Porsche 959 S, 1987. On of just 29 “S” versions of Porsche’s 1980s hypercar has been restored by Porsche Classic. The car belongs to former F1 driver and 2014 Le Mans class-winner, Nick Heidfeld. The 959 S boasts 515 PS and reaches a top speed of 339 km/h, it came without air conditioning, central locking, electric windows, rear seats, self-levelling suspension and even a passenger side mirror to save weight. Heidfeld’s 959 S had travelled just 4,183km when he took it to Porsche Classic in the summer of 2017. However this 959 was in need of an extensive technical overhaul: “If such a technologically innovative car is not driven regularly, storage damage is, unfortunately, unavoidable," says Uwe Makrutzki, Head of Factory Restoration at Porsche Classic. “The powertrain and chassis have to be overhauled in their entirety; experience has shown that any reduction to the scope of work leads to problems down the road.”
sebastian vettel, nick heidfeld, and robert kubica are interviewed ahead of the grand prix weekend, australia - march 14, 2007
📷 bernd thissen / apimages.com
GIANCARLO FISICHELLA, NICK HEIDFELD, MICHAEL SCHUMACHER, RALF SCHUMACHER, KIMI RÄIKKÖNEN, JOS VERSTAPPEN, AND MIKA HÄKKINEN observe a minute of silence in remembrance of the victims of the terrorist attacks in the United States before the Italian Grand Prix on September 16, 2001.
lewis hamilton during the post-qualifying press conference, canada - june 9, 2007
(transcript under the cut)
Lewis: "Absolutely. Absolutely. As you can tell, I'm just delighted. It's been an amazing day. To come to Canada my first time… It's been tough. It's not an easy circuit to learn, and Fernando's been extremely quick and so have the BMWs and Ferraris.
But we dialed in the car in P3 and I had an opportunity to go out and put it on pole, and this time I took the opportunity and grabbed it by the hands and did the best job I could by it."
Interviewer: "How many laps have you done on, say, the simulator, 'cause there's a very sophisticated simulator at McLaren. Have you done a lot of laps before you came her?"
Lewis: "No, I did about five laps, but we didn't really have time because we had a meeting to go to. But still, I got here on Wednesday, went out yesterday, and it was just like learning a new circuit, like going out on a circuit you've never been on before, so even if I was playing the PlayStation, it wouldn't really have made much diference. I had to learn…
The kerbs are different, gradient changes, the bumps, so it doesn't really help. It just gives you an idea of where the corners are and perhaps what gears you should be taking."
Interviewer: "It's a bit like a grown-up Monaco, really, isn't it, just a bit bigger with a fraction more space. Have you been brushing the walls here?"
Lewis: "I haven't, no. Actually, in that qualifying lap I nearly did touch the wall in the exit of the last corner, just trying to squeeze as much as I could out of the tires, and it was really close, but obviously I got the time and improved that sector."
[time jump]
Journalist: "Lewis, are you gonna be able to sleep tonight?"
Lewis: [laughs] "I think so. I think what's important is to enjoy the moment and then go back and… Still got a hard job to do to tomorrow, so to make sure I'm fully relaxed tonight I'll probably just have a nice evening with my dad and my trainer, get a good night's sleep, and come back tomorrow and try to do the same again."
Journalist: "And Fernando, do you have any advice for your teammate, starting for the first time from pole position for tomorrow?"
Alonso: "I think we'll see tomorrow. I think today has been a good qualifying for the team again, good job from everybody, being first and second, so the team should be very happy today."
Journalist: "Any particular advice for tomorrow?"
Alonso: "Advice? I think don't be too aggressive in the first corner and let me go through." [laughs]
[journalists laugh]
Lewis: [laughs]
Heidfeld: "Same for me, please." [laughs]
[time jump]
Journalist: "How important is it for you to get pole?"
Lewis: "Well, it's obviously a great feeling. It's another step I've taken in my steep learning curve, coming into my first season in Formula 1, and to be honest I knew I had it in me but I wasn't sure when I was gonna get a pole.
I've never really been a driver that sticks it on pole, if you look at the past years, apart from Formula 3. I've always been top three, and it's not my strongest area, but today I'm really happy with the job I did and it's a great step forward for me, but also for the team."
Street Circuit of Valencia, Spain, Thursday, Aug. 21, 2008.
Sebastien Bourdais, Sebastian Vettel, Giancarlo Fisichella, Adrian Sutil,Mark Webber, David Coulthard, Nico Rosberg, Kazuki Nakajima, Timo Glock, Jarno Trulli, Fernando Alonso, Nelsinho Piquet, Rubens Barrichello, Jenson Button, Nick Heidfeld, Robert Kubica, Felipe Massa, Kimi Raikkonen, Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen (Class of 2008) Posing with Bridgestone tyres director Hiroshi Yasukawa and Hirohide Hamashima.