin Johansson (born September 8, 1956) is a former Formula One driver from Sweden. Tom Kristensen (born July 7 1967 in Hobro) is a Danish racing driver.
Now realizing the potential of the abandoned WSC-95 against their 911 GT1, Porsche developed both chassis into the newer and even more capable LMP1-98. Unfortunately at the same time, not only were Porsche attempting to improve both the 911 GT1 and LMP1-98, but as were Nissan and the newcomers Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW. Porsche SE or Porsche ( German, ˈpɔɹʃə is a German manufacturer of automobiles which is majority-owned by the Porsche and Piëch (pronounced) is a Multinational corporation headquartered in Japan, and is currently the world's largest Automaker. Mercedes-Benz is a German manufacturer of luxury Automobiles Buses coaches and Trucks It is currently a division of the ( BMW) (Bavarian Motor Works is an independent German automobile manufacturer founded in 1916 Still run by the Joest Racing squad, the LMP1-98s showed that their quick pace was now lacking against new competitors, managing to take a best of only ninth in qualifying. Joest Racing (currently Audi Sport Team Joest) is a racing team that was established in 1978 by former Porsche works During the race itself, although the LMP1-98s showed pace, they unfortunately would not be able to survive the entire race. One car suffered electronics difficulties after only 107 laps, while the second car would break some bodywork mountings in a spin and would not be able to continue after it had completed 218 laps.
For a final appearance, an LMP1-98 would appear at the debut Petit Le Mans in the United States. The Petit Le Mans ( French for little Le Mans) is a sports car endurance race held annually at Road Atlanta in Braselton Georgia Alongside a lone 911 GT1, both cars showed great pace but unfortunately the LMP1-98 would have to settle for second place, defeated by a customer Ferrari 333 SP by only a few seconds following ten hours of racing. The Ferrari 333 SP was a sports prototype car built by Michelotto to World Sports Car regulations for Ferrari.
The LMP1-98s would be retired after 1998, with Porsche planning to develop their own Le Mans Prototype for 2000. A Le Mans Prototype (commonly abbreviated as LMP) is a type of custom-built Race car intended for Sports car racing and Endurance racing, most That project would later be cancelled, and Porsche would not return to factory prototype racing until the 2005 debut of the Porsche RS Spyder. The RS Spyder (known internally as Type 9R6 is a LMP2 class race car built by Porsche.
Chassis history
WSC-95 #001
- 1996 24 Hours of Le Mans #7 - Winner
- 1997 ISRS Donington Park #7 - Winner
- 1997 24 Hours of Le Mans #7 - Winner
- 1998 24 Hours of Le Mans #7 - DNF
- 1998 Petit Le Mans #77 - 2nd
WSC-95 #002
- 1996 24 Hours of Le Mans #8 - DNF
- 1998 24 Hours of Le Mans #8 - DNF
External links
- Porsche USA - 1996 WSC Joest Spyder history
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