[woodcote]

   
Carrera 27697 Porsche 935 GT2 "Pikes Peak No.11 2020". RRP £49.99. Scheduled July 2022

While we're waiting for the highlight of Carrera's 2022 catalogue - the Mercedes 300 SEL 6.3 AMG - there are some nice re-liveries arriving in fairly regular batches. Expected this month, but not arrived with the latest group, is this Pikes Peak Porsche 935 GT2. The 935-19 GT2 was a new mould last year, available in two striking liveries. It didn't really do much for me - but this one does...



Porsche created only 77 of the 'second-generation' 935 - essentially a retro body-kit on a race-prepared 911 GT2 RS, a pretty tasty car in itself. Unveiled at the 2018 Rennsport Reunion at Laguna Seca, these rare cars sold very quickly for $800k and are now worth upwards of $1.5 million - although an original 1970s 935 will fetch considerably more. The car modelled here by Carrera is owned by Porsche collector Bob Ingram, its livery including support for his son Cam’s Porsche restoration shop. It sports white, grey and red paint with Pegasus branding on its rear quarter panels thanks to sponsorship from Mobil 1...

       

In addition to the body-kit bodywork resembling the 935/78, there are other references to performance Porsches - the LED taillights are shared with the Le Mans-winning 919 LMP1, side mirrors from the 911 RSR and titanium tailpipes hearkening back to the 1968 908/1. And that big rear wing is ideal for the extra downforce required for a hill climb event. The 935 was handed to Pikes Peak veteran Jeff Zwart - who clocked 9:43.92 on the 20-kilometre climb to 14,000-feet, ending up fifth overall and second in his Time Attack 1 class, which only allows track and race cars based on production models. “It’s the most comfortable race car I’ve ever driven,” said Zwart after his run. “The combination of the turbo, the bodywork and the motorsport chassis is wonderful.”

       

It was a 911 GT2 RS Clubsport that took the Time Attack 1 honours - three-time overall winner David Donner took the #000 car to the peak in 9:36.559, enough for third overall and just a second behind the winner, a specialist open-wheeler. Zwart summed up the weekend "It was an incredible week driving the 935 but race day is a different thing. You have to lay it on the line. I knew I hadn’t driven the first sector committed enough. I knew I had lost quite a bit of time so I kept pushing harder. The car kept feeling better and better. At the top, I pushed super, super hard and we set the fastest overall time on the day in the final sector. We came up short on time but we got a podium and top-five overall. It was a special day to have two Porsche in the top-five."

       

Here's a great interview with Zwart about the car, his 2020 run, Pikes Peak and donuts - plus another look at that run as he speaks...



After a year away in 2021, Bob Ingram's 935 returned to rather foggy Pikes Peak International Hill Climb a couple of weeks ago, Zwart again second in Time Attack 1 and finishing seventh overall.

Carrera's model of this Pikes Peak car is expected soon in analogue Evolution and Digital132 versions -  and is available for pre-order from Pendle Slot Racing, Jadlams Toys & Models and all your favourite Carrera retailers.