Wolfgang,

That is great information that I never knew. I had no idea that the practice cars all saw life again as factory cars for the Monte and the Marathon.

If I remember correctly though, the practice cars were not outfitted as GT's? Don't recall seeing pictures of the in practice with flares or such? That is not to say the engines were not upgraded by the factory. I could only assume the engines must have been worked on...what would be the point of practice without the horsepower of the 906 motor? Only reconnoissance?

Perhaps these cars were first outfitted similarly to the MM car pictured at the start of this thread?

Peter,
there are two completely different things:

1) the condagreen standard body 914-6
it was ordered by MM as a standard 914-6 for Gerd Quist - he used this car only to get to the circuit on legal streets - it got beefed up from MM, because they had all the experience from preparing the GTs, which Gerd Quist raced
so, this car has hardly anything to do with a factory 914-6 GT, but for sure it's a unique piece of history, IMHO

2) the factory GTs - 13 cars were made
these cars started life as GTs
they were used for various purposes like testing, tuning, practicing, racing, ...
here is a picture of 3 factory GTs testing in the "Alpes de haute Provence" in Dec 1970 for the Monte Carlo '71
check that the last car isn't one of the Monte race cars, but 914.0.43.0709 (the practice car) - and my suggestion is, that the other two cars are #2 and #3 from the '70 Marathon de la Route



here's another pic with these 3 GTs during the same session, at the tyre-test-station



Gustl

Frrom the 2nd picture they look to be Marathon cars...BUT, in the first picture and in the inset(small) pictures looks like both of the front two cars are wearing hood mounted Cibie's? Certainly looks like they are all wearing the extra lights in the small picture? Looks like there are bright spots next to the pop up headlamps?

Did the Marathon cars ever have the Cibie's mounted on the hood? I know they had the hood mounted versions cut and installed in the bumper along with 45's mounted outboard on the bumper.

Am I seeing these correctly?

I agree that all 3 cars have hood mounted Cibies
I'd say it's clearly visible at the "drift scenery" - hardly to tell from the "tyre test scenery"

AFAIK the Marathon cars didn't wear hood mounted Cibies - at least at "their race"
but keep in mind that the Rallye Monte Carlo 1971 took place half a year later and that these cars were used as practice cars then - it would be no problem to mount a set of Cibies on the hoods, or to use the hoods from the Monte race cars with the Cibies on 'em

Gustl

QUOTE (Rrrockhound @ Mar 18 2006, 04:37 PM)

QUOTE (craig downs @ Mar 18 2006, 04:26 AM) I don't understand why 914's are labled ugly by so many people. I wish somebody like an art student or a designer would do an analysis of the 914's styling to explain why it's NOT ugly. Kinda like those features Motor Trend does on certain new cars where they point out every little design element and explain why it works.

because it has balance-symmetry

This is such a great history lesson into old race cars and the many lives they lead. Used and reused for so different purposes. Makes modern race cars look ridiculously sterile!

IMO the last real good example of something like that was the TWR Porsche Spyder that won LeMans when the GT1's first came on the scene.

Pete, I've found this picture today
it's out from a german car magazine from April 1971, showing 914.0.43.2542 & .2543 practicing for the '71 Monte

Gustl

it took "a little time", but finally I got it

unfortunately the main numbers are censored

I also have some additional pics

I've got the same pic that I got on German Ebay that I framed and have hanging in my garage

Gorgeous pics! Thanks for posting those, Wolfie. That 2nd photo is "poster" material, beautiful car against a backdrop of a weather-beaten door. Nice stuff!

Paul

Did somebody mention already?

The two-toned bumpers were for lap counting. In old racing, where laps where counted by people and not computers, if they missed a car, or if they counted your lap for someone else... well... Your team was SOL.

The counters were often positioned at the straightaway, and would get a good look at the cars head-on before they take turn one. That's why having a "memorable" front bumper was so important.

16's?

And... is that Pete's valance?

Wolfie,
The race #s are different, but the sponser stickers appear to be the same. Is this Gerd's GT?

To be honest, I wasn't especially impressed with the looks of 914s when they first hit the market (I was a sophmore in High School in 1970).

I was really digging 356s and 911s at the time. Funny thing though, I saw the beauty in Bugs and Karman Ghias

I think 'we' eventually develop an appreciation of, and see the true beauty in a lot of 'things' as we get older (and more refined )

That is a beautiful car ...

The recent interest in "mid century modern" architecture, furniture and design are related to the renewed interest in the design of the 914, I think. Low, horizontal, minimal, subtle, delicate, refined, no adornedment or ornamentation. These can all describe an early "ranch" house, modern furniture (think bent wood or steel frames), anything out of the Bauhuas or Ulm schools - including the Bosch radio by you know who (Gugelot). Things that are stripped down the their bare minimum functional necessity, but done so to see what kind of beauty can be achieved in that simplicity and efficiency. Sounds like a Porsche thing to do!

Overall, the 914 has great proportions and stance, but a few odd and uncommon details that keep it from being understood by the masses. The big issue to resolve, as I see it, was the tallness of the roof reconciled with trying to keep the thing low and flat (like all the late 60's concept cars with mid-engines). To do this without curves climbing up the hood and down the trunk as in a 356 or 901, they covered the roof and pillar in black vinyl to try to make it "go away" - become a separate element and not read as part of the body. That is why they tried vinyl on the A pillars in 1973, to complete that idea.

Overall, that idea kind of worked, but our continued debates here about what to do with sail panel and roof finishes tells us it was not the perfect solution! But, take a look at a 914 with body color sail panels and one with vinyl - the vinyl one always looks longer and lower. So it did work to some degree.

The turn signal humps allowed for a nice line in profile that doesn't dive awkwardly down to the front bumper. Look at that line some day. It is quite nice as is rises slightly to give the wheel openings some muscle and importance - but just a little. And that damn rear trunk lid is so thin that is scares me to touch it, but does it's job in reinforcing the low and lean appreance from the side and rear views.

That's what I see, anway. And it looks good from my house.

I'd say you're correct

Cassidy,


Wow, very well stated. That post deserves its own "thread".

Paul

Thanks Paul! I must confess that I spend a lot of time around the water cooler explaining car design to my fellow architects. They usually listen politely but think I am bit odd......

They are gorgeous cars. Very Bauhaus indeed. Simple lines with elegant and non exagerated curves add up to race car simplicity. I just don't see them as boxy. They have the right curves for me. Not alot of extraneous trim either. I'm thinking that the reason they got the ugly reputation was because of the abused and neglected iron oxide lawn ornament factor.

I recognize all sorts of different modern cars imitating the 914 style. And none do it as well as the original.

... well, maybe the main reason they became lawn ornaments was due to simplicity of doing valve adjustments every 3000 miles