Eighties Contest Entry: Porsche 962 "Lui" Brun Motorsports '87

[marci-blitz]

Hi all!

A Le Mans contest and no Porsche 956 or 962 so far?
No way, this can't be! These Porsches have contributed so much to Le Mans history; this contest can't be missing one of them.

So, while my long lead contest entry, the Stella BMW 3.5 CSL, is still on hold, I decided to build this one first. It's a Porsche 962 from Brun Motorsport with "Lui" livery (you guys know this magazine, don't you...) that ran in Le Mans 1987. It started with number #1, because it won the championship the year before:




I got these Brun decals from www.automobilminiaturen.de with a picture showing what the car should look like when it's finished:




So far, so good, but I have a small problem....
I wanted to build the car fully detailed, so I picked the Tamiya 956 NewMan as a base kit and not the 962 since it's curbside. I hope, this will not exclude this entry from the contest...
Both cars, 956 and 962 are very similar, the major difference being the wheelbase plus some other modifications. The 962 has the longer wheelbase. But if you closely check the pictures from Brun that came with the decals, I beleive, they used a 956 as well. Look at the rear wing and the air ducts for the intercooler!
Anyway, here's what I picked up to build the car:

Tamiya:


Studio27 photo etch set:


and nice MS Hobbies wheels:


Here are pictures of the body after the first coat of paint. I took some with flash and some without flash but all don't show the exact color. I still need to take some outdoor pictures.













Hope, you like it!

All the best, Marc

[p9o1r1sche]

Thanks for for bringing a 956/962 to the party! Looks like your off to a good start.

[ScaleCentral]

The difference between the 956 and the 962 was the wheelbase (as a result of moving the driver's feet behind the center of the front wheels/steering mechanism). There have been so many different versions of the 956 and 962 that the only way to tell which is which is to look right in front of the doors. The section that has the side marker light is longer on a 962. If it is more than about 4 inches, then it is a 962. The reason I mention this is that manof the 962's used 956 parts especially the tail section in the '86 and '87 LeMans.
Nic

[labandabonnot]

Sexy entry?...

Sure a le mans contest without 962/956 would have meant nothing! Nice to see this one entering!

Many modelers are mixing Tamiya's 962 & 956 to obtain the different versions of 962... and have a detailed model. Most of the work is located at the front of the car, before the doors. That's where the longer wheelbase is noticeable. You'd need to do something here, because you can see on your pics that the real car has air exits just between the wheels and the doors, and the 956 model wouldn't allow enough place to replicate them...

... Just a rivet counter opinion...

Anyway... Nice color: seems like it matches the real one perfectly!

[marci-blitz]

Originally Posted by labandabonnot

:

... Most of the work is located at the front of the car, before the doors. That's where the longer wheelbase is noticeable. You'd need to do something here, because you can see on your pics that the real car has air exits just between the wheels and the doors, and the 956 model wouldn't allow enough place to replicate them...

:

Good eyes, labandabonnot!
I didn't notice that before, thanks. But what to do now? I already started and painted the (incorrect) 956 body, damned!!
I don't know, if I really should start all over again... get a 962 body, cut the front from the back, adjust a 962 chassis to hold an engine from the 956... that's a lot of work!
This was supposed to be an "easy" one as a prep to the Stella Art Car.

Marc

[labandabonnot]

I'd choose to go on as it is... The overall accuracy is high enough to have a pleasant (of course, with such a sponsor) result.
Pleasure is the most important thing! Go on that way!

[godfather23]

Just wondering, why you are not trying to use Hasegawa 962C kit as a base? I think, it would be a lot easier to work out the difference problem! But maybe, I´m too picky on that!

[ScaleCentral]

I would just go on with what you have. I would think that only about 1 in every 10000 or so people who build models would be able to really tell the difference. Looks good as it is. If you are really concerned about it, you can get a Studio27 transkit that has the appropriate pieces to convert a 956 into a 962, but it will run you about $60 to $80. The Tamiya 962 is a bit wider than the 956 so it would require major surgery to graft the nose on.
Nic

[RallyRaider]

Great stuff. It would be an expensive proposition to build an accurate 962 from the Tamiya kits. I'd assume the Hasegawa kit might be a better bet. But then again it doesn't have an engine, and you'd still need the long tail. For sure you'll lose a few ponts in the comp for accuracy, but at least you know that the deal is and are not just blindly building straight from the box. The engine might be different too. I'm not a 956/962 expert.

[BRM]

Awesome choice..I was wondering when a 956 or 962 would show up. Very stimulating project.

[marci-blitz]

Thanks all for your hints what to do with the 956/962 to turn it into an accurate replica. I didn't know that so many possibilities (Hasegawa, Transkits etc.) exist!
But I made up my mind, I'll just go on with the Tamiya 956 kit that I already have started. I know, it's not very accurate...
But, I hope you don't mind. Maybe someone else will try another 956 or 962, there are so many of them!
Anyway, it's the fun of building and I hope it helps to have an interesting line-up for the contest. That's what I like about the contest the most: I don't care about the results, it's just great to see so many different entries! It's just amazing!

All the best, Marc

[marci-blitz]

Finally some progress...

Painting is done and I put on the decals (not all yet):







All the best, Marc

[Spitfire7]

Great work, nice to see progress.

[RallyRaider]

Looking good. Keep the updates coming, only a month left until the contest!

[marci-blitz]

Hi all!

I wanted to take part in the Le Mans contest with this one, but was never ever able to finish in time... Work keeps me very busy.
But this time I will meet the deadline, promise!

So, here's a little update on the body:






I started with the engine. Added some wires and ignition coils from Detail Master:








And I did the beautiful wheel set:







Please enjoy!

All the best, Marc