Porsche 962 at Fresno ConcoursFrom the notes on the car,This car represents one of the last racing cars that Porsche manufactured in the 1980's and 1990's in which they dominated the FIA GTP series in Europe and Japan for over ten years. It was also a popular car in the IMSA series here in the US. It evolved from the Porsche 956 as a slightly longer car to bring the driver's feet behind the front axle as required by the sanctioning bodies of the time. It is one of the few factory cars made and was campaigned by Team Vern Schuppan running in Le Mans twice (1990 and 1991) and last in the 24 hours of Datona in 1992 when it was retired. These cars were so competitive in their day that even at their nearly $1,000,000 price tag not enough could be made to fill the demand, often leading to other individuals buying or leasing motors from Porsche and fabricating their own chassis (Thompson, Fabcar and others). Past drivers include Vern Schuppan, Hurley Haywood, Wayne Tailor, Ricard Rydell, Eje Elgh, Roland Ratzenberger, and James Weaver. This car is in the Art Sports livery with the main sponsors Art Sports 0123, a company that was involved in removal, haulage and importation of quality cars into Japan, and Apolloil BB, a lubricant company. Porsche 962 Cs weight approximately 900 kg and have twin turbocharged 3000 cc water cooled head engines designed to put out around 750 hp for 26 hours (2 hours for testing and 24 for the race). Although people are impressed with the horsepower, the drive will be more impressed with the braking ability and road handling. The aerodynamic package is effective enough to hold the car to the road such that if it were possible to turn the road upside down, you could still drive the car at speeds over 150 mph. This car is presently owned by Tim Watson of the Fresno California area, who purchased it several years ago and restored it with his brother. He then ran the car for a couple of years in the Porsche Club and SCCA vintage events before again retiring it until time permits its next restoration.
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Dave Hillman
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