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Tigger937

Joined: 11 Apr 2004 Posts: 919 Location: PCA Milwaukee Region
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Posted: Wed Nov 02, 2011 11:26 am Post subject: Derek Bell and his 924 Carrera GTS - Happy Birthday Derek! |
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October 31st is Derek Bell’s 70th birthday. The legendary driver is known as one of the best drivers to ever drive a Porsche. Derek is still a huge fan of the brand that he helped make a racing legend and is known to drive around in his 1981 vintage Porsche 924 Carrera GTS.
Derek Bell
Derek Bell, one of Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG’s most successful works drivers, will celebrate his 70th birthday on 31 October 2011. Born in Pinner, Middlesex, Great Britain in 1941, Bell is considered to be one of the most versatile and popular racing drivers of his time. Matthias Müller, Porsche AG’s Chairman of the Board of Management has this to say about the birthday boy: “Derek Bell made motorsport history with Porsche. Whether it was in a 917, 936 or 956 – he was always one of the fastest and above all most reliable drivers. Derek Bell won the
24 Hours of Le Mans four times for Porsche. He won the world championship twice. For that we owe him our gratitude and great respect.”
Derek Bell began his racing career with Lotus in 1964. In Formula 1 he then took his place on the starting grid for Ferrari in 1969. In the 1971 season he drove the Porsche 917 and 908/03 racing cars for the Porsche-Gulf team, forming a successful driver duo with Jo Siffert. This was followed by appearances in the Porsche 934 and 935 in 1976 and 1977 before Derek Bell took his place on the Le Mans starting grid as a works driver in the 924 Carrera GT. In 1981, together with Jacky Ickx in the Porsche 936/81 Spyder, he won the first of his total of four Le Mans overall victories in a Porsche. 1982 saw the beginning of the Group C era with the Porsche 956 during which time Bell made his mark as one of the most successful endurance drivers of all time. Together with drivers such as Jacky Ickx, Stefan Bellof and Hans-Joachim-Stuck, he not merely won numerous overall victories in the Types 956 and 962 but also the World Sportscar Championship in 1985 and 1986.
Derek Bell remains in close contact with Porsche to this very day, constantly undertaking ambassadorial tasks for the Stuttgart-based sportscar manufacturer, such as for example at the Oldtimer Grand Prix at the Nürburgring or at this year’s Corso to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the car. There’s no question that Derek Bell also remained faithful to the Porsche brand off the race track: To this very day he can be seen on Britain’s roads driving a 1981 vintage Porsche 924 Carrera GTS.
http://theporscheguys.com/2011/10/27/derek-bell-celebrates-his-70th-birthday/ _________________ 1981 931 (Concours)
1982 931 (Daily Driver)
"Think outside the box" |
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Rasta Monsta

Joined: 12 Jul 2006 Posts: 11733 Location: PacNW
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Posted: Wed Nov 02, 2011 3:01 pm Post subject: |
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Derek = Gott.
Shari (in her Toofah Tee) says, "Oh hai, Gott!"
 _________________ Toofah King Bad
- WeiBe (1987 924S 2.5t) - 931 S3
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Mahatma Gadhni

Joined: 08 Mar 2008 Posts: 162 Location: Croatia
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Posted: Wed Nov 02, 2011 6:38 pm Post subject: |
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http://youtu.be/5WAeB6oL0qw
Here's a video of Derek coming to a car test in his 924.
Watch it 'till the end.  _________________ 1984 924 2.0 NA |
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peterld
Joined: 10 Dec 2006 Posts: 981 Location: Noosa Heads QLD Australia
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Posted: Wed Nov 02, 2011 9:57 pm Post subject: |
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The esteemed Mr. Bell was in OZ straight after Rennsport IV, doing his Porsche ambassadorial spruiking.
Incidentally, his 24 GTS has just had a couple of months of refurbishing in Stuttgart. _________________ 80/81 932/8 ROW |
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Tigger937

Joined: 11 Apr 2004 Posts: 919 Location: PCA Milwaukee Region
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Posted: Thu Nov 03, 2011 11:29 am Post subject: |
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Derek, it's a broken wire/bad connector on the cold start injector!
Great video Mahatma! _________________ 1981 931 (Concours)
1982 931 (Daily Driver)
"Think outside the box" |
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