The early 1970s marked the culmination of Porsche’s dominance during the prototype era and the beginning of a works racing program based on the 911. In 1973, the 911 Carrera RSR won the Targa Florio outright, defeating factory-entered sports racing prototypes. The following year, an experimental RSR Turbo entered by the Porsche Martini works team placed 2nd Overall at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. These successes led Porsche to develop two new state-of-the-art 911-based racing cars to compete in the World Championship for Makes.

Introduced for the 1976 season, the 934 was Porsche’s Group 4 variant of the all-new turbocharged 930 – a factory-built racing machine that maintained close ties to its road car counterpart. For Group 5, the so-called silhouette formula, Porsche developed the 935, an evolution of the RSR Turbo, featuring independent coil-spring suspension, aerodynamic fiberglass bodywork, and a powerful turbocharged flat-six. In its debut season, the new Martini-liveried works 935s captured the Group 5 championship, ushering in an exciting new era for Porsche.

Between 1977 and 1979, Porsche developed special versions of the 935 for the works team and built 37 production cars for customer use. This 935, chassis 930 990 0031, is the penultimate example in this series, and was sold new by Porsche to Volkswagen of America. The 935 was then retained by the factory and used for research and development work ahead of being sold to legendary Porsche dealer and racing team owner Vasek Polak in mid-1979.

Under Mr. Polak’s ownership, the car was entered by Ted Field’s Interscope Racing in the 1979 24 Hours of Le Mans, where it was driven by Field, John Morton, who was making his first start in the legendary endurance race, and Milt Minter. The 1979 running of the French classic was famous for the atrocious weather conditions that allowed a Kremer 935 K3 to win the race outright, and another 935, driven by Paul Newman, to finish 2nd. Unfortunately, luck was not on the side of the Interscope-entered 935, and the car was retired with engine trouble after 154 laps.

Remarkably, Le Mans would be the only international race for 0031; the car was returned to Weissach for more testing before being shipped to Mr. Polak’s Hermosa Beach, California, dealership. According to one account, the 935 remained in Mr. Polak’s care until being sold to noted Porsche collector and racer Kerry Morse in 1989. Morse subsequently sold the Porsche to fellow racer Jamey Mazzotta, who then sold it to an unknown collector in Japan. In 2004, Lloyd Hawkins acquired 0031 in a deal brokered by Porsche collector and restorer Jim Torres.

As part of Mr. Hawkins’ collection, the 935 was prepared for use on track. Mr. Hawkins’ in-house experts set about optimizing the car, including building a second complete twin-turbocharged engine for use in vintage motor sports events.

The engine removed from the 935, no. 6990038, is listed in John Starkey’s seminal work on racing Porsches, From R to GT2: The Racing Porsches 911 & 930, as being original to 0031. This engine (no. 6990038) accompanies the 935 at auction, as does a history file containing records from its many vintage racing events during current ownership.

As one of just 37 customer 935s built by the Porsche factory, this is a rare and special breed of racing 911. Its late placement in the production run means that it would have been fitted with the most advanced specification mechanicals when new. Its limited racing history just happens to be a single entry in the world’s most important endurance race, the 24 Hours of Le Mans, which it ran in one of the Porsche world’s most sought-after liveries.

Its unique provenance – which includes ownership by Volkswagen of America, Vasek Polak, and some of the biggest names in Porsche racing car circles – offers further evidence that this 935 stands above many of its peers in terms of desirability.

Offered now following 18 years of fastidious and loving ownership, this 1979 Porsche 935 awaits a new future in the hands of its next lucky caretaker, and promises an endless supply of opportunities for entry into some of the world’s most exciting motoring events.

*Please note that this vehicle is sold on a Bill of Sale.