This Classic Porsche Le Mans Race Car Could Sell For Millions

This pricy piece of Porsche racing history hits the auction block just a day before the marque battles at 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Maxim Staff

Jun 7, 2023

(Remi Dargegen ©2023 Courtesy of RM Sotheby's)

The new Porsche 963 is about to join Ferrari, BMW, Cadillac and other marques for the most stacked 24 Hours of Le Mans field in years on June 10-11. That makes it the perfect time to remind the endurance racing world that the German marque is the most successful in Le Mans history, with a record 19 overall victories to date.

And many of those wins—13, to be exact—were tallied during Porsche’s legendary Group C run, which was headlined by the 956 and its closely-related kin, the 962. The dominant racing DNA then justifies the sky-high pre-auction valuation assigned to this veteran 1985 Porsche 962 that’s now being offered by RM Sotheby’s.

With an aluminum monocoque instead of a tubular spaceframe chassis, the 956 broke new ground for Porsche. Aerodynamics represented another revolutionary advancement, with ground-effect being harnessed to generate a huge amount of downforce. And power came from a twin-turbocharged 2.65-liter six-cylinder, which had already won Le Mans in the 936/81.

International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) regulation changes forced the 956 to subtly evolve into the 962, which featured a longer wheelbase to allow for the mandated relocation of pedals and a steel roll cage integrated into the chassis. With a long-tail setup for Le Mans and a short-tail setup for regular circuits, the 956 and 962 won five consecutive World Sportscar Championships, a feat that hasn’t been matched since.

This one, chassis number 004, battled almost exclusively for podiums at a plethora of endurance racing events from 1985 to 1989, with its best finish being second at the 1987 500 Kilometres of Kyalamiat and its finale being a respectable fifth-place finish at Le Mans. RM Sotheby’s has many more details on its racing pedigree and provenance, for those who are interested.

Even without a Le Mans win, RM Sotheby’s expects this 1985 Porsche 962 to sell for at least $6.4 million and up to $9.6 million at its upcoming Le Mans auction on June 9.