Polar Porsche: This modified classic Porsche 356 is headed for a 356-mile trip across Antarctica
Rear tank treads and front skis spread weight out to make it better on ice and snow
In her efforts to increase awareness and raise funds to fight child trafficking, Renée Brinkerhoff has raced on every continent save one.
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Now, for the final leg of her Project 356 World Rally Tour, the racer and philanthropist aims to cover 356 miles (573 km) of the frozen landscape that is Antarctica in the same 1956 Porsche 356A that she piloted in the notoriously dangerous Carrera Panamericana.
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There have been some slight changes to the car. Taking tips from fellow Lotus chassis engineer Kieron Bradley, Valkyrie Racing fitted the car with tank treads in the rear and long skis in the front, both of which add weight but also enough surface area to decrease ground pressure to as little as 1.2 lbs.
A winch at the back and solar panels up top also add weight, but allow the 12-volt air compressor to pump up the four-ton bag jack when the Porsche gets stuck in a polar drift. Should the vehicle get stuck, Brinkerhoff and her navigator, polar explorer Jason de Carteret, have cabin access to survival essentials and communications equipment, and should the vehicle fall through the ice, they can exit from the rear window.
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Following the polar cruise, Brinkerhoff’s team will also attempt to set a land-speed record on a blue-ice runway on Antarctica’s Union Glacier.