1978 Porsche 935/78 “Moby Dick” #43 Pilots: M. Schurti, R. Stommelen Team: Porsche System / Martini Race: 8th overall (3rd in Group 5) at Le Mans in 1978 Minichamps - 430786743 (diecast)
Published 08/29/17
Introduced in 1976, the Porsche 935 was a thorough success, to the point that the car won almost a third of the races that it participated in. However, the car was in constant development, and by 1978 the third and final version was ready – the 935/78. The engine (called 935/79) was the traditional boxer-6 but now with water-cooled cylinder heads, 24 valves and DOHC, but enlarged to 3211 cm³. With the double KKK turbos it had an output of 750 hp, that could be boosted to stupendous 845 hp.
For better weight distribution, the steering wheel was on the right. But most importantly, that fantastic engine in a car that weighed only a smidgen over 1000 kg translated to a wickedly fast car. With turbo lag and all. But the engine was not the car’s main characteristic. Exploiting a loophole in the Group 5 rules (introduced for BMW), the car’s body was stretched in every direction to aid in aerodynamics, and with the white color of the factory cars and the big rear wing, it looked like a whale. With that, the legendary Moby Dick was born.
The extreme body was specifically developed for the 1978 Le Mans 24 Hours. However, chassis #006 also made it to four other races that year. The first race of Moby Dick was in May 1978, the Silverstone 6 Hours, where it came in 1st overall. At La Sarthe the following month #43 managed a class win, crossing the line in 8th place overall. Even though the car raced very few races, it became legend, and is one of the most iconic Porsche racers to this day. In model form Minichamps did a pretty good job. Possibly not Spark-awesome but it’s at least great (I honestly can’t complain). This is a model that I really wanted. Like the 917K, Naked Lady or 961, this is one of the grail cars of my collection .