Page 22 - Against All The Others

024 David Bull
©2024 David Bull Publishing ©2024 David Bull Publishing ©2024 David Bull Publishing
as long as the other 908s, and this seemed to help quite a bit, but even during the race Sunday, you could tell this car from all the others just by the way it jittered and hopped and squiggled around when everything else was going in a nice, simple, straight line. Scooter said he had to just let the thing go on the straights and then see what he could do to get things cleaned up entering the corners.”
The weekend brought typical Upstate New York summer weather, humid and hot, and there were rumors that Porsche’s drivers were once again trying their cool-suits. There were sightings of various familiar driver faces atop Michelin Man–sized suits, but years later Joe Buzzetta dispelled that rumor. “Yes, tried. But failed. It only worked intermittently, and it really was distracting because it came on randomly and unpredictably.”
Siffert was equally frustrated, though his challenges came from the six-speed gearbox—not because of its size or weight, but its gearing. Mechanics had given it the nickname Hirschkäfer, or stag beetle, because its two long arms projected out front like the mandibles of the eponymous insect.
“During practice Siffert felt sixth gear was too short,” Peter Falk said. “Our gearbox guy Theo Huber was with us, so he and I selected a longer pairing for sixth and also slightly changed fifth, and he set to work. It was near the end of the session of the day, and Siffert got only one or two laps to
2 4 6
LEFT: Peter Falk figured out why Jo Siffert had trouble keeping pace. It required a gearbox rebuild, which now needed a brief test. Huschke von Hanstein knew precisely who to ask for a short after- hours test. They handed
over keys to the track and permitted two laps! [COURTESY PORSCHE CORPORATE ARCHIV]
BELOW LEFT: Wheel bearings— especially fronts—plagued Porsche throughout
the season. Mechanics developed certain fixes and worked miracles, but it still cost the team top places in several races. [REVS INSTITUTE, DAVID NADIG PHOTOGRAPH COLLECTION]
AGAINST ALL THE OTHERS
©2 Publis