Pedro Rodríguez and the mighty Porsche 917
- cgonzalezmi6
- 18 mar 2021
- 13 Min. de lectura
Actualizado: 20 mar 2021
by Carlos Gonzalez
Pedro Rodríguez de la Vega; is regarded as one of the best Formula One Mexican Drivers of all time. His career started in the mid 1950s and ended tragically in 1971.
However, there is a chapter in Pedro's racing career that is often forgotten by many. His natural ability as an endurance racing driver.
He entered a race in Nassau with his brother Ricardo in 1957. After his performance, his talent caught the eye of Luigi Chinetti.
The famous US Ferrari importer invited Pedro to drive a car for him during the 24 hours of Le Mans in 1958, a Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa. Rodríguez was 18 years old!
The young Mexican shared driving duties with José Behra and had a promising start. Unfortunately, due to a puncture on a radiator hose, he retired after 12 hours. For Rodríguez, this was the first of 14 appearances at the famous Circuit de la Sarthe.
Pedro drove for Ferrari multiple times thru the 1960s. Highly regarded by Enzo and Luigi, the Mexican was part of the team competing against Ford in the famous feud from 1964 thru 1967. However, some of his most significant achievements came from competing against the Italian team.
Pedro finally won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1968 with co-driver Lucien Bianchi, driving a Ford GT40 Mk I for the John Wyer Automotive team with the now-famous blue and orange Gulf livery beating two Porsches.
Meanwhile, Porsche was trying to make a name for themselves in the racing world. They entered Le Mans several times but never achieved the coveted overall win.
It is very little known for people outside the racing world that behind that famous 1-2-3 LeMans win for Ford in 1966, the cars in 4-5-6 and 7 places were Porsche 906's, the closest 21 laps behind the winning Fords.
The Stuttgart car manufacturer had a long way to go before competing with Ford and Ferrari.
A young Ferdinand Piëch, the grandson of Ferdinand Porsche, joined the company in 1963. As one of his first projects, he worked on the development of the Porsche 906. As head of the motorsport department, he wanted to achieve the ultimate goal: Win the grueling 24 hours of LeMans.
The Development of the Beast:
After the dominance of the Ford GT40 with its 7-liter displacement engine and the 4-Liter Ferrari P's, the Commission Sportive Internationale (CSI), the independent competition arm of the FIA, announced that the International Championship of Makes would use 3-liter displacement engines, hoping to entice manufacturers competing in the F1 circuit, starting in 1968.
With few automakers expected to join immediately, the CSI allowed entering 5-liter engines as group 4 sports cars. To qualify, the manufacturers needed to build a minimum of 50 units, and for 1969 the requirement was 25.
That ruling allowed John Wyer to use the original Ford GT40 Mk I, retrofit them with the Ford 4.9-liter V8, and, with the backup of Gulf-Oil run back-to-back LeMans victories in 68 and 69.
In July of 1968, Piëch decided to take advantage of the 1969 rule and design, develop, and build 25 cars using a new 4.5-liter flat-twelve cylinder engine. For any car manufacturer, this was a complicated and expensive venture, and at the time, Porsche was a small car manufacturer with limited resources. The goal of Piëch was simple: Win the 24 hours of Le Mans in 1970.
The spaceframe chassis was lightweight, a mere 42 kgs. (93 lbs.), which at one point was pressurized with nitrogen to ensure that there were no cracks in the welding. To fit the massive 12 cylinder engine; the driver's seat was "pushed forward" and "tilted in an angle" due to this, the driver's feet ended up in front of the front axle, so in the case of an accident, the driver's feet will receive the impact first.
The car development was complete in just ten months, so Porsche invited the CSI inspectors to homologate the cars. When the inspectors arrived in Stuttgart, they were surprised: only three fully assembled units, 18 were in several production stages, and seven sets of parts were present. The car manufacturer told the inspectors that they would need to disassemble the cars and prepare them for racing. The inspectors rejected the explanation and requested to have 25 assembled and functioning cars to grant the homologation.
After that, the 917 made its official presentation to the public during the 1969 Geneva Motor show in March. The car was painted white, with a green nose and a big No. 917 painted black.
It was listed at 140,000 DM, around £16,000 at period exchange rate or the equivalent of ten Porsche 911s.
The following month, Ferdinand Piëch invited the CSI inspectors to homologate the car for racing.
When the inspectors arrived, there were 25 finished 917's in the parking lot of the factory. Mr. Piëch offered the inspectors to drive ANY car they wanted. They graciously declined the offer and granted the homologation. Rumors of the era mentioned that not all the cars were fully functional, some of them were shells with no powertrain, and others had truck axels. I think we will never know.
It is important to remember that when the CSI created the 25 vehicle rule, they didn't anticipate any company building 25 cars. For a small company like Porsche, achieving this task was not easy or cheap. At one point, all employees of the small German car manufacturer were called to the factory floor to assemble cars; every secretary, accountant, sales executive, janitor, etc., an entirely hands-on project.
During testing, the new 917 did not perform as expected. Factory driver Brian Redman recalled that: "it was incredibly unstable, using all the road at speed." The car was fast, at that point, faster than anything built for LeMans, up to 30 kph (19 mph) at the Mulsanne straight than the previous record. The problem? The "long tail" body was generating significant lift on the straights.
Some team members also believed that the 4.5-Liter engine was too much for the frame.
The 917, scheduled to debut at the 1000km Spa in May 1969, could not be improved further due to weather conditions. It arrived at the track, and the Siefert/Redman duo managed to clock 3:41.9, this time was faster than the pole position time set by a Lola (3:42.5), but the Porsche timing was not official. In the end, and due to various concerns by the team and drivers, they used the old 908LH "long tail" for the race, in which they eventually won.
The 1000km Nurburgring was next on the calendar. All factory drivers decided to use the 908 over the new 917. The car was not suited for the track, despite some modifications performed by the factory.
At Le Mans, the 917's were the fastest cars during practice. Unfortunately, a combination of a bad start and the inexperience of British driver John Woolfe lead to tragedy. Woolfe was a private Porsche customer who entered the car to compete in the famous French race. He crashed his 917 on the first lap and had not fastened his seatbelt due to the "famous" Le Mans start. Tragically, he died as a result of the accident. The factory-backed 917 (#14) lead early but retired due to an oil leak, and the second 917 Porsche (#12) retired with a broken gearbox after 21 hrs., despite leading by more than 50 miles. In the end, only one 908 remain in contention, driven by Hans Herrmann, but the JWA Gulf Ford GT40 driven by Jacky Ickx prevailed and won the race by a mere 120 meters (390 ft.) over the Porsche.
The rest of the 1969 season would be the same for the German factory team. The cars were fast but not suited for slower tracks where extra downforce was required. On the other hand, they were too unpredictable on the quicker circuits. Drivers were horrified, not knowing how the car would react when they enter or exit a curve or going "flat out" on the long straights. Also, mechanical failures prevent them from performing as desired. Despite that, on the last race of the season at the 1000km Zeltweg, a privately entered 917 driven by Jo Siffert and Kurt Ahrens achieved the first win. The factory team had left the competition to customers so they could focus on the next season.
The results were bad news for the Stuttgart-based company that, for almost two decades, tried to be a contender in the racing world. It is important to remember that at this time, Porsche was not the powerhouse we know today with Volkswagen's financial support. It was an independent company trying to survive. They've bet on the 917 for its survival, and their future was in jeopardy based on the 1969 season.
1970/1971 - John Wyer and the Mexican connection
The end of the 1960s decade marked the end of the legendary Ford GT40 racing career. At the time, Ford Motor Co. was not directly involved in endurance racing anymore. Privately owned teams benefited from the ruling that allowed cars powered by 5-liter engines to compete. It is important to remember that the wins at Le Mans in 1968 and 69 were by a Ford GT40 Mk I entered by John Wyer Automotive when the Mark IV, after their dominating performance in 1967, was banned.
The stakes were high for Porsche facing the 1970 season, with only one victory the previous season of their flagship contender; the pressure was mounting.
John Wyer knew that he could not be competitive in 1970 with the Ford GT40, so he established a partnership with the German manufacturer. JWA became a partner for Porsche and joined their effort to improve the unstable 917.
The partnership quickly delivered results. While having a track day, the team noticed the front end of the car covered with bugs and dirt, as expected, but the rear wing was "clean" which meant the air was not touching it and creating the downforce needed contributing to the instability. Lead by Wyer's team, Porsche developed the wedge-shaped Kurzhek (short) tail that made the car much more stable than its predecessor. But the car was still not suitable for slow twisty tracks like the Nurburgring or the Targa Fiorio. For these tracks, a 3rd version of the lightweight and compact 908, known as the 908/3, was developed simultaneously with the 917k.
For Le Mans, the team developed a low drag version known as the 917LH (Langheck). It had a spectacular new long-tail body with low drag but more downforce than the 1969 long-tail.
A new engine with a 4.9-Liter displacement made its debut in the 1000km Monza, but it was unreliable for long-distance races.
Meanwhile, Pedro was a Ferrari driver during the 1969 F1 season, so after his victory at LeMans the previous year with JWA, he returned to drive for them at Le Mans. Unfortunately, his F1 contract expired with the Italian manufacturer, so in the World Championship of Makes, he signed for the JW-Gulf-Porsche team for the 1970 season.
The lineup for Porsche was impressive. John Wyer later discovered his team was not the only factory-backed team. To support the Le Mans effort, Porsche had two additional teams with direct support from the factory. The Porsche Salzburg and the Martini Racing teams also received full support from the factory. The first one under the control of the Porsche family. Porsche was not leaving anything to chance in their Le Mans assault and finally win the race. Too much was at stake for the little German company. They could not afford another disaster like in 1969.
They arrived at Daytona, and the 917k just dominated. Rodríguez and co-drivers Kinnunen and Redman destroyed their competition from start to finish winning 1st overall, breaking the distance record by 190 miles. The second Gulf-sponsored Porsche finished second and in third place, a factory-backed Ferrari 512S. It was the second overall win for the 917 and the first for the famous Gulf livered 917k.
For the second race in Sebring, the Porsches struggled and, after an outstanding drive, Mario Andretti brought a Ferrari 512S to victory ahead of a 908/02 driven by no other than film star Steve McQueen, who compete with a broken foot, and Peter Revson with an Alfa Romeo T33/3 on the third position. The best Porsche finished in 4th place, driven by Rodríguez and Siffert, who struggled thru the race with various incidents. This race is considered by experts one of the best races of all time and maybe the subject of a different blog.
For the third race of the season at Brands Hatch, the traditional British weather would be a factor during the 1000km race.
Under heavy rain, the race started with several accidents occurring at various stages. Pedro and Jackie Ickx were making passes under yellow flags. Both drivers were admonished at the pits but were able to return to the race. It is at this point where the Mexican driver's talent to race in the rain stood up. He was driving the 917k with ease, sliding out of the corners with exceptional control.
His friend Jo Ramírez tells the story of Chris Amon, who was competing against him in a Ferrari said: "Why doesn't someone tell Pedro it's raining?" The Porsches were 1-2-3-4, and the first three were 917k's with Pedro 5 laps ahead of his closest rival, with the closest Ferrari finishing 5th, ten laps behind the winner. An extraordinary victory and a dominant performance by the Mexican driver.
For the 1000km of Monza, the Porsches were ready for another dominant performance. But at its home track, the Ferraris prove to be formidable opponents. Rodriguez built up a substantial lead, but unfortunately, his teammate Kinnunen lost it. The Mexican needed to hold off three hard-charging factory-backed Ferraris, one driven by no other than F1 World Champion John Surtees. The JWA Gulf-sponsored Porsche finished 1st, with the three Ferraris behind him. The next race was a slow track, the Targa Florio, therefore, Pedro needed to use the 908-3, and he managed to finish second.
For the next two races, the Mexican fortune took a turn for the worst: he retired from the 1000km Spa and the 1000km Nurburgring.
The stage was ready for Le Mans: Porsche entered nine cars to the grueling 24-hour race, and Ferrari entered eleven 512S between factory-backed and privateer entries. The 917's were favorites based on their dominant performance throughout the year. However, things were not going to be easy for the Stuttgart-based team.
The weather once again was a factor throughout the entire race. Due to heavy rain, most of the overall power for the lead cars was not a factor. Several drivers crashed or retired due to mechanical issues. Pedro's Porsche retired due to an engine cooling fan failure. In the end, out of 58 entries, only seven cars were classified as finishers with the Porsche Salzburg, driven by German driver Hans Herrmann and British driver Richard Atwood, a 13 year LeMans veteran, it was a sweet victory. The year before, Herrmann lost by the closest of margins to a JWA's GT40. With this, Porsche had achieved the goal they set for themselves in 1968: Win LeMans in 1970.
And it couldn't come at a better timing. Porsche needed the win at LeMans to begin cashing into their efforts, twenty years in the making.
For the next race, the 6 hours of Watkins Glen, the JWA Gulf Porsches were under pressure. Without a victory since Spa, and their performance at LeMans a disaster without a single car finishing the race and losing to sister team Porsche Salzburg. The cars were back in contention during qualifying, with Jo Siffert/Brian Redman getting the pole followed by the Ferrari 512S of Andretti/Giunti and Rodríguez/Kinnunen in third, all three separated by three-tenths of a second.
The race was a battle from the beginning, with Andretti, Siffert, and Rodríguez battling for the lead. The Mexican took the lead and was winning by a comfortable margin; when he attempted to turn on the lights of his 917, to signal slower cars, he accidentally turned off the fuel pumps, so the engine started to fail. He was ready to make an unscheduled pitstop, then he realized what he had done, turned on the fuel pumps, and then charged thru the field. Pedro established the fastest lap and scored the win, the 4th in the year, with the sister JWA Porsche finishing second and Andretti's Ferrari third.
With one race to go in the championship, the 1000km Zeltweg, Pedro, and co-driver Leo Kinnunen had enough points to win the World Championship. An incredible achievement for both Porsche and the Mexican driver. The 917k won all but one of the races the car competed, the 12 hours of Sebring won by Ferrari. A dominant performance by the small company in Stuttgart.
It was the culmination of a two-decade effort and vindication for Ferdinand Piëch of his vision for the 917.
The FIA announced that the rules would be changed for the 1972 season, limiting the engine displacement to 3-liters. Due to the dominance exhibited, like the Ford GT40 MKIV in 1967, the Porsche 917 would be banned after 1971.
For JWA-Gulf-Porsche and Rodríguez, entered the 1971 season poised to defend their Championships.
The result: 4 wins and one 4th place for the drivers and their 917k, with a second-place at the Nurburgring driving a 908-3. These results secured a back-to-back World Championships for JWA, Porsche, and Rodríguez.
After such dominance, it was mentioned by several people close to Ferdinand Piech; that he declared: "Pedro Rodríguez was the only driver capable of understanding and controlling the 917."
It would be Pedro's last achievement in motor racing. He was tragically killed on July 11, 1971, driving a Ferrari 512M during an inter-series championship race at Norisring in Nuremberg.
Pedro Rodríguez and the 917 Legacies
At this point, Pedro was at the pinnacle of his career. Several times, the Mexican driver was the victim of the politics in the F1 circuit, which prevented him from having a competitive drive.
The talent of the Mexican driver was recognized since he was a young man. Team owners like Enzo Ferrari, John Wyer, Ferdinand Piech praised him as one of the best in the endurance circuit. Fellow drivers like Dan Gurney, Joe Siffert, John Surtees, Jackie Ickx, and many others had the utmost respect for Rodríguez.
During the 1970 and 1971 seasons, Pedro proved that, given the appropriate equipment, he had the talent and determination to beat the best drivers in the world. His ability to drive at night and in the rain was there with the best in history. His sudden death will always leave us with the looming question: What if?
Pedro was still young and, based on his back-to-back championships, was getting noticed by the F1 team owners once again to be on a Top team with the possibility to be a championship contender. We will never know.
His legacy will remain until another young Mexican driver, Sergio "Checo" Pérez arrived at Formula One in 2011. Forty years after the death of Pedro.
As for Porsche, the 917 consolidated the efforts of the Stuttgart-based manufacturer. These achievements were the beginning of an impressive streak at Le Mans with 19 overall wins, six ahead of its closest competitor AUDI, now members of the VW Group. Far more than Ferrari and Ford with eight and five respectively.
This car marked the future of endurance racing, and several technological achievements remain benchmarks of endurance racing today.
The car's legend lives immortalized by the movie LeMans (1971), where "the king of cool" Steve McQueen races a Porsche 917k with the famous Gulf livery. For the Le Mans footage, the production entered a 908/02 for the 1970 race, so most of the footage is from the actual race weekend. Ironically for several shot sequences needed after the race, the crew used a modified Ford GT40 with a camera attached to the chassis since it was the only car that could keep up with the race cars.
After the rule changes in 1972, the 917 name lived on the CanAm circuits in the US. Roger Penske entered a derived version from the 917. This iteration, known as the 917/30, also dominated the North American circuits until it was banned again in 1974.
For Pedro and the 917k, there is a record that will remain for posterity: His LeMans pole position lap in 1971 at 3'13"9 with a top speed of 386 km/h on the Mulsanne straight. Due to the introduction of a chicane to slow down the cars. The Top speed record was broke in 1988 when Roger Dorchy driving a WM-Peugeot, clocked 405 km/h.
Dr. Ferdinand Piëch then moved to AUDI where he pushed the now-famous Quattro system, and eventually became Chairman of the Volkswagen Group board in 1993. In 1998, Volkswagen acquired Bugatti Automobiles S.A.S.
The aggressive German Engineer challenged his team once again to produce the fastest and most powerful car in the world, including a 1000 BHP engine and with a top speed of over 250 mph (400 kph). By 2001 there was a vehicle developed and approved for production, the Bugatti Veyron W16.4. The Veyron is considered the heir of the legendary 917. The Bugatti is another example, where Dr. Piëch pushed the limits of automotive engineering once again and became, like its predecessor, a legend.
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I liked a lot the article, again you feel the exitement of a Race, while you are reading It, no matter you know the result. It Is a Good piece of información, for young people that know nothing about that Age of Endurance Racing. Congratulations for the Blog, It Is a Good One.