VIN: the Walter Wolf Kremer K3 Le Mans chassis 000 00018
History of chassis 000 00018
Chassis 000 00018 was a bare 911 bodyshell delivered direct from Porsche to Kremer Racing in Cologne. It became one of ten brand new units built up to Kremer K3 trim. In addition, ten existing cars were also converted to K3 specification for existing owners.
Uniquely, chassis ‘18’ was the only K3 configured for road use; the order came in during mid 1979 from renowned F1 team owner and Lamborghini VIP, Walter Wolf.
A Canadian-domiciled Austro-Slav, Wolf had made millions from off-shore oil installations and cargo trading during the 1970s Oil Crisis. He famously ordered four uniquely configured Countach and a bespoke Miura SV from Lamborghini between 1974 and ‘78. Wolf’s F1 team proper emerged in 1977 and the single car entry for Jody Scheckter took a spectacular debut win at the Argentine GP plus additional victories in Italy and Canada.
Wolf placed the order for his K3, which would be dubbed the K3 Le Mans, in mid 1979 having already taken delivery of a Kremer 935 Street the winter prior.
To get an idea of just who extreme this latest car was, Erwin Kremer famously described chassis ‘18’ as “98% K3 and 2% 911 Turbo”.
Concessions for road use included a properly kitted out interior with the upper dash, door trim panels, glass, air-conditioning, electric windows and audio system from the contemporary 911. A leather-rimmed three-spoke Personal steering wheel was also fitted along with Recaro seats and Willans harnesses.
Elsewhere, Kremer fitted a full complement of road lighting, a slightly de-tuned 740bhp 2.8-litre twin turbo Flat 6 with silenced exhaust, softer Bilstein dampers and hand-cut Goodyear road tyres for the centre-lock BBS wheels. Ride height was raised from 50mm to 100mm.
The Kevlat body was finished in Wolf’s signature dark blue colour scheme. To this, Kremer added red and gold pinstripes, gold Kremer K3 Le Mans script on each skirt and Wolf logos on the front lid, rear fenders and engine cover.
The interior was upholstered in dark blue leather, matching carpet and red piping for the seats. More Wolf logos were added to the upper seat faces and gauges.
Upon completion, ‘18’ was Autobahn tested by Erwin Kremer at 338kmh (210mph). The finished car reputedly cost DM375,000 which was around $675,000 or £95,000 in early 1980 (about three times the price of a new Ferrari 512 BB).
Wolf registered ‘18’ on the Canadian plate DJD 639, but the car never left Europe. By the time he took delivery of his unique K3, Wolf had sold his F1 team to Emerson Fittipaldi. He retained ‘18’ until 1987 and put around 10,000km on the clock. During this period, the original audio system was uprated to an elaborate 16-speaker set up by Car+Driver in Hamburg.
The car was sold in 1987 to Swiss collector Angelo Pallavacini in whose museum it resided for many years.
Text copyright: Superca Nostalgia
Photo copyright: Kremer Racing - https://www.kremer-racing.com/en/
