The story of the famous Porsche Pink Pig livery (2024)

What is the Porsche Pink Pig?

The story of one of the most recognisable racing livery designs in history 25 January 2024

The story of the famous Porsche Pink Pig livery (1)

The Pink Pig racing livery started life as a bit of an in-joke, but the car itself was a serious competitor. Today it lives on in Le Mans-winning cars and even a kitesurf sail design

Porsche has a history of producing standout racecar liveries. Take the historic red and white Salzburger livery or, recently, the Provence livery of the race-winning Porsche 99X Electric at the 2024 Formula E Mexico City E-Prix. One of the most memorable is, perhaps, also one of the oddest that Porsche has raced in. When the race-ready Porsche 917/20 first rolled out on the tarmac at the 1971 24 Hours of Le Mans, it initially left the world’s press and race spectators scratching their heads.

The 917/20 was a variant of one of the most acclaimed Porsche racecars in history, the 917, with a few differences. But what really turned heads was its livery. It was covered in the lines and names for meat cuts made by butchers, set on top of a racecar coloured with a vibrant flesh-like paint. Was this a bona fide racecar or some sort of elaborate joke? It wouldn’t take long for the answer to be revealed, as the so-called ‘Pink Pig’ soon started tearing up the track at the Circuit de la Sarthe. More than 50 years later, the Pink Pig continues to capture the imagination of motorsport fans, whether its with appearances at heritage motorsport events or via subsequent revivals of its unmistakable design, as we will discover.

The story of the famous Porsche Pink Pig livery (2)

1971 • The Porsche 917/20 ‘Pink Pig’ racecar

The Porsche 917/20 was a one-off prototype created by Porsche in collaboration with French aerodynamics specialist SERA (Société d’Études et de Réalisations Automobiles). Designed by Robert Choulet and debuting at the 24 Hours of Le Mans test race in April 1971, the car was an anomaly from the start – although, at that point, it wasn’t even wearing the livery that would later make its name. As well as its wider track, the 917/20 was designed to combine the strengths of the 917K (short tail) and 917LH (long tail) models in order to reduce drag and improve aerodynamics. The result was a vehicle with an unusually wide and rounded body. The front lip was short and stubby and, simply put, reminded some of the snout of a pig.

Legend has it that when the car ran its first test lap, one of the team sponsors – Count Rossi of the Martini & Rossi drinks company – was less than enamoured. The wider 917/20 was not what he had imagined and so he refused to let it race in the signature blue, red and white Martini colours. It meant that Porsche had to think fast and design a new racing livery quickly. In the end it was Porsche designer Anatole Lapine who stepped in to save the day with a now celebrated livery.

On its competitive debut at the 1971 24 Hours of Le Mans, the tweaks by SERA to the overall car design initially paid off. The 917/20 #23 car, driven by Reinhold Joest and Willi Kauhsen, performed well in qualifying, finishing seventh fastest. When the race itself began, it proved to be highly competitive, and was running in third place by the halfway mark of the event. Sadly, it didn’t make it to the chequered flag, having been forced to retire before the end due to brake failure. It would prove to be the Pink Pig’s first and last competitive race.

However, despite not winning at Le Mans, it had captured everyone’s attention. Such was the affection in which it was held that the 917/20 gained other nicknames apart from the Pink Pig – including ‘Big Berta’ and ‘The truffle sniffer from Zuffenhausen’. German-speakers know it as ‘Die Sau’, which means ‘The Sow’. Today, you can see for yourself what the fuss was all about if you head to the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart where the Pink Pig – one of the most famous of all Porsche racecars – now resides.

The story of the famous Porsche Pink Pig livery (3)

2018 • The Porsche 911 RSR ‘Pink Pig’ wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans

The 917/20 Pink Pig may have been retired by Porsche after only once race but, such was its impact, its legend has lived on. However, it would be 47 years before the unique Pink Pig livery would once again be seen taking part at the world’s greatest endurance race. In 2018, it reappeared on a Porsche 911 RSR competing at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Raced by the Porsche GT team, and piloted by drivers Michael Christensen, Kévin Estre and Laurens Vanthoor, the #92 car would ultimately have a far more successful outing than the car from which it took inspiration. In an outstanding performance, car #92, the new Pink Pig, finished first in the GTE Pro category after a gruelling 344 laps. The Pink Pig had finally brought home the bacon.

The story of the famous Porsche Pink Pig livery (4)

2023 • The Pink Pig kitesurfing livery takes to the air

More recently the Pink Pig livery has been used to help prove that – despite what the old saying says – pigs really can fly. Anatole Lapine’s famous design was adapted to feature on a limited-edition kitesurfing sail produced by leading manufacturer Duotone in collaboration with Porsche. It was put through its paces by Liam Whaley – former kitesurfing world champion and a Porsche athlete – in the sea off of his hometown of Tarifa, southern Spain.

The Pink Pig sail was limited to just 360 units in a nod to the top speed, in kilometres per hour, of the 1971 Le Mans car. The famous livery design even made it onto a Porsche Taycan 4 Cross Turismo that Liam drove. More than five decades on, it seems, the Pink Pig continues to cast its spell.

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FAQs

What is the story behind the pink pig livery? ›

The car's combination of a long body, stubby face and wide hips gave it a pig-like look, which inspired Porsche designer Anatole Lapine to give the car a pink paint with butcher cut lines covering the exterior. Dubbed the Pink Pig, 917/20 was a crowd favorite at the 1971 Le Mans race.

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What is the color code for the pink pig Porsche? ›

1148 - Pink Paint (Porsche 917/20 Pink Pig) Zero Paints -1148.

What is the pink pig Porsche? ›

1971 • The Porsche 917/20 'Pink Pig' racecar

As well as its wider track, the 917/20 was designed to combine the strengths of the 917K (short tail) and 917LH (long tail) models in order to reduce drag and improve aerodynamics. The result was a vehicle with an unusually wide and rounded body.

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What does pink Porsche mean? ›

Porsche designer Anatole Lapine decided in favour of the pink body colour and labelled each of the body parts according to the butcher-style cuts. Porsche caused a sensation at Le Mans 1971 with the Pink Pig. It was the fastest car during the pre-race qualification session, although it was totally untested.

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What happened to the pink pig? ›

The Pink Pig Ride went on its last journey in 2019. The newer Priscilla announced her retirement in 2021 after taking a sabbatical in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. The original Pink Pig was last on display during Atlanta History Center's Atlanta in 50 Objects onsite exhibition.

What is the history of the pink pig? ›

The history of the Pink Pig spans a half-century. The ride began in 1953 as a monorail along the ceiling of Rich's department store, according to the AJC. Years later, the monorails (another one had been added) were relocated to the downtown store's roof. The ride later did a brief stint at CHOA's Egleston Hospital.

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Who drove the pink pig? ›

Reinhold Joest / Willibert Kauhsen's Porsche 917/20 'Pink Pig' during the race. Image Courtesy: Motorsport Images. In April, the 917/20 arrived at Le Mans 1971 test weekend with test driver Willi Kauhsen at the wheel.

What is the famous pink Porsche? ›

Porsche 917/20 Coupé (“Pink Pig”) (1971)

The Porsche Design Studio came up with a pink paint finish and divided up components visually like a butcher's diagram. No wonder this racing car soon earned the nickname “Pink Pig”. It remains one of the most famous Porsches, even though it broke down at Le Mans.

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What is the pink pig made of? ›

Our shrink wrap can be 100% recycled*, each Thai tissue paper sheet is oxygen bleached (better for the environment) and made from non toxic dyes. All grey board used to make our covers is made from 100% recycled post consumer waste.

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Is the pink Porsche real? ›

The color we're talking about on the pink Porsche Taycan is actually called Frozen Berry Metallic shade. And it was created by two female Porsche designers. It's a pinkish, steely rose paint color that gives the Porsche Taycan a rather feminine but somehow edgy look.

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What is the rarest Porsche color? ›

Violet Blue Metallic is one of the rarest water-cooled 911 colors. It's really not much of a blue, being far closer to a silvery, bright metallic purple. It suits the clean lines of the 996 quite well. We wish more people had ordered the color.

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What color is Porsche famous for? ›

Black, white, and gray dominate the selections for all model series in Europe and the United States. In Europe, Jet Black Metallic is the most common choice for the 911, the Cayenne, and the Panamera.

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What is the significance of the pig in Pink Floyd? ›

The “Animals” album cover art includes a porcine balloon (pinkfloyd.lnk.to/Animals) and the animal features in three of the album's five song names, with pigs representing wealth, authority and destruction, as the musician explained in a Sept. 2019 interview with Rolling Stone magazine (here).

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What is the tradition of the pink pig? ›

On Christmas Day in Saratoga Springs, New York, families gather around tables to smash candies with hammers. This is the tradition of the peppermint pig, a small, pink candy with roots dating back to the 19th century. After Christmas dinner, a family member deposits the pig into a small sack.

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Why did pigs turn pink? ›

By contrast, all the mutations in the domestic pigs altered coat colour. Black pigs overproduce eumelanin, for example, and pink pigs stop making melanin altogether, resulting in a “default” pink colour.

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What happened to Pink Floyd's pig? ›

The pig was recovered and repaired for the resumption of photography for the album cover, but the sky was cloudless and blue, thus "boring". However, the pictures of the sky from the first day were suitable; the album cover was created using a composite of photos from the first and third days.

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