The Motor Gallery
Gallery II, 1980sPorsche built the 959 for a rally championship that was cancelled before it raced.
Magnesium wheelEvery spoke hollowed. Every gram accounted for.
Twin-turbo flat-sixAll-wheel drive before the world was ready to ask for it.
Car and Driver, 1987“The word perfect was difficult to avoid.”
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1980s · Exhibit
Porsche 959
A road-legal prototype that invented the modern supercar.
Porsche 959 · 1986–1988 · Zuffenhausen
Produced
1986 – 1988
Engine
2.85 L twin-turbo flat-6
Top speed
317 km/h
Units built
292
The Exhibit
Porsche
959

The 959 was Porsche's answer to a question no one else had yet asked: what if the cutting edge of motorsport could drive itself to the grocery store? Developed for Group B rallying and homologated for the road, the 959 bundled twin-turbo flat-six engineering with computer-controlled all-wheel drive, adaptive suspension, and run-flat tires with internal pressure sensors — years before any of those things were ordinary.

Only 292 production cars were built between 1986 and 1988. Each one was hand-assembled. Each one lost Porsche money. Each one rewrote the rules.

The written primary source for this gallery is Csere, Csaba. "1987 Porsche 959 Archived Test." Car and Driver, November 1987..1

Tier 1 · Primary

Primary Source Artifacts

02 artifacts
Period photograph accompanying Csaba Csere's November 1987 archived test review of the Porsche 959 in Car and Driver.
Figure 1

Period photograph accompanying Csaba Csere's November 1987 archived test review of the Porsche 959 in Car and Driver.

Car and Driver, *Porsche 959 Road Test Photograph*, November 1987, via Hearst archives. (Fair use, magazine editorial photograph) [Source]2

Studio photograph of the Porsche 959 accompanying the Csere archived test, Car and Driver's editorial photography.
Figure 2

Studio photograph of the Porsche 959 accompanying the Csere archived test, Car and Driver's editorial photography.

Car and Driver, *Porsche 959 Studio Photograph*, 1987, via Hearst archives. (Fair use, magazine editorial photograph) [Source]3

Tier 1 · Secondary

Secondary Source Artifacts

01 artifact
David Kimble's famous Porsche 959 cutaway, published by Motorsport.com in 2016. Shows the twin-sequential-turbo flat-six, PSK all-wheel drive, aluminum-over-Kevlar body, and the six-speed gearbox, all the engineering systems Csere praised in his 1987 Car and Driver test.
Figure 3

David Kimble's famous Porsche 959 cutaway, published by Motorsport.com in 2016. Shows the twin-sequential-turbo flat-six, PSK all-wheel drive, aluminum-over-Kevlar body, and the six-speed gearbox, all the engineering systems Csere praised in his 1987 Car and Driver test.

David Kimble, *Porsche 959 Cutaway Illustration*, 2016, Motorsport.com. (Fair use, editorial illustration) [Source]4

Tier 2 · magazine

Magazine & Press Coverage

01 artifact
The Rothmans-liveried 959 that won the 1986 Paris-Dakar Rally, the motorsport halo period Csere cited in his 1987 test as evidence that the car was 'perfect' for its time.
Figure 4

The Rothmans-liveried 959 that won the 1986 Paris-Dakar Rally, the motorsport halo period Csere cited in his 1987 test as evidence that the car was 'perfect' for its time.

Valder137, *Porsche 959 1986 Paris-Dakar Rothmans Racer*, 2013, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0. (CC BY 2.0) [Source]5

Tier 2 · celebrity-owner

Designers, Builders, and Owners

02 artifacts
Ralph Lauren's 1988 Porsche 959 Komfort, one of the private American owners who, along with Bill Gates and Paul Allen, triggered the fight to legalize 959 imports into the United States.
Figure 5

Ralph Lauren's 1988 Porsche 959 Komfort, one of the private American owners who, along with Bill Gates and Paul Allen, triggered the fight to legalize 959 imports into the United States.

Uncredited, *1988 Porsche 959 Komfort, Ralph Lauren Collection*, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0. (CC BY-SA 3.0) [Source]6

Interior of Ralph Lauren's 959, the cabin Csere tested, contrasting the car's everyday-Porsche ergonomics with its Group B supercar pedigree.
Figure 6

Interior of Ralph Lauren's 959, the cabin Csere tested, contrasting the car's everyday-Porsche ergonomics with its Group B supercar pedigree.

Uncredited, *1988 Porsche 959 Interior, Ralph Lauren Collection*, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0. (CC BY-SA 3.0) [Source]7

Tier 2 · schematics

Design & Engineering

02 artifacts
The Porsche 959's water-cooled twin-sequential-turbo 2.85-liter flat-six engine, the unit Csere described as delivering near-perfect throttle response in his 1987 road test.
Figure 7

The Porsche 959's water-cooled twin-sequential-turbo 2.85-liter flat-six engine, the unit Csere described as delivering near-perfect throttle response in his 1987 road test.

Sfoskett, *Porsche 959 Engine*, 2005, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0. (CC BY-SA 3.0) [Source]8

Factory mechanical sketch of the 959 on display at the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart, showing the PSK all-wheel-drive layout and twin-turbo flat-six.
Figure 8

Factory mechanical sketch of the 959 on display at the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart, showing the PSK all-wheel-drive layout and twin-turbo flat-six.

Rouk40130, *Porsche 959 Mechanical Sketch at Stuttgart Museum*, 2024, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0. (CC BY 4.0) [Source]9

Tier 2 · press-launch

Launch & Motor Shows

05 artifacts
Alternate factory press image of the 959 Gruppe B concept showing the Rothmans livery testbed configuration that previewed the Paris-Dakar rally car.
Figure 9

Alternate factory press image of the 959 Gruppe B concept showing the Rothmans livery testbed configuration that previewed the Paris-Dakar rally car.

Porsche AG, *Porsche 959 'Gruppe B' Concept, Rothmans Livery*, 1983, factory press photograph via StuttCars. (Fair use, educational, manufacturer press photograph) [Source]10

Porsche's factory press image of the 'Gruppe B' concept car at the 1983 Frankfurt IAA motor show, the official reveal of the 959's exterior design, four years before Csaba Csere's 1987 road test.
Figure 10

Porsche's factory press image of the 'Gruppe B' concept car at the 1983 Frankfurt IAA motor show, the official reveal of the 959's exterior design, four years before Csaba Csere's 1987 road test.

Porsche AG, *Porsche 'Gruppe B' Concept at 1983 Frankfurt IAA*, 1983, factory press photograph via StuttCars. (Fair use, educational, manufacturer press photograph) [Source]11

The Porsche 'Gruppe B' concept shown at the 1983 Frankfurt Motor Show, the direct precursor to the production 959 and the first public sighting of the shape Csaba Csere would test four years later.
Figure 11

The Porsche 'Gruppe B' concept shown at the 1983 Frankfurt Motor Show, the direct precursor to the production 959 and the first public sighting of the shape Csaba Csere would test four years later.

leduardo, *Porsche 959 Concept Car Gruppe B 1983*, 2007, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0. (CC BY 2.0) [Source]12

Rear view of the 1983 Gruppe B concept showing the integrated rear wing and air intakes that survived onto the production 959.
Figure 12

Rear view of the 1983 Gruppe B concept showing the integrated rear wing and air intakes that survived onto the production 959.

leduardo, *Porsche 959 Concept Car Gruppe B 1983 (rear)*, 2007, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0. (CC BY 2.0) [Source]13

The Porsche 961, the Le Mans race variant of the 959, in the colors it ran at the 1987 24 Hours of Le Mans, in the Porsche Museum.
Figure 13

The Porsche 961, the Le Mans race variant of the 959, in the colors it ran at the 1987 24 Hours of Le Mans, in the Porsche Museum.

Alexander Migl, *Porsche 961 (1987 Le Mans No. 203) in the Porsche Museum*, 2020, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. (CC BY-SA 4.0) [Source]14

Footnotes

  1. Csere, "1987 Porsche 959 Archived Test."
  2. Csere, "1987 Porsche 959 Archived Test."
  3. Csere, "1987 Porsche 959 Archived Test."
  4. Kimble, Porsche 959 Cutaway Illustration.
  5. Valder137, Porsche 959 1986 Paris-Dakar Rothmans Racer.
  6. Uncredited, 1988 Porsche 959 Komfort, Ralph Lauren Collection.
  7. Uncredited, 1988 Porsche 959 Interior, Ralph Lauren Collection.
  8. Sfoskett, Porsche 959 Engine.
  9. Rouk40130, Porsche 959 Mechanical Sketch.
  10. Porsche AG, Porsche 959 'Gruppe B' Concept, Rothmans Livery.
  11. Porsche AG, 'Gruppe B' Concept at 1983 Frankfurt IAA.
  12. leduardo, Porsche 959 Concept Car Gruppe B 1983.
  13. leduardo, Porsche 959 Concept Car Gruppe B 1983 (rear).
  14. Migl, Porsche 961 (1987 Le Mans No. 203).
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