50 years after the Porsche 917K secured the brand’s first overall win at Le Mans, a celebration was planned at the most prestigious automotive event in the world. But as the Coronavirus pandemic suspended many plans for 2020, it was back on for 2021, which was still a 50-year anniversary—this time, the second win for the 917 at Le Mans.

 

The 917 had a decorated career worth celebrating but not just at La Sarthe. 917’s secured wins at tracks across the world and in a number of series and forms, and each of those forms was honored at the 70th Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.

 

13 examples of the 917 were on display on Pebble Beach’s 17th green, each boasting unique chapters of the model’s comprehensive story. At the head of the display was 917-053 presented by the Porsche Museum, with the #22 Martini Racing 917K being the car that won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1971. It has famously not run again since that race, but it has been preserved and exhibited by Porsche at events worldwide for years and was a significant highlight of the class and event. Next to it was the runner-up from that edition of Le Mans, the #3 917LH owned and preserved by the Philadelphia-based Simeone Museum. Rounding out the Martini Racing squad was the #23 917K displayed by the Revs Institute; the chassis does not have race-winning pedigree but it remains in a remarkably original condition that earned it an award for post-war preservation.

 

The next group was a de facto Works effort of Gulf-sponsored 917Ks. The centerpiece was the legendary 917-015, owned and frequently campaigned in historic racing by Bruce Canepa. This chassis has an impressive history in multiple forms, winning the 1970 24 Hours of Daytona by 45 laps (still a record) as a coupe, then being converted to Spyder specification and winning the 1971 Interserie championship. Flanking it were a few more winners, including Chris MacAllister’s Watkins Glen winner and Charles Nearburg’s Zeltweg winner—the latter being the first race ever won by a 917.

 

As regulations changed for top-level prototype racing, Porsche decided to adapt the 917 to a new challenge in North America—and, not surprisingly, conquered it as well. The Can-Am championship welcomed incredible horsepower and Porsche delivered it, starting with the 917 PA in mid-1969. The hastily-built challenger earned its finishes with reliability before making way for the 917/10’s immense power. Pebble Beach welcomed three examples of the 917/10, each with significant race history in-period. 917/10-003 was driven to victory in Can-Am four times in 1972 by George Follmer, winning the season championship by a wide margin. 917/10-015 was the runner-up in the Interserie championship in 1973 to another 917/10, and 917/10-017 finished third in 1975, again behind Porsche competition. These cars inevitably gave way to the monster 917/30 which dominated Can-Am to the point of destruction. The car responsible for that was 917/30-003, winner of five rounds of the championship in 1973 piloted by Mark Donohue. Even with its incendiary performance, owner Rob Kauffman ventured out onto the Pebble Beach Tour d’Elegance as the only representative of the class to participate.

 

Even 50 years after the 917’s legacy was established at the greatest sports car race in the world, that legacy proved as strong as ever at the 2021 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. When Porsche returns to the top class at Le Mans in 2023, the standard will be high because of what a car like the 917 achieved.