Staufen Fabrik No. 48074
For nearly 20 years, the only way that Porsche's most successful and fastest sports-racing prototypes could get to the race track was aboard an O 317 Renntransporter, built by Mercedes-Benz. Long a staple of the European tour bus scene, the O 317 was also offered as a rolling chassis for coachbuilders to create customized builds for their clients. After years of loading their aluminum-bodied Spyders on open trailers, Porsche commissioned a race transporter with custom coachwork in 1967, coinciding with the introduction of the Porsche 910 sports racer.
Over the next two years, the race department added two additional transporters, each wearing numerous famous (and infamous) liveries that included Gulf, Martini, Essex, Rothmans and, of course, Porsche System Engineering's own maroon and silver. The Porsche cars carried by the three transporters are among the most successful and famous of all time-908, 917, 911 Carrera RSR, 935, 936, and 956-with victories at Le Mans, the Targa Florio, and the Nürburgring, as well as World Sportscar Championship titles, among them. All three remained in use by Porsche's motorsport department well into the 1980s, carrying the marque's most celebrated competition cars.
With only two of the originals remaining, and their status well entrenched in the annals of motorsport history, there is an intriguing case for locating an original coachbuilt O 317 with the intent of adding to the ranks of period-correct Renntransporters that offer not only an authentic look at a historic race weekend but functional utility as well. According to chassis tags affixed to this Mercedes-Benz O 317 Porsche Renntransporter Tribute, it was originally sent to Staufen Fahrzeugwerke, based in Eislingen. While much of Staufen's work involved transport trucks, the firm is perhaps best known for its 1962 Mercedes-Benz Betreuungswagen mobile office built for the ADAC.
Today, this O 317 has been restored at the request of a racer who dreamt of period correct transport for their 1965 FIA-specification 1965 Porsche 911 race car. Based on a previously restored and fully operational bus, fresh aluminum exterior panels were installed before it was finished in the earliest and most famous Porsche System Engineering colors of maroon and silver from the late 1960s. The interior received a full makeover as well. The refreshed cab interior is equally period-correct and purposeful, with two upright spring seats, a dashboard fitted with Kienzle instruments, and an Eberspächer heater. Out back, the single-height transport section is finished in correct light grey with diamond-plate flooring. Before its transformation into a Renntransporter, prior restorative work addressed the chassis, suspension, and other mechanicals with a rebuild of its Typ OM 346.911 straight-six diesel engine that displaces 10.8 liters and develops 210 PS and 706 Nm of torque.
Today, this Mercedes-Benz O 317 captures the character of Porsche's legendary competition department. Its period-correct Porsche System Engineering livery, coachbuilt bodywork, restored interior, and restored mechanicals make it both an evocative tribute and a highly functional addition to any collection or historic racing paddock.
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- VIN Code31724010005986
