The Ultimate Gathering for Car Enthusiasts—Monterey Car Week 2015

August 31, 2015
Images by Shawn Glad

August in Monterey, California, is synonymous with the much-anticipated Car Week, a time when the quiet coastal town transforms into a mecca for automotive enthusiasts from around the world. This year’s iteration, running through the week of August 11-16, presented a spectacular showcase that included classic cars, the unveiling of new models, and vintage automotive racing. Among my highlights were the Porsche Werks Reunion, the Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion at Laguna Seca, and the Pebble Beach Tour d’Elegance, each offering a unique flavor to the week-long celebration.

The Porsche Werks Reunion, a newcomer to the Monterey Car Week lineup, quickly became THE gathering for Porsche enthusiasts. Held at the Rancho Canada Golf Club in Carmel Valley, the event attracted over 500 Porsches, showcasing a spectrum from early air-cooled classics to the latest GT models. This year was particularly notable for celebrating significant milestones: the 40th anniversary of the 911 Turbo and the 50th anniversary of the 912.

The Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion at the iconic Laguna Seca Raceway, my personal favorite, showcased historic race cars on its demanding track, notably the infamous “Corkscrew” turn. This year’s event marked the 50th anniversary of the Shelby GT350 Mustang and Ford, a collaboration between Carroll Shelby and Ford, that has been one of the most successful in automotive history.

The Pebble Beach Tour d’Elegance is an integral component of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance week, occurring annually on the Thursday before the main event in Pebble Beach. The tour features a parade of vintage and classic cars, entered in the Concours competition, driving along a scenic route that includes the 17-Mile Drive and parts of the Pacific Coast Highway. Aimed at showcasing the roadworthiness and beauty of these historic vehicles, the tour allows the public to witness these rare cars in motion, culminating in a display in Carmel-by-the-Sea.

Below are a few highlights from the events, including additional photographs in the gallery at the bottom.

1964 Porsche 904 Carrera GTS — Porsche Werks Reunion

This 1964 Porsche 904 Carrera GTS is rare, being one of only 107 built and marking Porsche’s first venture into fiberglass construction. It’s really light, weighing less than 1,500 pounds, yet packs a punch with a 2.0L Flat-Four Cylinder engine that churns out 153 horsepower and 125 ft/lbs of torque. This lightweight design, coupled with a 5-speed manual transmission, allows it to reach a top speed of around 157mph. It’s always a thrill to spot one; the 904 is truly one of my all-time favorite cars.

1960 Porsche Abarth Carrera GTL — Porsche Werks Reunion

This 1960 Porsche Abarth Carrera GTL, initially purchased by Carl-Gunnar Hammarlund through Porsche’s Swedish distributor Scania-Bilar, was built for competition in the 1961 Swedish GT Championship—and compete it did. With Hammarlund’s superb driving skills, this Carrera Abarth swept the competition. He clinched the Swedish GT Championship twice, achieving a flawless streak of 11 wins in 11 starts. This historically significant Porsche is owned the Ingram Collection.

1984 Porsche 911 SC/RS — Porsche Werks Reunion

This 1984 Porsche 911 SC/RS was built as a homologation “special,” at the request of sponsor Rothmans to compete in the FIA Gruppe “B” Rally. The SC/RS ingeniously borrowed from the construction concepts of the 911 RS/RSR from a decade earlier, showcasing Porsche’s commitment to leveraging its racing heritage for competitive advantage. To satisfy homologation rules, only 20 cars were required to be built, with this series being numbered 001 to 0020. This particular car is the only original survivor from the Rothmans Rally Team’s SC/RS fleet. It is notably the championship vehicle driven by Saeed Al Hajri, who clinched the first two titles of the Middle East Rally Championship and competed for Rothman’s Rally Team from 1983 to 1986.

Chassis: 008

1976 Porsche 934 — Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion

This 1976 Porsche 934, originally a 1975 911 Turbo, was converted into one of the 31 competition customer cars Porsche built for FIA Group 4 racing. Weighing just 2,470 pounds and powered by a 485 bhp 930/71 3.0-liter flat-six engine, its first owner, Nicolas Koob, notched a win and a podium before passing it on to Hans Christian Jürgensen. Under Jürgensen, the car achieved 13 wins and six additional podium finishes in 34 races of the German ADAC series from 1977 to 1979. It was then acquired by Armando “Mandy” Gonzales of Puerto Rico, who aimed for success in IMSA and LeMans. Despite a promising performance, a crash at the 1980 LeMans cut short a leading run. In 1985, Kikos Fonseca took the helm, competing in IMSA before the Kremer Brothers restored the car to its 1982 LeMans livery.

Chassis: 9306700161
Driver: William Kincaid
Group 4A
FIA, IMSA GT, GTX, AAGT, GTU
1973-1981

1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing — Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion

1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing
Chassis: 1.98+12
Driver: Hans Kleissl
Group 2A
GT Cars
1955-1962

1963 Ferrari 250GTO Berlinetta — Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion

1963 Ferrari 250GTO Berlinetta
Chassis: 4757GT
Driver: Thomas Price
Group 2A
GT Cars
1955-1962

Group 8A Formula One Cars — Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion

This is Group 8A, encompassing Formula One race cars from the years 1967 to 1984, making their way into turn 4 at Laguna Seca Raceway.

Tony Roberts in his 1969 McLaren M10A — Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion

1969 McLaren M10A
Chassis: 300-09
Driver: Tony Roberts
Group 7B
Forumula 5000
1968-1976

1964 Shelby Cobra — Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion

1964 Shelby Cobra
Chassis: CSX2326
Driver: Mike McGovern
Group 5B
GT Cars over 2500cc
1963 to 1966

1970 Dodge Challenger — Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion

This 1970 Dodge Challenger was built by Dan Gurney’s AAR shop and completed at Ray Caldwell’s Autodynamics. Entered as a factory Dodge entry with Sam Posey behind the wheel, this Challenger carved its niche in the highly competitive 1970 Trans-Am season. It achieved an impressive 4th in points for the season, trailing behind rivals from Ford and AMC.

Chassis: NA
Driver: Richard Goldsmith
Group 6B
Trans-Am
1966 to 1971

1964 Ferrari SpA 250LM Scaglietti Berlinetta in Carmel-by-the-Sea

This 1964 Ferrari SpA 250LM Scaglietti Berlinetta is one of only three LMs to compete in the 1965 24 Hours of Le Mans. It achieved 6th place overall, closely following another 250 LM that clinched victory in the race that year. This achievement firmly positions this specific 250LM in racing history as part of Ferrari’s ultimate success at Le Mans.