Quality Time with the Most Insane Porsche – The 917/30 Can-Am Spyder

Capable of over 1500 horsepower and weighting in at just over 800 kilograms, Porsche’s 917/30 Can-Am Spyder was one of the most insane racing cars to grace the Can-Am series. Spend a few minutes getting to know the car with Adam Carolla in this great video from /DRIVE.

Porsche caused a bit of an upset in the 1972 Can-Am series, when they brought their 917/10 to the party and cancelled the Bruce and Denny show, breaking McLaren’s five-year winning streak.

The 917/10 kicked off 1973 strong as well, with Charlie Kemp winning the season opener and George Follmer winning the Road Atlanta round. The car had a younger sibling warming up in the wings, however, in the form of the 917/30.

The 917/30 revised aerodynamics and enjoyed a horsepower bump that, at peak boost, could rival the entire output of some of its competitors. With it, Mark Donohue was all but unstoppable, winning six of the series’ eight rounds and handily taking the drivers’ championship.

Sadly it only tore up the Can-Am circuits for one year. The 1973 oil crisis led the Sports Car Club of America to introduce a three mile per gallon maximum fuel consumption regulation in 1974. The 917/30 only ran once that year, and the Can-Am series was cancelled after five rounds.

In this video from /DRIVE Adam Carolla catches up with Johannes Wuest from the Porsche Museum to talk about the 917/30 Can-Am Spyder, its insane technical achievements and its place in motorsport history.