Porsche celebrates Walter Röhrl at 75

On his 75th birthday, the famed test driver and World Rally champion is still representing Porsche on the road

Porsche has been celebrating the birthday of Walter Röhrl, who turned 75 at the beginning of March. A Porsche brand ambassador since 1993, the former two-time World Rally champion is one of the only drivers to have won world championship races in both rallying and circuit racing disciplines. Walter’s involvement in the development of the 959, Carrera GT and 918 Spyder supercars are among his career credits as a Porsche test driver, and until recently Walter was still putting the finishing touches to the firm’s new production cars on the Nürburgring Nordschleife.

Today, Walter remains an active part of Porsche with appearances at Porsche Heritage and Motorsport events such as Porsche Sound Night. Most recently he could be found teaching journalists how to drift on ice in a range of Porsche models. “When I’m asked what I think of a thoroughbred sports car like the new 911 GT3, I’ll take a test drive before I answer,” says Walter. “All in all, I’m still on the road for more than 100 days a year.” And as for his plans during his twilight years? “I’d like to get my old cars out a bit more often and visit friends,” Walter reveals.