The Le Manster

It has been nearly 13 years since Porsche last won the 24 hours of Le Mans.  The record 16^th win overall was more an act of luck combined with preparation than of sheer outright speed.  Had it not been for several failures by the faster Toyotas, BMWs and Mercedes, Porsche might not have won on its 50^th anniversary.  A large percentage of that preparation, along with a good bit of engineered-in reliability, can be attributed to the works of now-retired Porsche head racing engineer, Norbert Singer.

Not only was Mr. Singer indispensable in the development of the GT1-98 project, but it was his mind that helped develop the aerodynamic and mechanical advantages of the 917 and Carrera RSR programs, as well as the 934, 935, 924 Carrera GTR, 936, 956, and 962. Whether a personal preference or a corporate ideology, the vast majority of his projects with Porsche revolved around turbocharged engines, even when the opposition was using larger displacement naturally aspirated powerplants.  His prowess was not limited to sports cars though, as he also headed the development on Porsche’s Indy projects, as well as the TAG-Porsche Formula 1 engine program.  Singer also worked on several Porsche road going cars; these including the legendary 930, the 928, which was Porsche's most technologically advanced car at the time, the 924 Carrera GT, and the Carrera GT Supercar. The last was to be his final project before retirement, in which he shaped the supercar's aerodynamic structure.

Born in Germany in 1939, Singer graduated from the University of Munich with an engineering degree and promptly began working at Porsche.  As a junior engineer, his first task in 1969 was to develop a new cooling system for the transmissions in the 917 sports car.  Getting that task settled helped net Porsche their first two wins at the 24 Hours of LeMans in 1970 and 1971.

Following his success with the 917 projects, Singer was then tasked with developing a faster and more reliable racing version of the 911 road car chassis.  Starting with the Carrera RSR, and continuing development through the 934 and 935, Singer was responsible for many of the trophies placed upon Porsche’s mantle in the late seventies and early eighties.  Singer would eventually develop the 935 to such an extent that it, too, would win the French endurance classic at Le Mans.  Kicking off Porsche’s penchant for selling its racing cars to customer teams rather than running its own rennwerke, the 935 was one of the most successful customer programs that any manufacturer has ever entered into, bettered only by Porsche’s current 911 GT3 programs.

With victories in CART, Formula 1, and further victories in sports cars, Porsche owes much of its racing history and success to the work of a single man, Norbert Singer.  While it is certain that he could not have done what he did as a single entity, and that his success is the success of the team, who knows where Porsche would be without him.  As a company that touts itself as essentially born from racing, perhaps Porsche’s success as a road car company is, at least in part, owed to Singer as well.