Porsche 959
| Porsche 959 | |
|---|---|
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|
| Overview | |
| Manufacturer | Porsche |
| Production | 1986–1988 & 1992–1993 (337+8 produced) |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | Sports car (S) |
| Body style | 2-door coupé |
| Layout | Rear-engine, four-wheel-drive |
| Related |
Porsche 911, Porsche 911 Turbo, Porsche 961, Porsche 969 |
| Powertrain | |
| Engine | 2849 cc Twin-turbocharged flat-6 |
| Transmission | 6-speed manual |
| Dimensions | |
| Wheelbase | 2,272 mm (89.4 in) |
| Length | 4,260 mm (168 in) |
| Width | 1,840 mm (72 in) |
| Height | 1,280 mm (50 in) |
| Curb weight | 1,450 kg (3,200 lb) |
| Chronology | |
| Successor | Porsche 911 GT1 Straßenversion |
The Porsche 959 is a sports car manufactured by Porsche from 1986 to 1993, first as a Group B rally car and later as a legal production car designed to satisfy FIA homologation regulations requiring at least 200 street legal units be built.
When it was introduced, the twin-turbocharged 959 was the world's fastest street-legal production car, boasting a top speed of 195 miles per hour (314 km/h), with the sport model capable of reaching 197 miles per hour (317 km/h). During its production run it was hailed as the most technologically advanced road-going sports car ever built, and forerunner of all future super cars. It was one of the first high-performance vehicles with all-wheel drive, providing the basis for Porsche's first all-wheel drive Carrera 4 model. Its performance convinced Porsche executives to make all-wheel drive standard on all 911 Turbos starting with the 993. In 2004, Sports Car International named the 959 number one on its list of Top Sports Cars of the 1980s.
Development of the 959 (originally called the Gruppe B) started in 1981, shortly after the company's then-new Managing Director, Peter Schutz, took his office. Porsche's head engineer at the time, Helmuth Bott, approached Schutz with some ideas about the Porsche 911, or more aptly, a new one. Bott knew that the company needed a sports car that they could continue to rely on for years to come and that could be developed as time went on. Curious as to how much they could do with the rear-engined 911, Bott convinced Schutz that development tests should take place, and even proposed researching a new all wheel drive system. Schutz agreed, and gave the project the green light. Bott also knew through experience that a racing program usually helped to accelerate the development of new models. Seeing Group B rally racing as the perfect arena to test the new mule and its all wheel drive system, Bott again went to Schutz and got the go ahead to develop a car, based on his development mule, for competition in Group B.
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