- One of the two Porsche 924s entered by Sonauto in the 1981 Dakar Rally
- Competed with the Autogyl team in the 1981 Bandama Rally
- Attractively restored, respecting its authenticity
- Fascinating history
The story of this Group 4 Porsche 924 begins with the Paris-Dakar Rally in 1981, when it was one of the two cars entered by the importer Sonauto and assigned to Guy Chasseuil and André Costa (the famous journalist from L'Auto-Journal). Neither car finished, but they attracted the attention of another competitor, Bob Neyret, who bought them just after they had been serviced by Sonauto, in order to take part in the Bandama-Ivory Coast Rally, in October the same year. Integrated into his Autogyl team and registered as 1502 VT 38 and 1505 VT 38, the two Porsches, in the colours of the Gitanes cigarette company, were allocated to Jean-Louis Trintignant (no. 25) and his wife-to-be, Marianne Hoepfner (no. 12). A few photographs show the cars during the rally, including one linking the car registered as 1502 VT 38 to Trintignant. It is therefore likely that the car we are selling, which had the registration number 1505 VT 38, was the one used by Hoepfner. In any event, both cars suffered mechanical problems and had to retire after the first stage. There is an amusing video on the internet in which Trintignant and Hoepfner are interviewed during their reconnaissance for the rally and emphasize the difficulties it presents.
As can be seen from the documents in our possession, this Porsche 924 was sold by the Autogyl team just after the rally to Mme Kneppert, a secretary at the French embassy in Abidjan, who registered it in the Ivory Coast as IT 1 193 CI. It was resold in 1985 and returned to Europe the following year, before being spotted and bought in the 1990s by the Almeras brothers, Porsche specialists and motorsport tuners. They sold the car in 2009 to the German specialist Freisinger, who in turn sold it to its current owner, a Greek enthusiast and rally fan, who is particularly attracted to cars that have remained true to their period specification. He had the 924 completely restored and it is now in its specification for the Bandama with Trintignant in 1981. This historic car would be a valuable addition today to any collection of rally cars, while allowing its owner to take part in the top historic events for cars of its category.
Photos © Manos Kountouris