Rothmans 1982 Porsche 956 Le Mans winner for sale

Photography by: DPPI

Date: 10.08.2015

1982 Porsche 959, chassis no.003

1982 Porsche 959, chassis no.003

1982 Porsche 959, chassis no.003

1982 Porsche 959, chassis no.003

1982 Porsche 959, chassis no.003

1982 Porsche 959, chassis no.003

1982 Porsche 959, chassis no.003

1982 Porsche 959, chassis no.003

1982 Porsche 959, chassis no.003

1982 Porsche 959, chassis no.003

1982 Porsche 959, chassis no.003

1982 Porsche 959, chassis no.003

1982 Porsche 959, chassis no.003

1982 Porsche 959, chassis no.003

1982 Porsche 959, chassis no.003

1982 Porsche 959, chassis no.003

One of the most historic endurance racing cars, the Le Mans-winning 1982 Porsche 956, chassis 003, will be auctioned by Goodings & Company at this year's Pebble Beach Concours D’Elegance

Porsche 956-003

We brought you the story of Vern Schuppan’s Aston Martin DB2 restoration last issue. Here’s one of the cars that made him a hero.

It’s the 1982 Le Mans winning Porsche 956, one of ten factory-built race cars. This one, Chassis #003, is the most successful 956 of them all, in iconic Rothmans livery and built to Group C specifications. That means it’s not only got the landmark aerodynamic ground effects, it also has Porsche’s staggering 470-plus kilowatt twin-turbo flat-six powering the rear wheels via a dual-clutch five-speed manual gearbox.

In 1982 the 956 took second place at Le Mans, driving by Jochen Mass and Vern Schuppan. In 1983 it returned, again with Vern at the wheel, alongside Hurley Kaywood, and Al Holbert who crossed the finish line 63 seconds ahead of the second-placed Porsche 056 of Jacky Ickx and Derek Bell. It’s still remembered as one of the great Le Mans wins.

An historic piece of analogue motorsport engineering is one of the pinnacle Le Mans racers. With a malicious, untamed roar, and an echoing hiss it’ll take to the Gooding & Company Pebble Beach auction block on Saturday August 15 to Sunday August 16.

SOLD!
August 18, 2015
UPDATE: Exceeding its US$7m - 9m price range, the Le Mans legend reached a final price of US$10,120,000 (AU$13.7million)!

Unique Cars magazine Value Guides

Sell your car for free right here