1/18 Porsche 904 # 26 Carrera GTS Silverstone Int. GT 1964 Innes Ireland CMC M-232
Description
History (original vehicle)
Painted in Borneo Green, a color first introduced by Renault, this 904 was delivered new to the Stirling Moss Automobile Racing Team on February 19, 1964. According to André Loubser, Porsche's VIP coordinator, Stirling Moss ordered the car in November 1963. During engine tests, where the target was to achieve a nominal power of 180 hp, one of the engines exhibited a significant overshoot. It is said that Loubser successfully requested that this engine be reserved for the SMART order. Engine 587/3, #99024, was therefore installed in the car with chassis number 904-025.
The SMART team was founded in 1963 after Stirling Moss's near-fatal accident at Goodwood led him to retire from racing. The Porsche 904-025 was the third sports car the team acquired, following a Lotus Elan and a Cortina GT. The 904-025 first competed in the Lavant Cup on March 30, 1964, at Goodwood with John Whitmore at the wheel. The 80-mile race, organized by the British Automobile Racing Club, started at 5:10 p.m. Twenty-seven cars were entered, and 20 actually started. Of these 20, 18 finished the race; 17 were classified. Driving his #42 904 GTS, Sir John Whitmore finished 6th overall and 3rd in class.
With starting number #26, 904-025 competed in the "16th Annual International Trophy" as part of the Silverstone International Grand Touring on May 2, 1964. The race started at 10:15 a.m. over a distance of 25 laps. From a starting grid of 36 cars, 31 cars were classified. Innes Ireland, driving his #26 Porsche 904, finished 9th overall and 1st in the GT2.5 class.
Shortly thereafter, however, the vehicle was touched during test drives by Hugh Dibley. Although the damage was not extensive, due to time constraints, a replacement chassis was quickly ordered from Germany and installed instead of repairing the damaged one. The new chassis, 904-088, was given the old frame number 904-025, while the damaged and removed chassis was not scrapped.
The new 904-088, alias 904-025-1, now consisted of approximately 70% of the parts of the former 904-025 and participated in the "ADAC 1000 km Race Nürburgring" in SMART livery with starting number 50. The result on May 31, 1964, was 9th place overall and 4th place in the class.
On June 6, 1964, 904-088, starting number 3, competed in the Player's Cup Player's 200. The car finished 15th overall and 4th in class. The SMART team had entered a 904-088 with Whitmore/Dibley/Casner as drivers for the upcoming 1964 24 Hours of Le Mans, but this was never achieved because, according to vactek.tripod.com, the car was irreparably destroyed at the end of 1967.
The remains of chassis 904-025, including the damaged original frame and body, were sold to Theo Geiger, a Porsche mechanic. All parts were still in their original paint. Over the years, he built an impressive collection of original spare parts and planned to one day rebuild the car. However, in 2010, Geiger sold 904-025 to Freisinger Motorsport. There, the ex-Stirling Moss Porsche 904 was rebuilt and modified, and as part of the restoration, the 587/3 engine, number 99073, was fitted.
Today, 904-025 is owned by a German fan and was meticulously built for historic racing by Mario Linke's team.
Notice
History (original vehicle)
Painted in Borneo Green, a color first introduced by Renault, this 904 was delivered new to the Stirling Moss Automobile Racing Team on February 19, 1964. According to André Loubser, Porsche's VIP coordinator, Stirling Moss ordered the car in November 1963. During engine tests, where the target was to achieve a nominal power of 180 hp, one of the engines exhibited a significant overshoot. It is said that Loubser successfully requested that this engine be reserved for the SMART order. Engine 587/3, #99024, was therefore installed in the car with chassis number 904-025.
The SMART team was founded in 1963 after Stirling Moss's near-fatal accident at Goodwood led him to retire from racing. The Porsche 904-025 was the third sports car the team acquired, following a Lotus Elan and a Cortina GT. The 904-025 first competed in the Lavant Cup on March 30, 1964, at Goodwood with John Whitmore at the wheel. The 80-mile race, organized by the British Automobile Racing Club, started at 5:10 p.m. Twenty-seven cars were entered, and 20 actually started. Of these 20, 18 finished the race; 17 were classified. Driving his #42 904 GTS, Sir John Whitmore finished 6th overall and 3rd in class.
With starting number #26, 904-025 competed in the "16th Annual International Trophy" as part of the Silverstone International Grand Touring on May 2, 1964. The race started at 10:15 a.m. over a distance of 25 laps. From a starting grid of 36 cars, 31 cars were classified. Innes Ireland, driving his #26 Porsche 904, finished 9th overall and 1st in the GT2.5 class.
Shortly thereafter, however, the vehicle was touched during test drives by Hugh Dibley. Although the damage was not extensive, due to time constraints, a replacement chassis was quickly ordered from Germany and installed instead of repairing the damaged one. The new chassis, 904-088, was given the old frame number 904-025, while the damaged and removed chassis was not scrapped.
The new 904-088, alias 904-025-1, now consisted of approximately 70% of the parts of the former 904-025 and participated in the "ADAC 1000 km Race Nürburgring" in SMART livery with starting number 50. The result on May 31, 1964, was 9th place overall and 4th place in the class.
On June 6, 1964, 904-088, starting number 3, competed in the Player's Cup Player's 200. The car finished 15th overall and 4th in class. The SMART team had entered a 904-088 with Whitmore/Dibley/Casner as drivers for the upcoming 1964 24 Hours of Le Mans, but this was never achieved because, according to vactek.tripod.com, the car was irreparably destroyed at the end of 1967.
The remains of chassis 904-025, including the damaged original frame and body, were sold to Theo Geiger, a Porsche mechanic. All parts were still in their original paint. Over the years, he built an impressive collection of original spare parts and planned to one day rebuild the car. However, in 2010, Geiger sold 904-025 to Freisinger Motorsport. There, the ex-Stirling Moss Porsche 904 was rebuilt and modified, and as part of the restoration, the 587/3 engine, number 99073, was fitted.
Today, 904-025 is owned by a German fan and was meticulously built for historic racing by Mario Linke's team.
