Altec Lansing 914/6 survives as a reminder of Porsche's other IMSA contenders

By Patrick C. Paternie

In the mind's eye of Porsche racing enthusiasts, IMSA racing during the seventies conjures up images of bulging fendered RSRs and fire-belching 935s. Not without good reason, as 911 based racers dominated both the paddock and the podiums during the series' first decade. But those weren't the only racers wearing the shield that bears the rampant black stallion of Stuttgart. Competing in the GTU, for under 2.5-liter, class were a few 914/6s, including the black Altec Lansing #87 now in the hands of vintage racer Steve Schmidt. This particular car, while competitive, is memorable not so much for its accomplishments on the racetrack as much as the marketing campaign that its audio company sponsor developed around it. The most prominent feature of the campaign being the presence of the 1974 Playmate of the Year, Cyndi Wood, who not only appeared fetchingly draped over the 914's flared fenders in ads placed in both mainstream and enthusiast publications, but also at race track paddock displays hawking Altec's new line of bookshelf stereo speakers - the Volkspeakers. Thus Cyndi Wood also became known as Ms. Volkspeaker. Unlike today, in the early days of motorsports sponsorship, racecar drivers, like #87's most successful pilot Jim Cook, simply drove the car instead of shilling product. Jim Cook is no longer with us to tell his part of the Altec 914/6 story. Rich Mandella, the driving force behind the marketing campaign and, more importantly, the car's original owner and principal driver could also not be located. Fortunately, the history of the little black racer can still be told. Some of it through the documents and memorabilia that Mandella included when he put the car up for sale, the rest by the complete and unrestored 'as raced' condition of the 914/6 that convinced vintage Porsche restorer, collector and racer Steve Schmidt that the car, which he originally acquired primarily for its engine, was a keeper. "Everything was there," he explains of the car that had remained virtually untouched since it had retired with accident damage in its final race at Riverside in April 1979. 'Everything' included the spares one would take to an endurance event including wheels and tires, shocks, even a spare aluminum engine case; plus the various fiberglass fender extensions and front-end pieces that had been fitted throughout its racing life along with some original 914 sheet metal. And, as previously mentioned, there were the boxes filled with items documenting its history. In December 2003, Schmidt negotiated a price for the car and after a more thorough inspection at his shop, decided to keep it. An inspection of the car and the documentation surrounding it revealed an interesting story. An invoice from Bozzani Porsche+Audi in Monrovia, CA shows that Rich Mandella purchased the black 1970 914/6 on July 25, 1970, trading in a 1965 Jaguar XK-E as part of the transaction. Price out the door, by the way, was $6336 including options such as an AM/FM radio ($225) and 6x14-inch wheels ($400). The car's racing career began shortly after Mandella purchased it, the first entry in its SCCA logbook dated May 1972 for a C Production regional race at Laguna Seca. Mandella drove it three more times in SCCA regionals that year, once at Phoenix and twice at Riverside, including a CP victory in December. The logbook shows two more SCCA events in 1973. On May 19, 1974, the car made its IMSA GTU debut at Ontario Motor Speedway, piloted by Mandella along with Miles Gupton. In a mixed field of GT and GTU cars, the duo started 38th and finished in 17th position, completing 105 laps of the 118-lap event won by Peter Gregg. It was in 1976, competing under the Altec Lansing banner that Mandela's car burrowed its way into the hearts and memories of IMSA fans. Driven primarily by the late Jim Cook (Mandella only drove the car at the Pocono event), #87 competed in ten races including the 12 Hours of Sebring. GTU was dominated that year by Brad Frisselle's Datsun 240Z, which won 8 of 12 races, the potent 914/6 of Walt Maas winning the rest. Against these formidable competitors Cook managed a pair of second-place and a pair of third-place GTU finishes. At Ontario, he set the track's GTU qualifying record. A record that, unlike the track, still stands. Mandella entered the car in IMSA events a few times after the 1976 season, but it never actually raced (other than a 1977 SCCA National at Riverside) in IMSA again until its final showing at Riverside in April 1979. Wearing silver paint and the sponsorship colors of another audio manufacturer Cerwin-Vega, it retired with accident damage to its left rear quarters. Retired in every sense, as it sat in Mandella's shop virtually untouched, until it was sold to Schmidt. Digging through the files, Schmidt discovered that Mandella had cut no corners in building the car contracting such top professionals as Roger Kyle, Troutman and Barnes, George Britting and ANDIAL. The car was stripped to its bare chassis and rebuilt to GTU specs incorporating a 4130 Chrome Moly tubing roll cage with additional reinforcement plates and TIG welded body seams and joints. ANDIAL built the 2.5-liter short stroke engine that included twin plug RSR heads, 906 cams and rockers, Carillo rods, a 3.0-liter RSR crankshaft, lightweight 906-type flywheel and clutch, and 2.8 RSR high-butterfly mechanical fuel injection. Horsepower was rated at 270-hp @ 8,000-rpm. A fully adjustable coil-over suspension features Bilstein struts, raised front spindles and reinforced strut towers. A unique feature of the car is the 32-gallon fuel cell equipped with what is believed to be the first Kaiser dry-break system and overflow valve adapted to a racecar. Dry-break couplings were first used in aircraft refueling before the technology was applied to racing in order to prevent pit stop refueling fires. Another unique feature of the fuel system is a two gallon reservoir located to the rear of the main tank that was installed to prevent fuel starvation as the level of the fuel in the main tank would severely tilt to one side when running on the steep banking at tracks like Daytona. The car was in such complete shape when he got it that Schmidt had very little to do in terms of prepping it for vintage racing. The changes he did make were primarily safety and maintenance related. These included a new fuel cell bladder, new safety harness, new Aeroquip hoses and fittings, and cleaning out the original oil cooler. After struggling to find suitable replacement parts for the front brakes, he decided to install 1978 Turbo brakes at all four corners. He also added a transmission cooler and a cool suit unit for himself. The three original Holley 'blue' fuel pumps were replaced with new ones. Dieter at ANDIAL inspected and freshened the engine, although it was also in good condition considering its long dormancy. Because the body panels and paint were original as raced in its last event, Schmidt was reluctant to make any changes when he entered it for the first time at an HSR-West event at Phoenix in February 2005. For the next race, another HSR-West outing at Riverside in March, he did make one big change, swapping out the tail-shifter linkage of the 901 transmission for the more precise side-shift linkage. Schmidt has raced the car over a dozen times at various events including two outings at the Wine Country Classic, three times at Coronado, twice at the Monterey Historics, and last year's inaugural Monterey Motorsports Reunion. For that event, the car was redone in its original Altec Lansing sponsorship format. "Since it is so original, I was reluctant to change it from the way I got it, but so many people remembered it as the 'Altec car' that I felt it needed to be returned to the black paint in honor of the memories of its many fans," Schmidt says. "It's a very reliable car and we'll continue to race it," Schmidt says of keeping the role of the 914/6 in IMSA history alive. SIDEBAR: On Track With the Altec IMSA GTU 914/6 Squatting there, its black paint shimmering in the high desert sun, the Altec 914/6 looks intimidating with its broad squared off fenders and fat slick tires. "It's a beast," were the encouraging first words of owner Steve Schmidt as I got ready to mount up for a few laps around the 2.5-mile 'big track' at Willow Springs Raceway. "A lot harder physically than an RSR, which is like driving a Cadillac by comparison," he added. "And it gets hot with the oil tank mounted in the passenger compartment." Once you are inside, it's quite comfy and not confining at all. You sit upright, the steering wheel, shifter and pedals all within close reach. Some might think a bit too NASCAR-like, but I find it gives a better 'centered' feel of what both is going at both ends of the car. The dash is a pretty busy place. Besides the familiar 911-like instrument panel, there are rows of buttons, switches and lights left over from the car's endurance racing days. Fortunately, all I need to do is flip on the main switch and push the starter. The engine fires up immediately with the familiar raspy grumble of a race-prepped flat-six. Although it's situated almost against my back, the sound is less deafening than my 2.0-liter with megaphone pipes. Then again, that's like a Spinal Tap fan saying anything less than '11' is soft rock. The clutch is not the on/off button some Porsche racecars have and the 901 shifter slips smoothly into first, although the throttle requires a firm shove to keep the revs up. Pedals are nicely spaced, although I prefer a wider throttle pedal for easier heel-and-toe work. The brake pedal is very firm and high with positive feel that makes it direct and easy to modulate. A wide footrest lets you brace your left foot well out of the way of the clutch pedal between shifts. Now the beast awakens. No not the engine, which, thanks to the high-butterfly injection never stumbles and has a smooth power curve that revs nicely all the way to the three 'dollar sign' stickers delineating the 7,500-rpm point on the tach. Or the 901 transmission which, when shifted with the proper respect, performed flawlessly. The beastly nature of the Altec 914 is the constant arm wrestling you have to do with the steering wheel to keep those big, wide slicks true to the intended course. Despite its roughly 50/50 weight distribution and fairly neutral handling, the feedback from the tires forces the wheel to twist back and forth, providing a vigorous workout for your hands, wrists and forearms. Jim Cook had to have resembled Popeye by the end of that 1976 season. Vibration issue aside, just tiny bits of steering wheel movement are all that's needed to make the car change direction. The problem is knowing how far to move the wheel (not very) before getting back to keeping it steady. End of day, the car is a fun car to drive that is very responsive with high levels of grip. Sure, push too far, and it will probably become a spinning top, but it communicates well and should give you advance notice when it thinks 'enough is enough.' I'm not so sure about wrestling the wheel of this 'beast' throughout a 24-hour race, but the bottom line is that the Altec 914 is as entertaining on track as its marketing campaign was back in the day. And, it proves that for fans and drivers alike, the old IMSA days were uniquely special.

Another fine article by Patrick Paternie about Peter Gregg's Porsche 934 can be found here.

The Altec Lansing Porsche 914/6 has been beautifully restored.