Over the decades there have been many iconic paint schemes in motorsport that have become iconic.
And for me, the two at the top are Gulf and Martini.
This means a couple of things. It means that every Tom, Dick, and Harry who's flicked through a classic motorsport magazine wants to spray-paint their 20-year-old Holden Vectra in Gulf blue and orange or with Martini stripes up its sides. It also means that anything authentic from the origins of the legend is worth insane amounts of money.
One such car is this #69 1974 Porsche 934/5 Group 4 Competition Coupe. Built by Kremer Racing, this Porsche is supposedly a race winner although its exact lineage is unknown. It's one of the many exquisite machines going under the hammer at Bonhams' upcoming Spa Classic Sale.
While the past of this exact Porsche is chequered (get it?), it's highly likely that it played a significant role in Kremer's future after 1974. The German outfit soon began to build their own Porsches, as opposed to leaning on factory equipment. Their first came just two years later in 1976, with the launch of the Porsche 935 K1 (all of their cars gained some kind of 'K' designation). It was the first privately built 935, not an achievement to be sneezed at.
Two generations of development later, and Kremer built the 935 K3 — the most successful Porsche 935 racer ever. With its Tarmac-hugging ground effects, it went on to win the 1979 24 Hours of Le Mans in the capable hands of Klaus Ludwig, Don Whittington, and Bill Wittington.
In this regard, this Porsche could well be a very significant one in the story of the manufacturer's affinity with Le Mans (as well as its connections to Kremer). Bonhams estimate that it will sell for in excess of NZ$500,000.
But, there are two Martini beasties listed in the Spa Classic Sale. And they both look fitting together, don't you agree?
The second is, of course, a minty fresh second-gen Volkswagen T2 bus, dressed up in Martini Racing digs. It isn't just a van in drag, however. Previous owners swapped out its engine from the original donk to the 2.1-litre boxer power plant from a Porsche 914.
In the eyes of some, that could make this bus a Porsche.
No, it isn't an 'original' Martini support vehicle. But, this bus is typical of what most manufacturers would utilize back in the day. T2s, Ford Transits, and Bedfords were among the most commonly sighted vehicles in any given European circuit's parc ferme.
In truth, they're a perfect pair.
