Porsche 718

This article deals with the sports car built from 1957 to 1962, for the current model of the same name, see Porsche 718 Boxster or Porsche 718 Cayman

Porsche
Porsche 718 W-RS Spyder, 1961
718
Production period:	1957-1962
Class :	race car
Body versions :	Coupé , roadster , monoposto
Engines:	Petrol engines : 1.5–2.0 liters (104–176 kW)
Length:	3350-4020 mm
Width:	1510-1550 mm
Height:	880-980 mm
Wheelbase :	2100-2335 mm
Empty weight :	456-670 kg
Previous model	Porsche 550
successor	Porsche 787 , Porsche 904

The Porsche 718 is a sports car from Dr.-Ing. hc F. Porsche KG . It was developed in 1957 from the Porsche 550 and, as a racing car , was able to surpass the success of its predecessor.

It was available in numerous Spyder variants (RSK to RS 61), and Porsche is also developing it into a single-seater for Formula 2 and Formula 1. Private drivers drove the 718 in Formula 1 until 1964 .

development

Outwardly, it was initially hardly distinguishable from its predecessor. The improvements were under the body. The engines and the braking system were more powerful and, above all, the car was lighter than the Porsche 550.

The first engines initially developed 104 kW (142 hp) at 7500 rpm. The output was further increased until 1961, so that in the last Porsche 718 it was 118 kW (160 hp) at a speed of 8000 rpm.

Sports car successes

At the 24-hour race at Le Mans in 1958 , the Porsche 718 RSK sensationally took 3rd and 4th place in the overall standings, with Jean Behra / Hans Herrmann in the 1600 for the two-liter class and Edgar Barth / Paul Frère in the 1500 . The Porsche 550 A from Carel Godin de Beaufort / Herbert Linge completed the triumph in which two of the three-liter Ferrari 250 TR " Testa Rossa " were relegated to the places. It was not until 1966 that the small-displacement Porsches were to be able to take the podium again.

In 1960, Porsche and Hans Herrmann / Olivier Gendebien achieved overall victory for the first time in the Sebring 12-hour race , a second important race in the sports car world championship.

The 718 RS versions were also victorious in the Targa Florio in 1959 , 1960 and 1963 . In between you had to bend the larger-displacement Ferrari Dino 246SP .

With the Spyder, Porsche also won the European Hill Climb Championship without interruption from 1958 to 1961 , against u. a. the Borgward with their modern four-valve engines.

After the withdrawal from Formula 1 in 1963, the Porsche 904 was the successor to the sports car .

• 

  Porsche RSK 1981 at the Oldtimer GP on the Nürburgring

• 

  Porsche 718 W-RS Spyder in the 1962 1000 km race on the Nürburgring

• 

  Porsche RSK Spyder

The results from 1957 to 1964

1957

1958

1959

1960

1961

1962

1963

1964

Formula 2

Porsche 718/2 F2 racing car from 1960

For use in Formula 2 races, the two-seater was first modified in 1958 to become a "central link", and in 1959 a real monoposto with open wheels.

In 1960 Rob Walker raced a 718 for Stirling Moss in F2 races. Since Moss was injured, he was replaced at the Solitude Grand Prix in Stuttgart by one of the two-wheeler drivers present for the Motorcycle Grand Prix , the Briton John Surtees . However, it won Wolfgang Graf Berghe von Trips in the Ferrari Dino , which dominated the following year as the Ferrari 156 in F1.

Joakim Bonnier won the 1960 German Grand Prix on the Nürburgring - Südschleife . In addition, they competed at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza , where the banked curve variant was still used. With 6th place, Hans Herrmann achieved a world championship point against the F1-Ferrari, which had a much better engine with 2.5 liters. The English stayed away to protest the safety of the high-speed line and the upcoming rule change.

formula 1

Porsche 718 by Carel Godin de Beaufort

Due to the rule change from 1961, the 718 and later the successor Porsche 787 were used in the factory in the F1.

An eight-cylinder was developed early on, but its use was repeatedly delayed. In Zandvoort , the inferiority of the 718 and 787 in terms of chassis and engine became evident. Dan Gurney with 787 was lapped and only tenth in the field of 15 cars. The private driver Carel Godin de Beaufort as well as Hans Herrmann with a disappointingly weak injection engine of the 718 were at the bottom 3 laps behind. After all, the reliability of the Porsche contributed to the fact that all cars started at this Grand Prix of the Netherlands came to the finish, which remained unique in F1 for decades (until 2005).

In Spa-Francorchamps , instead of injection, they were upgraded to carburettors again, whereupon they finished sixth and seventh. In the next race , which took place on the fast track in Reims , Porsche almost won its first victory, but that was won by Ferrari newcomer Giancarlo Baghetti after retirement . The results were also unsatisfactory on the domestic Solitude circuits (the winner of the non-World Championship run was Innes Ireland on Lotus) and Nürburgring . A surprising success of the 718 in Formula 1 was Gerhard Mitter's fourth place at the 1963 German Grand Prix.

Overall, the 718 turned out to be too big and too weak for the F1. The Porsche 804 was therefore developed for the 1962 F1 season . Carel Godin de Beaufort continued to use a 718 as a privateer in F1; In 1964 he had a fatal accident with the car.

Technical specifications

The Porsche 718 was built between 1957 and 1962. Although it was designed as a racing car, it could also be approved for use on public roads. Of course, this was no longer the case for the Formula 2 and Formula 1 versions.

Porsche 718:	718/1500 RSK Spyder (1957)	718/1600 RSK Spyder (1958 and 1959)	718/2 monoposto (1959)	718 RS 60 Spyder (1960)	718 RS 61 Spyder (1961)	718 RS 61 Spyder (1962)	718 W-RS Spyder (1961)	718 GTR Coupé (1962)
Engine:	4-cylinder boxer engine (four-stroke)					8-cylinder boxer engine (four-stroke)
Displacement:	1498 cc	1587 cc	1498 cc	1587 cc		1981 cc
Bore × stroke:	85.0 x 66.0 mm	87.5 x 66.0 mm	85.0 x 66.0 mm	87.5 x 66.0 mm		76.0 x 54.6 mm
Performance at 1 / min:	105 kW (142 hp) at 7500 109 kW (148 hp) at 8000	118 kW (160 hp) at 7800	110 kW (150 PS) at 8000	118 kW (160 hp) at 7800		154 kW (210 hp) for the 8400	176 kW (240 hp) at 8700	154 kW (210 hp) for the 8400
Max. Torque at 1 / min:	146 Nm at 6300	147 Nm at 7000	147 Nm at 6500	147 Nm at 7000		192 Nm at 6600	205 Nm at 6700	192 Nm at 6600
Compression:	9.8: 1	9.8: 1	10.0: 1	9.8: 1		10.0: 1	10.2: 1	10.0: 1
Valve control:	Two overhead camshafts each , vertical shaft control
Cooling:	Air cooling (fan)
Transmission:	5-speed gearbox (in the 718/2: 4-speed gearbox) and limited-slip differential ; Rear wheel drive						6-speed gearbox and limited slip differential; Rear wheel drive
Brakes:	Drum brakes		Dual circuit drum brakes				Disc brakes	Dual circuit disc brakes
Front suspension:	Crank trailing arm
Rear suspension:	Inclined double wishbones
Front suspension:	Torsion bar springs		Square torsion bar springs
Rear suspension:	Coil springs, shock absorbers		Coil springs, double-acting shock absorbers
Body:	Aluminum body with tubular space frame
Track width front / rear:	1290/1250 mm		1300/1290 mm	1290/1250 mm			1300/1280 mm
Wheelbase :	2100 mm		2200 mm		2300 mm		2335 mm
Tires rim:	VA: 5.00-16 HA: 5.25-16; 5.50-16		VA: 5.50-15R HA: 6.00-15R	VA: 5.50-15R HA: 5.90-15R; 6.00-15R			VA: 5.50-15R HA: 6.50-15R
Dimensions L × W × H:	3600 × 1510 × 880 mm		3350 × 1520 × 900 mm	3700 × 1510 × 980 mm	4020 × 1510 × 980 mm		4020 × 1550 × 930 mm	4020 × 1550 ×? mm
Empty weight :	530 kg		456 kg	548 kg			684 kg	670 kg
Top speed:	260 km / h		250 km / h	260 km / h

literature

• Jürgen Barth, Gustav Büsing: The big book of the Porsche types. Race car. Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart 2010, ISBN 978-3-613-03241-5 .
• Peter Schneider: Type compass Porsche. Racing and racing sports cars since 1948. Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart 2003, ISBN 3-613-02300-8 .

Web links

Commons : Porsche 718  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Porsche database

• Porsche 718/1500 RSK Spyder on Porsche.com ( Memento from May 9, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
• Porsche 718/2 Monoposto on Porsche.com ( Memento from May 7, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
• Porsche 718 RS 60 Spyder on Porsche.com ( Memento from March 22, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
• Porsche 718 RS 61 Spyder on Porsche.com ( Memento from March 23, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
• Porsche 718 W-RS Spyder on Porsche.com ( Memento from March 23, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
• Porsche 718 GTR Coupé on Porsche.com ( Memento from June 4, 2009 in the Internet Archive )

Report on the Internet

• The Porsche 718 on Ultimatecarpage.com (English)