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Porsche Penske Motorsport has a new team headquarters in Mannheim, Germany. It converts a former Porsche dealership into what’s said to be a state-of-the-art, high-tech facility for its world championship campaigns. While the factory team prepares the two Porsche 963 race cars for the North American IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship at its base in Mooresville, North Carolina, work on the WEC endeavor is done at the new team headquarters in Mannheim, Germany. Mannheim of course is known as the place the bicycle was invented, but AutoInformed notes that this is more akin to the Mannheim rocket themes of classical music as sports car racing ushers in a new classical age.* (AutoInformed.com on: Rolex 24 At Daytona – Record Crowd as Porsche Beats Cadillac; Le Mans – Ferrari, Corvette, Victorious in Rain)
“Our state-of the-art facilities have to deliver everything we need to operate across two continents – between Mannheim, Weissach and Mooresville – and globally as a race team,” said Jonathan Diuguid, Managing Director Porsche Penske Motorsport. “The building, originally designed and built by Porsche and then acquired by Penske for a Porsche dealership, has been fully remodeled and modernized to support the needs of racing and servicing our hybrid-powered Porsche 963 race cars around the world.”
The site is near the Autobahn 656 (not 356) in the Friedrichsfeld district of Mannheim. It has belonged to Penske Automotive since 2008. Penske ran the Porsche Center on the almost one-hectare (~2.47 acres) site until 2014. In December 2020 the Porsche AG board approved the development of the new Porsche 963 Le Mans prototype. Porsche renewed its collaboration with the Penske team in May 2021 and work began on the building complex on Lembacher Straße in Mannheim. The facility has ~4500 square-meters of usable space.
Upon entering there are several exhibits from the Porsche Museum, including the RS Spyder that Porsche and Team Penske used for the LMP2 class championships in the American Le Mans Series between 2006 and 2008. After three years of construction and an investment of several million euros, the Mannheim location now offers for the WEC team office space, conference rooms, digital networking and thus far spotless workshops.
Four work areas are used for the construction and maintenance as well as suspension and weight adjustments of the Porsche 963. There are also departments for pre-assembly, racing equipment, carbon composite processing, high-voltage systems, spare parts, as well as storage and logistics.
Click for more racing.
The crescendo builds to reveal that Porsche Penske Motorsport has built a replica of the Le Mans pit lane. Every day, the mechanics can practice changing tires and refueling on a special test and training vehicle. The facility also offers an on-site gym where the crew can work on improving their strength, coordination and fitness.
“The facilities give us all the technical equipment we need to successfully work on race and test cars. The assemblies and spares are prepared in specifically designed areas which are close to our engineers and technicians,” said Jan Lange, the new General Manager Porsche Penske Motorsport. “The staff facilities such as the gym, cafeteria and crew rooms ensure that our employees feel valued and connected as a whole team. Having the permanent indoor pit stop rig and car is invaluable for keeping us sharp over the year.”
The construction of a so-called “Battle Room” is currently nearing completion. From there, engineers provide strategic and operational support for the team at the circuit during racing events or test drives.
*AutoInformed on
Mannheim – Porsche Penske Motorsport Reveals Team Home
Click for more classic racing.
Porsche Penske Motorsport has a new team headquarters in Mannheim, Germany. It converts a former Porsche dealership into what’s said to be a state-of-the-art, high-tech facility for its world championship campaigns. While the factory team prepares the two Porsche 963 race cars for the North American IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship at its base in Mooresville, North Carolina, work on the WEC endeavor is done at the new team headquarters in Mannheim, Germany. Mannheim of course is known as the place the bicycle was invented, but AutoInformed notes that this is more akin to the Mannheim rocket themes of classical music as sports car racing ushers in a new classical age.* (AutoInformed.com on: Rolex 24 At Daytona – Record Crowd as Porsche Beats Cadillac; Le Mans – Ferrari, Corvette, Victorious in Rain)
“Our state-of the-art facilities have to deliver everything we need to operate across two continents – between Mannheim, Weissach and Mooresville – and globally as a race team,” said Jonathan Diuguid, Managing Director Porsche Penske Motorsport. “The building, originally designed and built by Porsche and then acquired by Penske for a Porsche dealership, has been fully remodeled and modernized to support the needs of racing and servicing our hybrid-powered Porsche 963 race cars around the world.”
The site is near the Autobahn 656 (not 356) in the Friedrichsfeld district of Mannheim. It has belonged to Penske Automotive since 2008. Penske ran the Porsche Center on the almost one-hectare (~2.47 acres) site until 2014. In December 2020 the Porsche AG board approved the development of the new Porsche 963 Le Mans prototype. Porsche renewed its collaboration with the Penske team in May 2021 and work began on the building complex on Lembacher Straße in Mannheim. The facility has ~4500 square-meters of usable space.
Upon entering there are several exhibits from the Porsche Museum, including the RS Spyder that Porsche and Team Penske used for the LMP2 class championships in the American Le Mans Series between 2006 and 2008. After three years of construction and an investment of several million euros, the Mannheim location now offers for the WEC team office space, conference rooms, digital networking and thus far spotless workshops.
Four work areas are used for the construction and maintenance as well as suspension and weight adjustments of the Porsche 963. There are also departments for pre-assembly, racing equipment, carbon composite processing, high-voltage systems, spare parts, as well as storage and logistics.
Click for more racing.
The crescendo builds to reveal that Porsche Penske Motorsport has built a replica of the Le Mans pit lane. Every day, the mechanics can practice changing tires and refueling on a special test and training vehicle. The facility also offers an on-site gym where the crew can work on improving their strength, coordination and fitness.
“The facilities give us all the technical equipment we need to successfully work on race and test cars. The assemblies and spares are prepared in specifically designed areas which are close to our engineers and technicians,” said Jan Lange, the new General Manager Porsche Penske Motorsport. “The staff facilities such as the gym, cafeteria and crew rooms ensure that our employees feel valued and connected as a whole team. Having the permanent indoor pit stop rig and car is invaluable for keeping us sharp over the year.”
The construction of a so-called “Battle Room” is currently nearing completion. From there, engineers provide strategic and operational support for the team at the circuit during racing events or test drives.
*AutoInformed on