Porsche 936/81 - 1981

The Porsche 936 was recalled to serve as a counterpart to its own sisters, revised by Joest and Kremer, and experienced its last success in 1981 with its third victory in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, four years after its last victory.

In 1976, the 936 made its debut, replacing the 917 in the Prototype category of the new Group 6 introduced that year. The chassis was derived from that of the 908 (908/3 to be precise), while the 2-litre turbocharged engine with intercooler was similar to that of the 911 RSR. The bodywork was taken from the 917/30, and the overall package was redesigned to make the most of the 500-plus bhp. The result was an open-top two-seater that was light and fast. After a period of fine-tuning, it made its debut by winning Le Mans with Gijs Van Lennep and Jacky Ickx, and taking six of the seven events in the World Championship for Sports Cars, created after the Sport-Prototype Championship had been restricted to the most exciting Group 5 “Silhouette” cars derived from road-going types.

In 1977, Porsche focused on the latter category and reintroduced the 936 with the aim of winning Le Mans again, a goal achieved thanks to Jacky Ickx, Hurley Haywood and Jürgen Barth. The next year, the 936 had to concede defeat to the powerful V6 French Alpine cars, while in 1979, the two cars entered by Porsche did not finish the race.

At this stage, the 936 was discontinued, but the German brand allowed its partner teams to prepare their own version, supplying them with the chassis at times. This was the case with Team Joest's 908/80, that had all the characteristics of a 936 and finished second at Le Mans in Martini colours, with Jacky Ickx and Reinhold Joest at the wheel. In 1981, the announcement of the regulations applicable from 1982 (that would lead to Group C) shifted Porsche's attention to the future 956. In the meantime, the brand decided to reactivate two 936s destined for the museum, fitting them with a new 2.65-litre engine that the technical team had developed for the CART/Indy World Car series, however they were unable to race due to a change in the regulations.

The engine was adapted for Group 6, for which the FIA had decided to cancel the displacement limit of 3 litres for naturally-aspirated cars and 2.1 litres for turbos. With a maximum power output of 620 bhp, the 936/81 was entrusted to Derek Bell and Jacky Ickx, who returned to the track for the last time after announcing Ickx' retirement. It dominated qualifying, followed by the car of Jochen Mass, Vern Schuppan and Hurley Haywood and the ‘908’ of Team Joest.

The toughest rivals were last season's champions Rondeaus in their M379C version, the favourites because of their lower fuel consumption compared to the powerful but greedy Porsche engines. Despite refuelling several times, the #11 936/81 won by 14 laps ahead of the French cars; the other 936, #12, finished twelfth. In 1982, private teams such as Joest and Kremer modified their 936s, transforming them into coupes that complied with Group C regulations. The 936Cs remained operational until the mid-1980s.