Anyone who knows me knows I can’t resist a Škoda story.
Back in 1950, Škoda built three 966 Supersport race cars. In 2007 Škoda re-acquired the only surviving one, the third of these cars, and set about restoring it to its former glory.
The car is now on display at the Škoda Museum in Mladá Boleslav, Czech Republic.
The Škoda 966 Supersport celebrated its premiere in 1950 in Mladá Boleslav. After two more races, the vehicle was so badly damaged that it had to be replaced.
Since the factory team’s objective was to bring two vehicles into operation, a third vehicle was produced.
The vehicle made its debut for the Grand Prix of Czechoslovakia in 1950 where the car took racing driver Miroslav Fousek to second place. The 1951 racing season began with victory in the sports car category at the races in Liberec.
In the following years, both Supersport vehicles appeared in numerous races.
Škoda improved both of the racing cars, especially the engines used. The 1089cc engine derived from the Škoda Tudor was given a new aluminium cylinder head with hemispherical combustion chamber.
There was a twin carb normally aspirated version, and a more powerful version with one or even two superchargers.
The carburettor engine achieved an output of 66 kW (90 hp) and the supercharged version 132 kW (180 hp), reaching speeds of almost 200 km/h barrier.
Due to the considerable number of pipes in the engine compartment, the model with the compressor was also known as “gasworks”.
By the end of 1953, the car had been installed with a new engine with a capacity of 1500cc. In the autumn of 1953, Václav Bobek achieved a new speed record of 197.8km/h in the supercharged car, making the Škoda 966 Supersport the fastest car in Czechoslovakia at that time.
Note: The Škoda press release seems to use the terms “turbocharger” and “supercharger” interchangeably so for consistency I have assumed in the above that it was supercharged.
