Rebirth of a racing icon
09/13/2017
What could the legendary Porsche 908 from 1968 with its characteristic long tail look like today? A team of five young enthusiasts have presented their idea of a modern successor: the 908/04.
This Porsche 908/04 Concept is the result of a close collaboration between five key players: Alan Derosier (exterior designer), Marcos Beltrao (exterior modeler/rendering), Martin Peng (component modeler), Guillermo Mignot (interior designer) and Tom Wheatley (image processing). They all work for a Chinese car brand - and they are all united by their passion for a sports car manufacturer based in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen.
Alan and his colleagues are full of ideas and so, alongside their regular work, they wanted to design a vehicle for car enthusiasts that focuses on their passion for motor racing. After the Chinese employer approved the private project, the five guys started working on this private 908-04 project well into the night after the official working day. The car was to have a futuristic look which, in line with the motto "form follows function", would also benefit the car's performance.
A modern version of the 1969 908 LH
So the idea was born to reinterpret the 1969 908 LH.
"As a designer, I opted for the extremely long rear end, as Porsche models with this shape have something absolutely unique about them. And as far as I know, no one has yet attempted to produce a modern version of it. In my opinion, this idea has been somewhat forgotten," recalls Alan, the initiator of the project.
The team
From the outset, it was clear that their work had to be recognizable as a Porsche at a glance. "Porsche is one of the few brands that can build on a history with a unique design and identity. I didn't want to 'overdesign' it. In my opinion, objects with an unadulterated shape and characteristic details are timeless. And that's how I define Porsche."
Two years and 5000 hours of work
The challenge of the project was to work with concrete proportions. The team designed the car in such a way that it could also exist in reality: "We worked with real dimensions and restrictions, such as seating position, visibility, headroom, door opening, getting in, getting out, width, length, height and so on," explains Alan.
The team put their hearts and souls into bringing this concept car to life for almost two years, totaling around 5000 hours.
A few months ago, Alan found an email from Porsche in his inbox. "I was a bit scared to open it at first. We never had official permission from Porsche and I was worried that we might get into trouble." But the opposite was the case. The makers tell their full story in the following video:
What do you think about this rebirth? Do you like it or should we let racing icons sleep?
You can find out more on the official Porsche VisionGT website .
