Cars that rock Retromobile: 1973 Porsche 911 RSR Prototype

As you may have gathered if you’ve been following our Retromobile coverage, this is the kind of place where cars grab your attention and don’t let go. Drifting through the main hall, we spotted this mouth-watering, Martini-liveried Porsche 911 RSR and found ourselves inexorably drawn towards it.

It’s sitting on the stand of Revival regular Gregor Fisken and bears some major provenance. It hasn’t really done a lot, but what it has done will make it probably one of the most sought-after 911s in the world.

It’s an ex-works car which ran at the Spa and Nürburgring 1000km events, before being entered at Le Mans in 1973 where it finished in a remarkable fourth position behind two Matra MS670Bs and a Ferrari 312PB.

After Le Mans it did some races with a ‘long tail’ fitted, before being converted back to its original state. It has remained this way and has not been raced since its heyday. 

‘It’s a shame you couldn’t hear it run!’ a Fiskens representative enthusiastically beamed. ‘We drove it in here off the truck and it sounded amazing.’

Expect a stampede of the world’s leading Porsche collectors when it goes on sale in a few months. 

Photography: Tom Shaxson