Carrera DIGITAL 124 Porsche 917K Martini International "No.35", Watkins Glen 6h 1970"

Carrera DIGITAL 124 Porsche 917K Martini International "No.35", Watkins Glen 6h 1970
(Item No. 20023807) http://bit.ly/1TLwQQ1

“We all know that a race car should just be white.”
Who is said to have uttered those legendary words? Ferdinand Piech, then head of the Porsche 917 project, after seeing the fully painted 917-43 in front of him. Because it was colorful. Very colorful. And very psychedelic. How did the “Hippie” come about?

Well, the ’70s were a … special time. I could write a lot about that now, but I’ll spare you. Above all, the ’70s were colorful. In every respect: culture, art, music, etc. And cars. Never again were everyday cars as beautifully colorful as they were in the years 1968–1978.
But how did the Hippie 917 come about?

Well, strictly speaking, there are two Hippies. The 917 long-tail (917-43) and the later 917 short-tail (917-21).

Hans-Dieter Dechent brought the aperitif manufacturer Martini into motorsports in 1969. Dechent, heir to a considerable fortune (the family was the largest Opel dealer in the Saarland), was himself a successful race car driver in various GT modelsu.a . from Alfa, Abarth, and Porsche, but after the Martini Rosso deal, he focused on his duties as team principal. In 1970, Ferdinand Piech offered him a Porsche 917 Long Tail for the 1970 24 Hours of Le Mans. Dechent accepted and entrusted the Porsche to the newly appointed Porsche designer Anatole Lapine, who painted it in a psychedelic purple and green color scheme. Reportedly, 3,000 cans of paint were used in the project; other sources cite 1,500. In any case, the car was the ultimate eye-catcher, and it also finished the 24-hour race in second place.
A few weeks later, the organizers of the Six Hours of Watkins Glen in New York also wanted a hippie Porsche like that for their race. And they got it in the form of a 917K from the MARTINI Racing team. The car with the FG no. Car No. 021, driven by Gerard Larrousse and Gjis Van Lennep, finished in 9th place.

Which Carrera brings us to the new release Carrera : This 917-21 is the current item No. 30807. Since their release, the 917s have enjoyed immense popularity in the 124 scene. I’ll spare you the driving reports, etc.—the car drives just as great as all the other 917s, and the build quality is at the usual high standard.

By the way, “The Hippie Car” was repainted in yellow and red shortly after the race in the U.S. at the request of sponsor SHELL. This car was already released last year as item no. 23807.

Best regards,
CoMod Lotus