The Greatest Racecars & Their Stories
The Most Iconic Racecars Ever Made
So, buckle up and prepare to be transported to the golden age of motorsports, where legendary machines and fearless drivers pushed the limits of speed and redefined the boundaries of automotive performance. Let these iconic race cars tell their tales, in their own words. These aren't your typical posts; these are a collection of firsthand accounts, as if narrated by the very cars that dominated the track and etched their names into racing legend.
Legends of the Track
Hear the roar of the legendary Ford GT40 as it recounts its epic battles with Ferrari at Le Mans in the 1960s, told through the voices of the drivers and engineers who pushed it to victory. Feel the raw power of the McLaren MP4/4, as Ayrton Senna's spirit guides you through its undefeated 1988 Formula 1 season. Experience the technological marvel of the Audi R18 e-tron quattro, as it describes its hybrid dominance at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the 2010s. From the ground-breaking Lancia Stratos rally car to the awe-inspiring Porsche 917, we delve into the history of these iconic machines, exploring their design innovations, their triumphs and tribulations, and the legendary drivers who tamed their power. Each article is a tribute to a specific car, a celebration of its unique character and its contribution to the rich tapestry of motorsport history.
Third-time charm! That’s what we Can-Am fans were hoping for 40 Septembers ago. On the first of this month in 1968, our beloved Big Bangers would bellow to life for their third season. Maybe this time the grandly unrestricted sports cars, stunningly powerful and torque-rich machines that were faster than...
Fifty years is quite a long time, in politics or any other activity. In motor racing, though, 50-year anniversaries seem to keep coming around quite regularly. I suppose it is significant because many of us are fortunate enough to last for over 50 years, but rather less of us see...
Porsche 356SL Artwork Artist Michael Jekot paints a vivid picture of Porsche’s first racing triumph. The first cars badged with the Porsche name, were created in a sawmill in Gmünd, Austria. The truest test of one of these first-edition 356SL’s was the 1952 running of Europe’s most challenging rally, the...
1968 Porsche 907 Artwork Vic Elford driving the Team Porsche 907 (along with his teammate Umberto Maglioli) to a convincing win in the 1968 Targa Florio. Vic overcame an 18-minute deficit caused by wheel and tire problems to win the race by almost 3 minutes over the 2nd place car,...
(From Left to Right): Steve McQueen, Pedro Rodriguez, Masten Gregory, Peter Revson, Mario Andretti.Photos: Hal Crocker That was Mario Andretti’s comment after the drive of his life…an impossible dream. He said so after he had just won the 1970 12 Hours of Sebring for Ferrari in the most incredible nail-biter...
“Porsche 917 – The Winner” Artwork Artist Michael Jekot pays tribute to the mighty Porsche 917. When Porsche decided to wage a complete assault on overall victory at Le Mans in 1970, they entered the French classic with three awesome racers. Sold to the John Wyer-Gulf Team and painted light...
A Successful Lancia Test Where: Turin / Date: March of 1954 Near the Lancia factory in Turin during March of 1954, Piero Taruffi seems pleased after a test of the Lancia D24 that he will soon be racing to victory in the Giro di Sicilia with Carlo Luoni as passenger. Details: Photo...
Any racing fan that lived in Southern California in the early 70s knew of the late, great Riverside International Raceway (RIR). And if you followed top-level Porsche racing during the same period, no matter where you’re from, likely knew of the International Race of Champions (IROC), and that for its...
2003 Mercedes Benz CLK DTM Factory Race Car For Sale Details: Seller Oakfields is asking £245,000 for the DTM racer. Car is located in the U.K. strong>Seller Comments: “Full factory specification car. Carbon body weighing only 980 kg (2160 lbs) with ballast. V8 5 litre engine production 475 bhp. 6...
Mercedes W 25 Car: Mercedes W25 / Engine: 8-Cylinder In-line / Maker: Daimler-Benz / Bore X Stroke: 78 mm X 80 mm / Year: 1934 / Capacity: 3,360 cc / Class: Grand Prix / Power: 354 bhp at 5,800 rpm / Wheelbase: 107.2 inches / Track: 58.0 inches front, 56.0...
This drawing of a Porsche 914-6 GT was created by artist Luis Silva using only the unusual medium of ballpoint pens. Silva readily accepts commissions. Each drawing takes over 35 hours to create. No Subscription? You’re missing out Any Text Here Get Started Already a Member? Sign in to your...
During the ’50s, I raced XK120s. The first one was a ’52, the second a ’54. Albeit, I’m not mechanically inclined. I don’t know the difference between a Whitworth Wench and a Lucas Hug. In those days, Jaguars were so good, you could race them with virtually no preparation other...
As Rolf Stommelen climbed behind the wheel of the front-running Andial/Meister Porsche 935K3 after co-driver Derek Bell had pitted to refuel and take on four new tires, rising American star Bobby Rahal found himself leading Mid-Ohio’s $50,000-to-win “all-comers” Lumbermens 500 in the Group 6 Red Roof Inns Ralt RT-2 he...
1964 24 heures du Mans Artwork GT 3.0 Class-winning Équipe Nationale Belge Ferrari 250 GTO 64 finished 5th overall, driven by Lucien Bianchi and Jean Blaton (“Beurlys”). No Subscription? You’re missing out Any Text Here Get Started Already a Member? Sign in to your account here....
The Peco Trophy Race Where: Brands Hatch / Date: August 5, 1962 Practice—the Peco Trophy Race; Brands Hatch, August 5, 1962. John Surtees practicing at Brands Hatch in the Bowmaker Ferrari 250GTO for the Peco Trophy Race where he was to finish 4th. Details: Photo courtesy of: THE KLEMANTASKI COLLECTION Address: PO Box...
For all the great drivers who contested the old Can-Am, few did well. Your Amons, Andrettis, Brabhams, Elfords, Joneses, Halls, Motschenbachers, Parsonses, Poseys, Rodriguezes, Sifferts, many more…none of them ever won a race. How surprising is it that so much talent came up so dry? Pete Lyons No Subscription? You’re...
Mercedes W 163 Car: Mercedes W163 / Engine: 600 V12 / Maker: Daimler-Benz / Bore X Stroke: 67 mm X 70 mm / Year: 1939 / Capacity: 2,962 cc / Class: Grand Prix / Power: 484 bhp at 7,500 rpm / Wheelbase: 107.5 inches / Track: 58.1 inches front, 55.6 inches...
A 1939 Mercedes-Benz W154 Silver Arrow was specially featured at Lime Rock Park’s Vintage Festival September 4-7, 2009. A stellar attraction of the legendary period from 1934 to 1939, the W154 represented the apogee of the supercharger era of Mercedes-Benz’s racing vehicles. Rudolf Carraciola drove a Silver Arrow to the...
1970 24-Hours of Daytona Artwork Artist Thom Montanari paints a picture of Pedro Rodriguez at the height of his powers – the 1970 24-Hours of Daytona. Nothing is quite as dramatic as the sight of an endurance racecar prancing on during the night portion of an endurance race. Pedro Rodriguez...
Photo: Pete Austin I’m always torn by this, and it rather dates me in a way, but I did start watching motor racing as a very small boy. I was around in the 1950s as a spectator primarily, although I had started commentating by the end of that decade. I...
The 1961 Sebring 4 Hours Where: Sebring / Date: March 24, 1961 The Sebring 4 Hours, March 24, 1961. This is the works Austin-Healey Sebring Sprite, which was driven by Bruce McLaren, being refueled and went on to fourth place in this warm-up for the 12 Hour race for cars one liter...
I am synonymous with the Jaguar marque. It would, therefore, be strange for me to consider a car other than a Jaguar as my greatest racecar. What many people do not understand is that in order to test and prove a particular Jaguar, cars from other marques had to be...
1970 Targa Florio Artwork This 1970 Targa Florio-winning Porsche 908/03 was piloted by Brian Redman and Jo Siffert, used by the John Wyer-led Porsche works team instead of the factory’s mighty 917 because its light weight and shorter wheelbase were better suited to the intricate demands of the 44-mile Sicilian...
This new book from Dalton Watson about the Porsche 917—one of the most successful and iconic racing cars of all time—presents a detailed chassis-by-chassis and race-by-race history of the Porsche racecars entered by the John Wyer/Gulf team. Building upon the history of how the Porsche 917 program came about, and...
Pedro Rodriguez in the N.A.R.T. Ferrari 250 GTO Where: Daytona / Date: February 17, 1963 The Daytona Continental (3 Hours) Race; Daytona, February 17, 1963. Pedro Rodriguez in the N.A.R.T.-entered Ferrari 250 GTO leads Skip Hudson’s Shelby American Cobra out of the infield loop. Rodriguez won by a wide margin while Hudson retired....
In 1967, sports prototype racing was going through one of its golden eras, with plenty of entries and a wonderful driver lineup for the world championship series, which consisted of races in North America and throughout Europe. Seven different manufacturers contested the title with five of them winning races that...
1964 Ferrari 250 LM Artwork The Maranello Concessionaires 250 LM driven by Graham Hill and Joachim Bonnier won the 1964 12 Hours of Reims. A North American Racing Team (NART) Ferrari 250 LM would win at Le Mans in 1965 – the last overall victory for Ferrari at Le Mans....
Ayrton Senna Artwork This year marks the 30th anniversary of Ayrton Senna’s first of three Formula 1 Drivers’ World Championships. It was also McLaren’s 4th Constructors’ Championship win and their most dominant season ever with the McLaren MP4/4 winning 15 of the 16 races. To honor this anniversary, artist Paul Chenard...
I have had the good fortune to have raced many good cars in my career, from early days in Formula Three, to the excellent Bastos Ford Sierra Cosworth (a car I’ll never forget), my DTM Mercedes cars and now driving and demonstrating the Mercedes racing cars from a past era—...
Two events, one forever unforgettable, the other somewhat less memorable, shared the same Sunday, 40 years ago. Heading up the main straight hill to start Heat 2, Cannon and Eaton occupy the front row, with Gethin alongside Adamowicz on the second. Photo: Pete Lyons / www.petelyons.com The Sixties was a decade...
Ferrari 250LM Tribute Artwork Artist Jamie Hankin pays tribute to the Ferrari 250LM. Introduced at the 1963 Paris Auto Show as the replacement for the front engined 250 GTO, the 250 LM was a direct evolution of the sport prototype 250 P spyder, which had won the LeMans 24 hours...
Photo: Mike Jiggle At the end of 1981 when our (Jaguar) turnaround story was just unfolding, a most remarkable man came into my office, demanding some time. His name was Tom Walkinshaw. No Subscription? You’re missing out Any Text Here Get Started Already a Member? Sign in to your account...
1936 Mercedes-Benz W25K The W25K’s failure when put to the test led to abandoned races and an overhaul of racing-car design at Mercedes. Nineteen thirty-five was an excellent Grand Prix season, the best against strong and varied opposition that Mercedes-Benz enjoyed in Year Two of the new 750-kilogram G.P. formula....
Porsche 917 By Peter Morgan When racers and enthusiasts are asked to name the greatest racing car of all time, inevitably the Porsche 917 is somewhere at the top of the list. While many Porsche books have devoted chapters to the 917, few, if any, have really delved into the...
1954 The Tourist Trophy Where: Dundrod Circuit, Northern Ireland / Date: September 11, 1954 The Tourist Trophy; Dundrod Circuit, Northern Ireland, September 11, 1954. Masten Gregory slides out of the Hairpin with Bob Said’s Ferrari 500 Mondial. They finished 6th before the effects of handicapping. Details: Photo courtesy of: THE KLEMANTASKI COLLECTION...
Heavy Duty Lightweights 1961 Jaguar XKE “Coombs Lightweight” & 1963 Jaguar XKE “Qvale Lightweight” Photo: Pete Austin The year 2011 marks 50 years of the E-Type Jaguar or, as some of you know it better, the XKE. No Subscription? You’re missing out Any Text Here Get Started Already a Member? Sign in...
I have certain fond memories of the first single-seater racing car I drove, which was a Vanwall. Tony Vandervell gave me a wonderful opportunity of driving it at Goodwood. There are a number of single-seater racing cars that I would have liked to have driven, throughout my career. It could...
The 2015 Goodwood Festival of Speed celebrated the most successful racing sports car of the 1955 motor sport season, the Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR. Sixty years after the Mille Miglia victory by Stirling Moss driving a 300 SLR, the world’s largest automotive garden party celebrated the British racing icon Moss and...
Gracing the cover of Griot’s Garage Handbook #276 is a very mean Kremer Brothers-modified Porsche 935. Porsche 935’s in their heyday were some of the most spectacular cars to watch. With twin turbo-charged flat six Porsche engines, they produced 600 hp at 7500 rpm. The cars threw out massive flames...
1988 Jaguar XJR-9LM In 1988, Jaguar won the 24 Hours of Le Mans with an entry of five XJR-9 cars. The winning car, driven by Jan Lammers, Johnny Dumfries and Andy Wallace, completed 394 laps and covered a distance of 3313 (5332.79km). This followed Jaguar’s earlier victory at Le Mans...
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