Someone mentioned to me once that the GTO was created to be a Group B rally car, but the league ended before the 288 was made public. If that were the case, I'd love to see it converted into rally specs. Could you imagine if Car & Driver did a comparison of a 288 GTO Rally and the Porsche 959 Paris/Dakar? WOW!
Actually it was destined for Group B. That's why they had to make 200 cars for homologation (the 'O' in the name for omologato). Due to customer demand, they increased that number to 272. I have actually copies of the FIA homologation papers for the GTO. It was no rumour. As much as I would have loved to see the GTO battle the 959, I think the Porsche would have had the ultimate advantage. But just seeing the GTO going sideways over some dirt road makes me cringe with joy.
What all would need to be done to the car to make it full rally spec? That would certainly be a rare piece in a collection.
Right, but what about the clearance of the car? The dirt tires alone won't give it enough space from the ground would it?
Group B applied to more than just rally cars. It think the original plan was for tarmac rallies and Le Mans which was to run Group B cars. Porsche did run a 959 derivative (961 I seem to recall) at Le Mans, but I'm not sure what class it eventually ran in.
