Bruce Canepa Hustles His 962C at Laguna Seca

Reacquainted With an Old Friend

Bruce Canepa's well acquainted with the Porsche 962 and its many variations. A seasoned vintage racer and restoration expert, he's been hustling a number of these intriguing cars at various historic events for nigh on thirty years, and when watching his driving from the sidelines, you can't help but stand on your feet and shout. The man knows these cars.

A particularly stirring piece of footage, filmed this past summer at the 2021 Monterey Motorsports Reunion, shows why the man is the usual front-runner in the IMSA GTO/GTP races. Even starting at the back of the pack, he cuts through the field with ease. It's worth noting that at this stage in the race, he's only able to use so much of the car's performance while boxed in traffic. Without a doubt, the 962 was designed for fast, smooth tracks were it could stretch its legs and exploit the grip provided by its revolutionary aerodynamics.  

A Task Made Easier Through Aero

This '89 WSC-spec 962C boasts a more tractable motor than the contemporary variant of 962s which competed in IMSA GTP at the time. A twin-turbo version of the motor made the delivery smoother and much more manageable. With 700+ horsepower hitting hard right in the middle of the rev range, it's a bit strange seeing how easily it's administered to the surface of the circuit. 

Some of that stick can be attributed to slicks, some to a spool, and some to the aerodynamics. Tasteful canards decorate the from end, while a beautiful diffuser at the rear hints at the massive venturi tunnels underneath sucking the car down to the road. 

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Cornering, Braking Beyond Others

Though the slower cars kept Canepa from demonstrating the 962's potential over the first few laps, he gets his chance eventually. Once Canepa's able to break away from the field, the strength of the aero is on full display. 

Note the absurdly late braking into Turn 2/Andretti Hairpin (3:43). Few modern cars can decelerate from 150 mph to a trot like this can, let alone cars of the same vintage. With this sort of performance, it's easy to see why the 962 was still a relevant racer a decade after its release. 

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Turbos Never Go Out of Fashion

But as impressive as the braking and cornering grip is, the truth is that the 962C was meant to go very quickly in a straight line. Lots of speed along straight sections, if done without any hiccups, is what wins endurance races.

Note the way the surge uphill post Turn 5 is relentless. Rowing through the closely stacked ears, the Porsche never stops accelerating. These cars were capable of outrageous speeds after all. With the correct gearing, the 962C would hit upwards of 230 miles per hour along the Mulsanne Straight. 

While Laguna Seca is no Le Mans, the longer straights present make it the sort of track which rewards a powerful machine. With a broad wave of torque, great response from the smaller turbochargers, and 700 horsepower available, he's able to hit upwards of 150 miles an hour along the front straight. Even modern cars with snappy, paddle-shifted gearboxes struggle to match those speeds.

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Simplicity and Strength

It's not that the 962C was the fastest car of its day. By the close of the eighties, it was actually considered old technology; such was the rate of progression in that exhilarating decade.

However, it retained a place in the spotlight due to its resilience. It was a sturdy car equipped with enough power to cover straights at great rates of speed, and though there were faster machines competing alongside it, it tended to outlast most of them. 

It was also good to the driver. Dominic Dobson, a man who raced a 962C at Le Mans as well as an IMSA-spec version in America, remarked on how nicely his 962s rode. "The few I drove all rode like a Cadillac," he laughed. A syncromesh gearbox also made keeping the gearbox functioning nicely a little easier. Visibility was strong, and traction was immense. The 962C was designed in all the right ways to make long-distance performance feasible, both for car and driver.

It was an intelligently designed machine that took all the aspects of performance into consideration. This comprehensive approach was what helped this car dominate during its lengthy heyday, and why it's still an absurdly quick car forty years later.  

>>Join the conversation about this 962C at Monterey right here in the 6SpeedOnline Forum!