One to Buy: ex-Team Taisan 1999 Porsche 911 GT3R (996)
/
As expected, the 996-based 911 GT3R spawned by its road-going counterpart launched at the Geneva Motor Show in 1999 proved a best in class mount despite arguably the most competitive landscape for the junior Grand Touring category in many a year.
To complement its record of five straights wins at Le Mans, three consecutive American Le Mans Series Team Championships and a brace of FIA GT Team and Driver crowns, the GT3R racked up myriad domestic titles as well.
Included among these were the GT300 class Team and Driver honours during the 2000 Japanese GT Championship. Both were delivered by the renowned Team Taisan operation run by Yasutsune ‘Ricky’ Chiba for the Taisan Industrial Company which also won its class at the 2000 Le Mans 24 Hours.
Heading to auction at Bonhams’ Monaco auction on April 24th is one of the victorious Taisan entries from the 1999 and 2000 seasons: chassis WPOZZZ99ZYS692061
Delivered new to Taisan International Inc. in Tokyo on August 2nd 1999, five days later chassis ‘692061’ finished 17th overall and took victory in the GT300 class at Fuji with Hideshi Matsuda and Dominik Schwager behind the wheel.
Other victorious outings for Matsuda / Schwager during the remainder of the 1999 season included the JGTC finale at Motegi and in the non-championship season-ending Fuji 1000km.
To complement this trio of class wins, the year 2000 saw chassis ‘692061’ take a further hat-trick of JGTC GT300 class victories (at Motegi, Fuji and Mine) plus another in the non-championship Suzuka 1000km.
Chassis ‘692061’ remained in Tokyo until June 2007 when it was sold to a Swedish owner. April 2012 then saw the car pass to the current custodian who has continued to preserve it in as-raced condition from its Taisan days.
