Porsche 917/30 Can Am Spyder / Mark Donohue (details + revving + racing)

[@193322009]

I was racing in that time period, in a smaller class car, and always admired the incredible engineering and driving skills the Can-Am drivers had. IMHO, this was the best road racing series ever! If they ever brought these cars back just watch the huge crowds develop.

[@russbellew6378]

193322009 I agree that the Can-Am series of the late 60s and early 70s was thrilling. At Watkins Glen I first watched "The Bruce and Denny Show", which was fun even when they ran away from the field. Then when Porsche showed up with their 917, the heat was on! Glorious memories.

[@lun7n]

Mr.CaliforniaBob they brought it back to the Grand Prix of long beach

[@beyond_the_infinite2098]

I watched Donohue race this Turbo Panzer to victory at Laguna Seca in 1973. Pole was 57.4 seconds - a track record. The 917/30 blew off the compettiton which was Folmer in Penske's previous 917/10. Regardless of traffic, Mark clicked off exactly 1:00 minute flat every lap! You could set your watch by him. Magnificent experience.

[@tdail47]

I was at that race as well. The race format was two heats. Donohue blew the motor near the end of the first heat. The crew made a historic change of engines during the intermission and Donohue came back in the 2nd heat and won from the back of the grid. I was also at the final race at Riverside. He simply decimated the field and that was the end of the 917-30 in the Can-Am series.

[@beyond_the_infinite2098]

Terrance Dail I have a B&W photo I took of Mark and Roger leaning over the car looking at the motor just before they pulled it. I watched most of the engine change. As you say, incredible how dominant the 917-30 was, and yes it ended the Can-Am.

[@RobertEHunt-dv9sq]

I was also at that race at Laguna. Fantastic. I have a photo of that day and race with Mark driving the cool down lap on the wall of my garage. Cheers

[@doktorfeelgood]

I would give anything to be able to go back in time to see (and hear) those 917-30 cars race.

[@RickyJr46]

After nearly a half century this 917/30 still looks like alien technology. Imagine the impact it had in 1973.

[@stenovitz]

Half a century now and still as lovable

[@robsteffen9866]

I was at Road America in 1973 and was in total awe of that great race car . After all these years still the best race car I've ever watched .

[@taforth]

This will remain a unique period in racing history...

[@knarf_on_a_bike]

It was glorious! I went to races at Mosport in Ontario, Canada. F1. Can-Am. Went to see a Formula Atlantic race because we heard of a young phenom who was the Next Big Thing. A kid named Villeneuve. Great days.

[@taforth]

Critical Path My very first racing event was at Mosport in 1974 (I was 5!). It was what started my interest and career (25 yrs designing/developing automotive engine components). I actually drove the full circuit a little over 10 yrs ago. I highly recommend it!

[@Aladinscave]

Wish I could be there! I would pay double to go see this instead of anything running today 🏁👌🏻

[@peterlewis3540]

0-200 in under 10sec, those are insane figures, probably unmatched even today. Just imagine the concentration and experience you need to drive this monster. No wonder CanAm died quickly when this thing turned up.

[@95bochamp]

This car was part of the most extraordinary thing that I ever witnessed at a race track.At the start of the first race of the year, Mosport, Donohue and Scheckter just disappeared into the distance. They were going so much faster than everyone else that they caught a backmarker on the fourth (4th!) lap of the race. Mosport is approximately 2.5 miles per lap, so in less than 10 miles, the two of them gained more than two miles on the back of the field. Unfortunately, while passing the backmarker, they collided and damaged Donohue's car.

[@knarf_on_a_bike]

I was at that race! Sitting at Moss Corner. Those cars were scary fast.

[@sirswerve2493]

The drivers,engineers,where the greatest.

[@raymondlowry8564]

I saw this car race at Laguna Seca (what a joke of a track for that car- I don’t think it ever got out of 3rd fear) and Riverside. Watching Donahue blow down the mile long strait was a sight I’ll never forget!

[@leelarkin5726]

I saw it Donahue absolutely dominate at Riverside Int. Raceway in 1973 in the 917. One of worlds greatest cars with one of the greatest drivers. The car was flawless as was the driver; he seemed like a machine that day.

[@jmurray1157]

My all-time favorite driver. To this day I think of the tragedy of his death.

[@Tireshredderjoe]

Way before safety was really considered. Those cars were super fast, even compared to today.

[@Ianzandvoort]

Sometimes they take the old race cars out of the Porsche Museum for some demonstration laps. I saw a 917 and 908 on the Historic Grand Prix of Zandvoort driven by Gijs van Lennep and Jan Lammers, it was awesome....

[@steviesindahouse4903]

Rest In Peace Mark ...

[@jameswatt4694]

Lucky to have seen that race when I was a kid at Laguna Seca

[@death2pc]

Raw. Unbridled. Insane, Wonderful.

[@davidblankenship2720]

Unlimited NO RULES racing the CAN-AM ! That's why people came to the races.... NO RULES.

[@davidblankenship2720]

Excess was barely adequate!! Those were the only RULES. Bring that series back, and the people will show up

[@alanshoemaker1615]

So lustful! I can't say how lucky I felt to see this run at Riverside Raceway. Then seeing it around So-Cal, when Otis Chandler owned it, at show's. :)

[@billymania11]

Mark Donohue and the Porsche 917/30 was a special moment in the history of auto-racing. It's hard to over-state the impact.

[@ronaldrussell5481]

The "Unfair Advantage": Mark Donohue.

[@DickHertz247]

A very interesting book!

[@flammenjc]

Donohue was a weapon

[@DickHertz247]

Last year I read his book "The unfair advantage". He was trying very hard to understand the effects of changing the technical set up of his race cars. I think, he, as a driver-engineer, was quite outstanding by that time.

[@katiebailey1446]

Hi There - Spectacular video! Can you tell me where the original footage is from? what program? Thank you!

[@jamesfletcher5052]

I watched the Mid Ohio race amazing cars great historic racing. The sound was unbelievable.

[@1truemoose]

So did I. I grew up in Cincinnati and attended Mid Ohio races with my father. Also loved the Trans Am series.

[@mortenfrosthansen84]

The tube frame is only as thick, so it wouldn't collapse.. everything on this car is bare minimum, but the magnesium made the chassis fairly strong. Completely insane car.. only the german could make something like this, to last..

[@Blenzo480]

The frame was made of aluminum tubing. There were a few 917-10 frames with magnesium frames, most were aluminum. 917-30's are all aluminum.

[@hl3369]

Too bad I was too young to go see one of these races, I think it was one of the most exciting time in auto racing.

[@evofreak1304]

what's the music in the beginning ? what a great vid, the golden age of racing

[@shanemccoy8058]

Look up any 70s porno.

[@sgtmiklin]

La légende rapporte qu'un de ces moteurs avait été mis au banc de puissance à l'usine, la soupape de décharge n'avait pas fonctionné et de ce fait, la mesure de puissance avait dépassé le calibrage du banc, soit 1300 cv....les ingénieurs avaient calculé, à peut près, que la puissance instantanée avait dépassé les 1500 cv...le moteur n'avait présenté aucun dégât... sacrée machine 💪🏻👍🏻

[@danmenefee5437]

A crazy fact us is that Porche had a 16 cylinder in the works if this version wasn't competitive. It boggles the mind!

[@DickHertz247]

When then 16 cylinder engine was ready for testing, the 12 cylinder had already undergone some further development and got turbocharged for the Can Am series. The 16 cylinder could not keep up. Klaus Bischof from the the Porsche Museum promised to get it running again!

[@oldschoolSlyfan]

Thanks Sam

[@westy44cal]

I don't think tire rack carries those rears

[@dudley7540]

They can probably get them.......for a price!

[@eriktruchinskas3747]

You just have to do the secret handshake....its a handjob, you have to give the guy at the front desk a handjob

[@MrDowntownLA]

Porsche 917-30 CanAm killer...killed the series

[@BIGBLOCK5022006]

The Turbo Panzer.

[@thomasbrandt1299]

the car was Drive in zandvoort Historic Grand Prix.... Fantastic Car

[@H1delta]

Donohue was/is a natural.

[@bradjackson160]

Sam Posey, poet of motorsport.

[@henrymorgan3982]

Legend.

[@kopronko]

Good, BUT, how was it going without Intercoolers ???

[@DickHertz247]

The 917/30 was so dominant, there was no need for intercoolers. Even the updated 917/10s, of which one had won the year before, had no chance. But that was not the end of the story. Intercooler was installed for the speed record attempt at Talladega. 35 years ago, Mark Donohue set a world speed record on the Talladega oval that would last 11 years. Motorcycle Adventure - Win a motorcycle tour through Austria with your buddy - Enter now! The success story of Mark Donohue, Roger Penske and Porsche had reached its absolute peak two years earlier. In 1973, the 917/30 entered by Roger Penske and driven by Mark Donohue dominated the CanAm series. The 917/30 was the last evolution of the successful 917, which famously won at Le Mans in '70 and '71 before being booted out there by a change in regulations. In the CanAm, which was the most important sports car series overseas at the time, the 917 was represented only sporadically until 71. This was to change in '72, when the 917/10 was developed for the first time as a car for the CanAm adventure. With resounding success: the new racers won six of the nine rounds of the season against the McLaren cars, which were used to winning. With George Follmer, who stood in for Donohue when the latter had to take a break due to an accident at Road Atlanta, the champion also drove a product from Weissach. For 1973 Porsche went one better, they developed the 917/30, according to long-time race director Peter Falk probably the best race car ever to leave Weissach, despite the 956/962. Equipped with a 5.4 ltr. 12-cylinder turbo engine, the car produced 1100 hp, and that with an unladen weight of 800 kg. However, these many horses also have a lot of thirst, so the tanks held 400 ltr. With the 917/30 Mark Donohue won six of eight races to the CanAm 1973 and became superior champion. Thereupon for 1974 the fuel was limited on the part of CanAm to a value, which was not attainable for Porsche, thus one withdrew. Penske and Donohue remained together in 74, but the popular driver moved more and more to the other side of the pit wall and became team manager at Penske. He only raced sporadically. It wasn't until Roger Penske decided to move to Formula 1 that Donohue himself returned to the cockpit. The results remained 75 sobering, but the two had something else in mind, namely the world speed record for closed race tracks. The project was initially planned as a private venture by Roger Penske and Mark Donohue. The 1973 winning car was still in Penske's hands. But during the first tests at Daytona, two engines broke down. The engine was not designed for continuous full load on ovals. So they turned to the testing department in Weissach. Mark Donohue himself convinced the Porsche technicians that the world record, then held by A.J. Foyt (350.53 km/h in the Coyote Ford Indy Car, also set in Talladega in 1974), could be achieved with the Porsche 917/30. Porsche agreed, paid for the work and tests to the tune of DM 35,000-50,000, but also supported the project with parts and, above all, brainpower. The official record attempt should take place in the framework of the Talladega 500 - NASCAR race in August 1975. Talladega is still today the largest oval, which is also used for racing, 2.66 km measures a round. After the problems with the oil supply had been solved to some extent, the engine was further tested on dynos with the requirement to run for at least two minutes under full load. However, this never succeeded, approx.1.45 min was the highest value according to Prof. Flegl. The whole exhaust system was already white-hot. But with this it was also clear that one could drive a maximum of two rounds in Talladega at a stretch under full load to reach the record. On August 9, 1975, the time had come. The first attempt failed for almost expected reasons. Some oil ignited on the hot exhaust and immediately set the rear of the 917/30 on fire. Donohue drove into the pit lane with the engine off and braked at a fire extinguisher. The damage was contained, however, the leak was sealed and a new attempt was made, although Mark Donohue was not happy about it. As the Indy winner in '72, he was certainly not a scaredy cat, but the sky was very dark, it was drizzling on and off, and he didn't like the idea of being caught in a downpour at more than 350 mph. Besides, the handling of the car on the oval was not very good. He still went for another attempt for a planned four laps, but came back in after the third. But it was enough with 355.78 km/h average speed the world record was achieved. The top speed on the back straight of the tri-oval was 382 km/h, four kilometers less than the theoretical maximum. 1230 hp drove the 917/30 and Mark Donohue to the record run. It was the last major appearance of a 917 (apart from the Kremer replica in 1981) on the race track and unfortunately also the last successful one. kzbin.info/www/bejne/m2HShYyPjN2VnKM

[@davidblankenship2720]

What was the fuel capacity of the two fuel tanks

[@DickHertz247]

The fuel tanks could hold up to 440 liters of fuel in total. Consumption was 75-97 l/100 km, which corresponds to a value of 3.1 to 2.4 mpg.

[@eriktruchinskas3747]

Apparently 1 pound of seat cushioning is one pound too many

[@jacquesblaque7728]

Not a "turnkey" operation either. Reportedly, initially the throttle response was lousy. Mark worked long & hard at Weissach to make it a powerful AND responsive road-racer. Not at all easy. Sounded like a huge vacuum-cleaner. Captain Nice forever!

[@Karibanu]

To be fair, they'd had a year running 917/10s by then as well. Just imagine if they'd made more than one of them & there was some close racing... This runs occasionally still, ran at the Goodwood Festival this year.

[@N4bpp1]

What is the music?

[@coachjm310]

The song is Blinded by the light "momma always told me to not look in the eyes of the sun cause momma that's where the fun is by. Manfred Mann

[@hockeymann88]

Big trophy, giant balls.

[@RandomDuude]

You don't drive the 917/30. You hold on to dear life.

[@watalounge1980]

What's the music in the beginning???

[@sirswerve2493]

I think its pink floyd.

[@niklasnotgreta]

"DieHard" 😃

[@DickHertz247]

This is a really nice sponsorship-name. King of cool. Winner.

[@PeterMayer]

I have this DVD

[@DickHertz247]

Peter Mayer Unbelievable! What is the title of the DVD? Can-Am Thunder: The Mighty Machines of the Series?

[@kudryavchik]

@@DickHertz247 speed odyssey

[@collinmanning8334]

0-200 in 10 sec..... Men were fucking built different to race those cars at the edge on those tires.

[@michaelprice7005]

Unfair...in the best way.

[@katiebailey1446]

Where is this footage from! So cool!?@dickHerts247

[@DickHertz247]

I unfortunately do not know. I googled so much to find the music's source - impossible. But I found it worth being reloaded.

[@katiebailey1446]

I was hoping to get any info on the original film or tv show that the footage came from - thanks for your help and for posting the awesome footage!

[@gregbennett4254]

I will take a McLaren M20 any day nothing like a all aluminum 494 big block Chevy. Inches behind your head plus they look beautiful

[@davidblankenship2720]

UOP Shadow was working on a twin turbo package in 1973 that would have had about the same horse power,but the rules on fuel capacity became the issue that hindered further development... Was a great show of (run what you brung, and you had better brung a lot) racing . Rules KILLED unlimited racing!!!!!

[@HudsonKruger27]

You only die in a crash at 240mph in that car

[@daleolson3506]

Backround music junked video

[@BobPDXz]

Frightening to say the least...

[@yvesdekeersmaeker9864]

Arne De

[@sirswerve2493]

a porsche muscle car..

[@DickHertz247]

It is so impressive to see what they were able to do back then. They were pioneers. And the car looks just like porn. But the shape just follows its function. Imagine to take a ride in an open car with up to 1580 HP running 230 miles or more.

[@sirswerve2493]

I can imagine. It would blow my mind...

[@thethirdman225]

1580hp was not possible with this engine, despite the rumours.

[@sirswerve2493]

with the right fuel and the turbo's turned up.. Its not a rumour.

[@thethirdman225]

SIR SWERVE When you're dealing with hypotheticals, it can only be a rumour. The 912 block (to give the engine its official designation) was two air cooled flat sixes joined together, with a central PTO and fan drive. This was Problem Number One. A long block, especially one without water jackets, is a flexible block and a flexible block is a Very Bad Thing. The more power you try to extract, the more it flexes. Eventually it will blow up. Secondly, the 912 engine was built using components from the 908, an engine which was originally designed to produce a relatively modest 350 hp. Sure, they were beefed up but there are engineering limits. Structural and component size and weight would eventually become restrictive so you can only go so far. If those components had more than 150% tolerance built into them, I would be surprised. Thirdly, there is only one case where this power _might_ have been achieved. Ian Bamsey - not known for his use of moderate language when it comes to talking power outputs and top speeds - describes an incident where a 917/30 engine was put on a dynamometer and the wick turned up. Speculation is rife to this day about how much power it was producing but Bamsey reported around 1,500 hp when it suffered a catastrophic failure. Nobody knows for certain. Fourthly, the 917/30 engine used Eberspacher turbos. Never heard of them? That's no surprise. They came from a truck engine. This, of course, was during the days when turbos were not nearly as common, sophisticated or reliable as they are now. Turbochargers are exposed to the worst aspects of a reciprocating engine - hot exhaust gases. In the 1970s, bearings would run dry and vanes were not nearly as tolerant as they are today. Finally, I'm not sure how much you know about dynamometers but here's how it works. Torque is _measured_ and power is _calculated_. Power = max torque x max RPM / 5252. The highest figures I have found for the 917/30 are: TORQUE = 810 lb ft RPM = 8,200 810 x 8200 = 6,642,000 / 5252 = 1,264.66 hp This is not a realistic figure. It is simply the theoretical figure beyond which the engine will not go. If you're really lucky and the wind is blowing the right way, the true figure _might_ be 1,200 hp. There will be a significant drop off in power before max RPM is reached (drop off is less in turbo engines). Max boost was 1.4 bar but race boost was 1.1 bar. The means by which this adjustment was made was very rudimentary and not very precise. Porsche themselves have never quoted more than 1,100 hp for this engine. The basic information shows that 1,580 hp is not just a myth, it's implausible. But in the usual manner of the internet, something which _might_ have happened once (or might not), becomes not only gospel truth but rudimentary.

[@madsjuul1350]

The car that ruined Can Am. Just like Mercedes has done with F1 now

[@H1delta]

Donohue was/is a natural.

[@phantomflame0658]

What is the music at the beginning?