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Valvoline-Porsche Twin Special - Double does not hold

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Created on September 6, 2024

Text:

Karl Ludvigsen (Übersetzung: Paul Krüger)

Photos:

Ludvigsen Partners

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Ludvigsen Partners

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Stein-Porsche Valvoline Twin Special (1966) - The lubricant producer from Pennsylvania was the main sponsor of the twin-engine racing car

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Stein-Porsche Valvoline Twin Special (1966) - When it arrived in Indianapolis, it naturally caused quite a stir. Bill Cheesbourg sits at the wheel, ready for the first practice laps

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Stein-Porsche Valvoline Twin Special (1966) - Al Stein (right) and his team in front of the body shell of their racing car

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Stein-Porsche Valvoline Twin Special (1966) - Almost undisguised rear end with six exhaust pipes. The improvised air collectors above the carburetor intake funnels are still missing here

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Stein-Porsche Valvoline Twin Special (1966) - While the body was built very low, the driver sat comparatively high. The large front air intake was also not ideal in terms of airflow

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Stein-Porsche Valvoline Twin Special (1966) - Good to see here: The two Porsche engines of type 901/01 are each located in front of the axle they drive

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Stein-Porsche Valvoline Twin Special (1966) - Good for the center of gravity: The engines sit so low in the chassis that the axle of the crankshaft is below the wheel hub

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Stein-Porsche Valvoline Twin Special (1966) - sheet metal boxes above the carburetors collect intake air at high speed. Just as striking as the car: the mechanic's shirt

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Stein-Porsche Valvoline Twin Special (1966) - The main reason for success was a lack of power. Just one year later, the 220 hp engines of the Porsche Carrera 6 could have been used

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Summary

With two Porsche engines and four-wheel drive in a racing car of his own design, Albert H. Stein wanted to make a big impression at the Indianapolis 500 miles in 1966. The concept seemed promising. But in the end, the dream crumbled almost as quickly as the camshafts. This article tells the story of the failed "Valvoline Twin Special" and describes the pitfalls of its special design.

This article contains the following chapters

Al and Lou
Displacement instead of supercharging
More power for the six-cylinder engines
Body and chassis
First test drives
Arrival in Indy
On the track
Who comes too early ...

Estimated reading time: 14min

Preview (beginning of the article)

The sixties were a time of experimentation and change for the 500-mile race in Indianapolis. It was the decade of the switch to mid-mounted engines, turbine propulsion, significantly improved tires and the triumph of turbocharging. Four-wheel drive was another innovation that was used both successfully and less successfully. Among the four-wheel drive cars, none was more adventurous than Albert H. Stein's 1966 Porsche. In fact, Stein's creation had both Porsche and Indy roots. His drive concept was the same one that Lou Fageol had used 20 years earlier on the speedway and later in his twin-engine sports cars. Al Stein powered his race car with two air-cooled Porsche six-cylinder engines, each driving the pair of wheels at its end of the car.

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