1 Of three Highway-Authorized Porsche-Primarily based Group C Race Automobiles
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The Koenig C62 is the sort of road-legal race automotive that might solely have been conceived by somebody with the creativeness, engineering potential, and inherent insanity of Germany’s Willy Koenig.
Simply three C62s have been ever made, every began out as a Porsche 962 Group C Le Mans race automotive chassis, which then had a customized composite Kevlar physique added, and a highly-tuned Porsche 930 turbo engine fitted that produces 550+ bhp.
Quick Info – The Mighty Koenig C62
- The Koenig C62 is without doubt one of the extra excessive creations from the thoughts of Willy Koenig, the founding father of Koenig Specials GmbH – an organization that turned well-known for constructing a few of the wildest modified supercars on the planet within the Nineteen Eighties and Nineties.
- Willy Koenig began out within the printing enterprise, he turned rich and spent a few of his cash on his true ardour – racing. He turned the German Hillclimb Champion in 1962 driving a Ferrari 250 GT SWB.
- Within the Nineteen Seventies Willy Koenig began modifying high-end automobiles within the Nineteen Seventies, by the Nineteen Eighties his firm was one of the crucial well-known, and most outlandish, on the planet.
- The Koenig C62 has a Porsche 962 chassis, a 550 bhp Porsche 930 engine, and a brand new composite Kevlar physique that was designed particularly to make sure that the automotive might be highway registered and used on common public streets – in contrast to the Porsche 962 on which it’s primarily based.
Willy Koenig + Koenig Specials GmbH
Willy Koenig made his fortune within the printing business, however his true ardour was racing and high-end sports activities automobiles.
Though it appears rather a lot just like the Porsche 962 the Koenig C62 shares no widespread panels with it, it has a brand new Kevlar composite physique that barely elevated the peak of the headlights and fenders to permit the automotive to be legally highway registered.
In 1961 Willy purchased an open-wheeled Formulation Junior Cooper from the Formulation 1 driver Wolfgang von Journeys, and a yr later in 1962 he gained the Deutsche Bergmeisterschaft (German Hillclimbing Championship) driving a Ferrari 250 GT SWB.
This victory would get him invited to go to Ferrari in Maranello the place he met Enzo Ferrari, and a particular occasion was held in his honor.
The cordiality of this relationship wouldn’t final nevertheless, and inside 20 years Ferrari could be threatening Koenig with lawsuits, and demanding that any Ferrari he had modified had all of its unique Ferrari badging eliminated – because it might not be thought of a real Ferrari.
There are numerous automobiles you can level to as the height of Koenig Specials GmbH achievements, the highly-modified 850 bhp Ferrari F50, the 1,000 bhp twin-turbo Ferrari Testarossa, or maybe the automotive proven right here – the Koenig C62.
The Koenig C62 – Specs
Simply three examples of the Koenig C62 have been ever made. The automotive is intently primarily based on the Porsche 962, a Le Mans-style sports activities racing automotive that was by no means meant to be used on public roads.
Above Video: That is racing driver Billy Johnson at there wheel of a Koenig C62 at Buttonwillow Raceway Park. Be sure you flip your sound on.
The crew at Koenig Specials had ample expertise engaged on the Porsche 911, however the Porsche 962 was a wholly new beast. They purchased improved 962 chassis from an organization referred to as Thompson, that specialised in constructing safer, extra inflexible chassis for racing groups.
Koenig C62 Specs
Although the C62 appears exceedingly just like the 962 the automobiles really share no physique panels in any respect, a wholly new composite Kevlar physique was designed that elevated the peak of each the fenders and headlights with the intention to meet German necessities for highway authorized automobiles.
The engine is a twin-turbocharged Porsche 930 3.4 liter flat-six with a collection of modifications bringing energy as much as 550 hp and 553 lb ft of torque on the rear wheels through a 5-speed guide gearbox. The suspension was modified for road use, the unique arrange was stiff for racing use, so Koenig added barely softer springs and shock absorbers.
Authentic Porsche 962 brakes have been used nevertheless they have been fitted with extra street-focussed brake pads, each for usability and authorized causes.
The inside of the Koenig C62 makes little or no try and be snug, uncovered composite panels are seen and there’s no carpet, local weather management, stereo, or cruise management – it was designed to be as near a road authorized Porsche 962 race automotive as was practicably potential.
Only a few allowances for consolation have been made when creating the Koenig C62, it was meant to be as near a highway authorized Porsche 962 as potential.
Koenig Specials had initially deliberate to construct 30 examples of the C62, nevertheless simply three have been finally made – presumably due to the $1,030,000 USD price ticket (in 1991 {dollars}).
The Koenig C62 Proven Right here
The automotive you see right here is the second of the three automobiles made, it was constructed between 1990 and 1991, then delivered to its first proprietor in Japan.
It might stay in Japan for many of its life, passing by means of a small variety of unique non-public collections earlier than being imported into america in 2019.
Within the three years that the automotive has been with its present proprietor it’s been used sparingly, it has simply 2,502 kilometers on the odometer from new.
It’s been fitted with new tires, GPS sender for the speedometer was put in, an inoperative gasoline gauge was repaired, and it had a servicing by the technicians at R3 Motorsports in Van Nuys, California.
The automotive is now being auctioned stay on-line by Accumulating Automobiles, on the time of writing there are nonetheless a number of days left to bid and you may click on right here for those who’d like to go to the itemizing.
Photographs courtesy of Accumulating Automobiles
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