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Car Of The Day: 1970 Porsche 917 ‘Langheck’ (Long Tail)

1970 Porsche 917 'Langheck' (Long Tail) | © Favcars.com

Due to the aerodynamic instability of the 917 in the 1969, two separate configurations were used in 1970. These were the short-tail Kurzheck version and the less common Langheck or long-tail. Most of the 917’s accolades were achieved by the 917 Kurzheck, leaving the Langheck a less utilized, but ultimately just as potent contender.

1970 Porsche 917 ‘Langheck’ (Long Tail) | © Favcars.com

The long tail version of the 917 was specially built for high speeds of Le Mans and only used there. Four new cars were made for 1970 – chassis 917-040, 041, 042 and 043. The first one, the 917-040 was lost on April 6, 1970, when Kurt Ahrens jr. crashed it at a high speed test on wet tarmac at the Ehra-Lessien test track. Despite the car desintegrating, Ahrens survived in good condition (19 days later he would race at the Monza 1000 km).

1970 Porsche 917 ‘Langheck’ (Long Tail) | © Favcars.com