Porsche
917 (homologation series)

Why it matters

The 917 was Porsche's first car built for the five-litre sports-car class, and the 25 homologation cars made it eligible to race. It gave Porsche its first overall victory at the Le Mans 24 Hours in 1970.

How rare is it?

Six separate kinds of rarity – never combined into one number.

Each kind of rarity is rated separately and never combined.

Photos

Exterior, interior and detail photos with their licences.

• Porsche 917 (homologation series) (Wikimedia Commons: Porsche 917)
  Photo: Calreyn88 · CC BY-SA 4.0
• Porsche 917 (homologation series) (Wikimedia Commons: Porsche 917)
  Photo: Calreyn88 · CC BY-SA 4.0
• Porsche 917 (homologation series) (Wikimedia Commons: Porsche 917)
  Photo: Calreyn88 · CC BY-SA 4.0

Production

Every figure says what it counts.

Independent counts (e.g. engine and colour) are never combined into a calculated figure. Surviving examples are never presented as original production.

History

The 917 went from idea to 25 finished cars in under a year. Chassis 001 was completed on 10 March 1969 and shown at the Geneva Motor Show on 12 March. The rules originally called for 50 cars, but the requirement was cut to 25, and the FIA inspected the line-up in the Plant 1 car park on 21 April 1969. The cars used a 4.5-litre twelve-cylinder engine designed under Hans Mezger, hand-assembled by Gerhard Küchle's team, in a 45 kg tubular space frame with a glass-fibre body shaped by Eugen Kolb; Porsche listed the car for sale at 140,000 marks. Its first win came at the Zeltweg 1,000 km in 1969.

Technical specifications

Engine

Transmission & drivetrain

Chassis, body & dimensions

Performance

“Not yet verified” means no source has been checked for that value yet. Nothing is estimated to fill a gap.

Identification guide

How to tell an original from a replica or later conversion.

Early 1969 details documented on chassis 001 include an aluminium tubular frame without a diagonal brace in front of the pedals, twin fuel tanks, a 1969 exhaust recess in the right sill, static front and moving rear aero flaps, and a Plexidur (not Plexiglas) engine cover.

Sources

Each number links to the exact facts it supports.

1. 1
   Porsche 917 technical details Level B Stuttcars

   • CSI had inspected 25 Porsche 917 fully finished
   • increasing the diameter of the cylinders from 85 to 86 mm
   • piston stroke from 66 to 70.2 mm
   • It delivered a power of 520 HP
   • four-speed gearbox instead of the five-speed one
   • the car reached 380 km / h on the L'Hunnadieres straight

   Accessed 2026-11-12
2. 2
   Makers' day - Porsche Newsroom Level A

   • 25 homologation vehicles inspected by the FIA in April 1969

   Accessed 2026-11-11
3. 3
   Makers' day Level A Porsche Newsroom · 2019-05-02

   • the 4.5-litre V12 engine
   • tubular space frame weighing a mere 45 kilograms

   Accessed 2026-11-12
4. 4
   1970 Porsche 917K (Pebble Beach 2017) Level C Gooding & Company

   • 4,998 CC DOHC Air-Cooled Flat 12-Cylinder Engine
   • DOHC Air-Cooled Flat 12-Cylinder Engine
   • Bosch Mechanical Fuel Injection
   • 4-Wheel Independent Suspension with Coil-Over Shock Absorbers
   • 4-Wheel Hydraulic Ventilated Disc Brakes

   Accessed 2026-11-12
5. 5
   The trailblazer returns Level A Porsche Newsroom

   • original aluminium frame

   Accessed 2026-11-12