The Mezger effect

Shortly before the 50th anniversary of Porsche’s first win at Le Mans, the German company reported the death of Hans Mezger, the man who designed the engine for that Porsche 917, and who was instrumental in the development of many significant Porsche racing and road car engines. Mezger was also responsible for the engine that powers what’s commonly known as the Porsche 911, and was so highly regarded that those are known today as the Mezger engines.

Hans Mezger was born on November 18, 1929 in Ottmarsheim, a small village near Ludwigsburg on the outskirts of Stuttgart. At the age of 15, just three weeks