VIN: the works Porsche 911 2.7 Carrera RS 'Safari' chassis 9113600285
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HISTORY OF CHASSIS 9113600285
Chassis 9113600285 was completed to Lightweight trim in December 1972 and registered S-AR 7909. Having been retained by Porsche, the initially Grand Prix White machine subsequently became one of three cars that underwent preparation for an attack on the 1973 East African Safari Rally which took place over 5300km of tortuous gravel roads across Kenya and Tanzania.
The previous year, Sobieslaw Zasada and Marian Bien had finished second in a factory loaned 911 ST and for ‘73 Porsche was determined to go one better on what was widely considered the most gruelling event in world rallying.
All three 911s were re-painted yellow for the event: chassis 0285 was allocated to Bjorn Waldegaard and Hans Thorszelius while sister car 0288 would be piloted by Zasada and Bien. These two machines arrived in Kenya with backing from Bosch while the third RS, a quasi-works entry (chassis 0203), ran under a Chipstead of Kensington banner for Bill Fritschy and Viscount Kim Mandeville who had arranged a preparation and service deal with Porsche.
Held over the course of five days from April 19th to 23rd, the East African Safari was round three of the inaugural World Rally Championship. Unfortunately, the contest did not prove a happy event for Porsche as all three cars retired.
Having initially run third, Waldegaard soon began to drop down the order, first with gear selection issues and then suspension trouble. Eventually, 0285 dropped out just a couple of hours from the finish line in Mombasa when the oil cooler detached from under the front fender and the engine cooked itself.
Despite this poor showing, Porsche immediately set about planning their return and, in order to test an uprated suspension set-up, 0285 was entered for the 1000 Lakes Rally (round eight of the 1973 WRC).
The Finnish event was held over 517km of high speed gravel sections between August 3rd and 8th. Leo Kinnunen and Atso Aho were on driver and navigator duties. 0285 appeared under a Racing Team AAW which was the sporting division of Finland’s Porsche and Volkswagen importer.
Kinnunen was on the pace right away, but overnight he struggled with the 911’s poor lighting and dropped down the order. However, having already recovered much time when conditions allowed, the Finn went on to win all ten stages on the final day to finish third.
0285 did not appear again until 1974 when it was entered for that year’s East African Safari Rally alongside the two sister cars from 1973, all of which had been further uprated and refinished in white and blue colour schemes to reflect backing from Kűhne & Nagel logistics.
On this occasion, 0285 was allocated to Edgar Herrmann and Hans Schuller while Waldegaard and Thorszelius were in 0288. Bill Fritschy was co-driven by Peter Moon who had a similar preparation / service arrangement with the factory for 0203 to the previous year.
Taking place along a 5557km route entirely within Kenya, the ‘74 Safari was held in horribly wet conditions following more rain in the six-weeks prior than had previously fallen in the preceding ten years.
Having already lost much time stuck in the mud on the approach to Sondu, the 200 mile section to Taita Hills saw a front strut break on Herrmann’s Porsche which resulted in the car hitting a bank and tearing the steering rack loose from the body which meant instant retirement.
Although Fritschy also failed to finish, Porsche’s blushes were saved by Waldegaard and Thorszelius who came home second.
After the event, Porsche kept the Waldegaard / Thorszelius entry that had finished second, 0203 was sold to Peter Moon and 0285 remained Kenya. Having been registered KPU 539 in 1975, the car was rallied in Kenya and Tanzania for several years, during which the white and blue colour scheme was switched to red.
0285 remained in Kenyan ownership until the early 2000s, at which point it was repatriated to Germany and restored to 1974 trim.
Notable History
Porsche KG
Grand Prix White
Registered S-AR 7909
Repainted Yellow
19-23/04/1973 WRC East African Safari Rally (B. Waldegaard / H. Thorszelius) DNF (#10)
03-05/08/1973 WRC 1000 Lakes Rally (L. Kinnunen / A. Aho) 3rd oa (#3)
Repainted White & Blue
Chipstead of Kensington (Porsche KG)
11-15/04/1974 WRC East African Safari Rally (E. Herrmann / H. Schuller) DNF (#41)
Sold to Kenya
Registered KPU 539 and later repainted red
Rallied throughout Kenya and Tanzania
Early 2000s repatriated to Germany and restored to 1974 trim
Text copyright: Supercar Nostalgia
Photo copyright: Porsche - https://www.porsche.com
