VIN: the works Porsche 917 L chassis 040
History of chassis 040
Chassis 040 was the first Porsche 917 built to Langheck trim which was a special low drag version created exclusively to race at the Le Mans 24 Hours with its ultra high speed straights.
Assembled using several parts from chassis 006, upon completion chassis 040 was taken to Volkswagen’s Ehra-Lessien test track in Lower Saxony which, with its monster 5.4 mile straight, was the perfect proving ground for Le Mans.
The test took place in cold, wet conditions with snow lying off track and occasional short, sharp showers interspersed with bright sunshine.
After a few laps on slicks, Ahrens approached what would normally have been a flat out bend at around 200mph. However, because of a strange shimmering on the road surface he eased back to about 155mph only to realise a sudden downpour had flooded the road.
Chassis 040 aquaplaned, flew across the track and was torn in two when it hit the opposing guardrail. The car’s front end was impaled under the barrier while the back end sailed away at high speed with Ahrens still strapped in place as a passenger.
After 200 metres, the car slammed diagonally into a guardrail under which Ahrens legs became temporarily trapped.
Having carefully wriggled free, the Austrian was taken for medical attention. Miraculously he wasn’t seriously hurt, but a contused liver and internal bruising prevented him from appearing at the Brands Hatch 1000km and Le Mans Test weekend. Remarkably, he was back behind the wheel of another 917 for the Monza 1000km less than three weeks later.
Chassis 040 was destroyed in the accident.
Text copyright: Supercar Nostalgia
Photo copyright: Porsche - https://www.porsche.com
