24 Fascinating Facts about Porsche & 24 Hours of Le Mans
With Le Mans set for June 17, we look at some of the most interesting aspects of Porsche’s history at the legendary race.
The record of 18 overall wins is the most popular figure about Porsche and Le Mans, which is set for June 17. Double it, and this is how many more interesting facts you will find here. Discover what the Porsche 919 Hybrid has in common concerning the power supply of a small village, at what time did Mark Webber complete his first-ever lap in an LMP1 car, and when Porsche celebrated its first hybrid race car success.
1. The initial rollout of the first 919 was done by Porsche works driver Timo Bernhard on June 12, 2013 at the Weissach test track. A little over two years later, he became world endurance champion with the further developed Le Mans prototype.
2. Three Hollywood superstars entered Le Mans with Porsche. Steve McQueen’s attempt made it into the cinema in 1971, Paul Newman finished second overall in 1979, and Patrick Dempsey also climbed the 2015 podium, finishing second in the GTE-AM class.
3. Two hours is the average time each of the Porsche LMP drivers spend on a massage bed during the 24-hour race.
4. Porsche LMP team members were the small delegation visiting Le Mans in 2013 for research purposes one year before their return to the top category. They witnessed the first win of a works Porsche since 1998, when the 911 RSR won the GT class.
5. Five people were on board at the end of 2011 when Porsche, under the guidance of Fritz Enzinger, began to prepare for their LMP return. Since 2015, the team’s head count is 260, with 160 of them being engineers.
6. Eight megajoules from energy recovery systems per lap in Le Mans is the highest category from the efficiency regulations. Porsche was the first – and for a long time – the only manufacturer in that category. The trendsetting challenge behind this: the more electrical power the 919 uses, the less fuel it is allowed to burn.
7. At 10 p.m. on June 10th, 2015, Neel Jani set off for the first Le Mans qualifying session. He lapped the circuit in 3:16.887 minutes – which remains a record time.
8. Twelve men arrived on May 23, 2017, almost four weeks before the race, to build up the two floor steel hall behind the Porsche LMP pit box. On May 30th, a convoy of eight semi-trailers arrived containing the race cars and all their equipment. For the test day on June 4, everything has to be in place.
9. Fourteen gigabytes of data is sent by each 919 to the pits during the 24 hours.
10. Fifteen minutes before the 919’s maiden race at Silverstone in 2014, Team Principal Andre-as Seidl spun his tension into a funny quote: “That’s one small step for mankind, but one giant leap for Porsche – we’ve got two LMP1 cars on the grid!”
11. A total of 19.9 kilograms is the weight of the car’s tire and rim. Mechanic Rainer Mühlhäuser can pick up a used wheel and attach a new one using only one hand. Since he did that at the opening WEC race in Silverstone, others down the pit lane have been practicing this truly impressive feat.
12. Twenty hours into the race, car number 20 took the lead in 2014. 20 minutes after Mark Webber had begun his final stint, he brought home the number 20 car on electric drive due to engine failure. 20 minutes later, the number 14 sister car suffered a gearbox failure.
13. Incredibly, 20:32 was the time on December 9, 2013 when Mark Webber, in complete darkness, started his first ever lap at the wheel of an LMP1 car on a circuit he had never driven on. This Portimão test was a turning point: the 919 Hybrid’s initial V4 engine had caused heavy vibrations. By December, the problem was solved.
14. On October 10, 2014, practice day in Fuji, the team celebrated Brendon Hartley‘s 25th birthday and even gave him presents. Unfortunately, it was one month early.
15. Thirty stops for refueling and 10 stops for changing tires and drivers is anticipated for each Porsche 919 Hybrid during the Le Mans race.
16. Fifty-four consecutive laps Romain Dumas as well as Neel Jani were at the wheel of the winning car at night during the 2016 Le Mans. Due to safety car periods, Dumas’ stint was extended and became the longest stint of all the Porsche LMP drivers. It lasted from 00:13 hrs until 03:38 hrs. That’s almost the duration of two Formula 1 Grand Prix races.
17. Around 60 percent of the 919 Hybrid’s recovered energy comes from the front brakes, and around 40 percent is provided by the exhaust system.
18. Sixty-five people form the Porsche LMP Team’s operational crew at a six hour race. At the Le Mans, this number is 90.
19. Ninety degrees is the cylinder angle of the 919 Hybrid’s V4 combustion engine. But its operating mode is one of a steep standing “boxer” engine.
20. At the 2015 final WEC round in Bahrain, both throttle barrel levers broke on the Timo Bernhard/Brendon Hartley/Mark Webber car. The fact that the three drivers still reached the checkered flag and became world champions was thanks to a mechanic’s clever idea and quick thinking engineers. Mechanics had locked the barrels on full throttle by putting two pliers into the engine that were attached with cable straps. Meanwhile, engineers were busy programming in real time to keep the car running.
21. On November 30, 2014, Mark Webber was on lap 239 at the season finale in São Paulo when he suffered the worst crash of his entire career.
22. After 248 laps in São Paulo, Neel Jani, in the sister car, scored the first race win for the Porsche 919 Hybrid.
23. A total of 395 laps were covered by Earl Bamber/Nico Hülkenberg/Nick Tandy on their way to win the 2015 Le Mans race. The three LMP rookies agreed before the race that they would each drive the speed they were comfortable with while trying to avoid hitting anything. This way a podium finish would be doable. The plan resulted in the first overall victory for Porsche since 1998.
24. The longest distance ever covered during Le Mans was 397 laps. The 2010 winners all had a Porsche junior background (Timo Bernhard/Romain Dumas/Mike Rockenfeller). They shared an Audi when they covered the 5,410.713 kilometers.