Chassis no. 911 360 1177

Engine no. 663 1144

Long before the likes of Kimi Räikkönen, Mika Häkkinen and Keke Rosberg cemented their status as world champions on grand prix racing's greatest stage, Leo Kinnunen was Formula 1's first racing driver from Finland. By the late 1960s, the young Finn was in his mid-20s and had already catapulted himself from a successful career in Finnish rallying and road-course circuits to racing a Porsche 908 in 1969 and accepting an offer to join John Wyer's Gulf-sponsored Porsche racing team. He won his debut race at the Daytona 24 Hours! Multiple victories followed with such illustrious co-drivers as Pedro Rodriguez, Brian Redman and the Swiss Jo Siffert, as the Gulf group ratcheted up victories at Brands Hatch, Monza, Watkins Glen and many others. In fact, Kinnunen even set a lap record at the Targa Florio in 1969 and not long thereafter, he was one of the drivers initially asked by Steve McQueen to partake in the filming of Le Mans – an opportunity that he turned down.

While he raced countless cars, the association with Porsche was longstanding and by the early 1970s, he raced for the blue-and-white liveried Finnish AAW Racing Team as well in the Interserie Championships, behind the wheel of a 917K, then a 917/1, winning the championship in 1971, '72 and '73 – three years outright!

It was during these dominant Interserie years that Kinnunen took delivery of this extraordinary 1973 Porsche Carrera RS Lightweight, which was built in April of that year, one month before he entered the Targa Florio in a Carrera RSR, coming in third overall. His street car, however, was built in advance of his participation in the 1000 Lakes Rally (now known as the Rally Finland), one of the preeminent events on the World Rally Championship, which was to take place in August and for which this car was used by Kinnunen for practice and route scouting. Previous correspondence with his daughter and on his behalf confirms the car was a "company" car during his racing days, which he personally acquired after one year of driving and kept registered in Germany thereafter, to avoid Finnish taxation regulations.

Certainly, the delivery of a Carrera RS was more than a casual occurrence at Porsche, or any other manufacturer in 1973 for that matter... this was the fastest road-going 911 since the introduction of the model. A true homologation special, it was lightweight, brutally fast, and a remarkable step up from the 911S. Weighing in at less than 1,000 kg, the RS Lightweight was precisely the giant killer that Porsche needed on the endurance racing circuit. While homologation requirements mandated production of 500 units, the Carrera RS was so popular 1,580 examples were sold, of which only 200 were the ultra-desirable M471 lightweight specification.

The car was certainly a unique specification – it sat higher and wore mudflaps in preparation for these "scouting" trips and, according to the extensive correspondence on file, the wider rear fenders were factory installed at some point in period while the large rear wing was a prototypical factory design commissioned on Kinnunen's request from the Porsche racing department, apparently with his extensive involvement on design. The "whale tail," as the general shape is now frequently known of course, made its production appearance somewhat later and as such this is considered one of the earliest Porsche applications of this rear wing, if not the first 911 to be fitted with a 1974-rear spoiler. In fact, according to a 2013 magazine article in which the car was presented by then-owner Juha Liukkonen, with AAW's racing operations moving to Germany, Kinnunen was spending much more time at the Porsche factory precisely at a time when the racing department was preparing the RSR for the 1974 season. And so, being at the right place, at the right time, and with the right experience and influence from a prominent, highly successful Porsche racing driver, this street 2.7 Carrera RS was rendered a particularly unique example!

Correspondence in the file also indicates the car was fitted not only with these RSR-style wheel arches, but also "RS lightweight" engine (approx. 235 horsepower, as it seems Kinnunen felt a full RSR motor was too much for road use) and brakes, Repa belts, Matter roll cage and an 80% locked differential, which was not typically available on the street cars and, while not all these features are listed on the build sheet, correspondence and inspection suggests this was done either at the racing department, in Weissach, or shortly thereafter. The "Blutorange" (Blood Orange) finish the car wears today is factory correct as well and remarkably original, in fact. It's perhaps safe to assume that very few Carrera RS clients were afforded such specific, bespoke upgrades, many of them from the RSR.

INTERESTED PARTIES ARE ENCOURAGED TO CONTACT COLLECTORS GARAGE AND REVIEW ALL AVAILABLE HISTORIC DOCUMENTATION.