The 0317, an iconic Porsche racing transporter with a star on it!

We've got it Auto Motor Klassiek grab another one! Such a very special classic. No passenger car from just after the Second World War, or a cool moped or motorcycle from the fifties or sixties. No, a truck tasked with transporting iconic racing cars. In the early days of motorsport, most racing cars were often towed or driven on public roads to circuits such as Le Mans, Monza or the Targa Florio in Sicily. But with the increasing professionalism in the sport and the growing amount of tools and other equipment needed to support the teams, a need for transport vehicles arose. In the mid-XNUMXs, Porsche came up with the idea for such a transporter. It had to be specially designed to meet the demands of transporting their racing cars, as well as spare engines, gearboxes and chassis components. And that racing transporter is what this story is about.

Porsche racing transporter based on the 0317

The technical basis for the new Porsche racing transporter was the Mercedes-Benz O317. Its self-supporting design made it ideal for the complex conversion by Robert Schenk from Stuttgart. With all the parts and 'stuff' from the 910s to the 956s in its cargo hold, this Porsche transporter is said to have “struck the fear of God in the hearts of other teams”. After all, the transporter was the first thing competitors and spectators saw of Porsche's arrival at an event.

Facilitate logistics

In the late 1966s, Porsche was spending significantly more on racing than a decade earlier. In order to facilitate logistics and to confirm the Porsche company's prestige as a supplier of a top racing car, three brand new Mercedes-Benz O317 transporters were put into service at the end of 635. They would replace the Porsche team's aging MAN XNUMXs. The three rolling chassis were sent one by one to the Stuttgart coachbuilder Robert Schenk. Here they were equipped with everything needed to move cars and spare parts from race to race.

Dark red

While most O317s were used as buses, the transporters that Robert Schenk built for Porsche had extra storage space at the top to allow the racing cars to be stacked on top of each other. There were only minor differences in detail between the three trucks. They were originally painted in a dark red color supplemented with silver stripes and a dark gray underside of the body. Silver Porsche text was applied along each side and a huge company logo was placed on the front of the roof.

Three pieces Porsche racing transporter

So there were three Mercedes racing transport cars, with registration numbers S YZ 32, SC 9003 and SM 2187. The first O317 was delivered in 1967 and received registration number S YZ 32. It spent the 1967, 1968 and 1969 seasons with Porsche before was loaned to John Wyer Automotive Engineering in England.

John Wyer was responsible for the Porsche 917 factory racing program in 1970 and 1971. During these two seasons, S YZ 32 was painted in light blue and orange livery. They were the colors of the sponsor Gulf Oil. These colors were also seen on the Ford GT40, the predecessor of the Porsche 917 with John Wyer's team. The S YZ 32 was then sold to BMW, who painted it in 1972 with the well-known BMW Motorsport livery. You know, the white cars with blue and red stripes, as we still see them from BMW today.

In 1981, the color scheme changed once again, when the S YZ 32 was sold again. It remained in the BMW family and became the property of Helmut Marko. His private team entered the track that season with a BMW M1. And yes, he is the same Helmut Marko who now holds sway at the Red Bull F1 team and who brought Max Verstappen into the F1 team of the Austrian energy drink manufacturer years ago. Small world… In the second half of the eighties, the S YZ 32 seems to have come to an inglorious end. He disappeared into the junkyard!

The most important Porsche racing transporter

The second Mercedes 0317 racing transporter was the SC 9003. It was delivered new to the Porsche Renndienst in 1968. And it lasted there until 1983. Originally it had the original color scheme in red, silver and dark gray. But after that he appeared on the circuits in two different liveries of main sponsor Martini (white and silver). When the new main sponsor, the oil trading company, Essex Petroleum, came forward in 1979, these colors were retained. But then in a different way.

After Essex, in the early eighties, the Mercedes 0317 was repainted in the colors of a new main sponsor, which we all know: Rothmans cigarettes. That turned out to be a keeper, their blue and white color scheme adorned the racing Porsches 956 and 961 for most of the eighties. It was sold to Mr. Kerry Morse in 9003 and later to Gunnar Racing's Kevin Jeanette. He sold it to Roald Goethe, who completely restored SC 1983 and sprayed it in the light blue Gulf colors.

copy of his brother

Then there was the SM 2187. That story is soon told. Its liveries were a bit of a copy of its brother, the SC 9003. It also had the red, silver and dark gray livery of Porsche in 1969 before being repainted in the colors of Martini, Essex and Rothmans. And he too was sold to Kerry Morse in 1983. He sold it to the collector Gerry Sutterfield and through Sutterfield the racing transporter ended up in the collection of Brumos Porsche in Jacksonville, Florida. That is a big name in Porscheland America! By the way, Brumos brought the car back in the original red, silver and dark gray factory livery, so the car was back to square one.

Just for sale

We now also have a Mercedes-Benz Porsche Renntransporter in the Netherlands. E&R Classics from Waalwijk offers a restored 0317K for sale, a truly unique car if you know the history described above.

E&R Classics says: “What started as a simple sketch and idea between two comrades has grown into a huge project and became an iconic classic. We proudly present one of the most special and impressive classics we have had in our collection, the Mercedes-Benz O317K Porsche Martini Renntransporter! Meticulously restored from 2005 to 2016, this Renntransporter is the creation of a coachbuilder who, among other things, built trucks for the Ferrari racing team. The previous owner is the former owner of a body shop and is also an avid Porsche enthusiast. It has always been his dream to combine these two passions. And so the idea was born to recreate the iconic Porsche/Martini Racing Truck.”

Of an unprecedented level

As far as is known, there are only two original Porsche Renntransporters in circulation in the world. The classic that E&R offers for sale is a beautiful reconstruction of the original. “Because they wanted to keep the truck as original as possible, it was important that only original parts were used, especially for the optical matters. You can imagine what a quest it was to find, for example, an original grille or the Mercedes-Benz OM346 'indoor engine'. No wonder the project took no less than eleven years.

Every detail has been thought through and no detail has been overlooked during the restoration. Besides the fact that this Renntransporter looks beautiful, the quality of the construction is perhaps even more special. The restoration is of an unprecedented level. As with the original Renntransporter, double hinges have been applied to the tailgate. And the car has room for no fewer than four Porsche 917 race cars,” said E&R. So if you are looking for a beautiful, but above all unique addition to your Porsche collection, you can go to E&R Classics, Kleiweg 1 in Waalwijk. Maybe first call +31 416 751 393 for an appointment?

Thanks to Jimmy Tielemans and Tyson Hugie.