Following a successful Porsche restoration, the prospect of earning a living thanks to their passion becomes too appealing to resist for the Kremer brothers. They set up shop at Luxemberger Straße in Cologne to restore and trade Porsches. As a reward for earning his master mechanic’s certificate, Manfred receives a 356 as a gift from his father. He is itching to race it, and eventually he does. It ends up becoming the brothers’ next restoration project. From then on, they agree that Manfred would focus on technical matters, while Erwin would do the driving and operate the business.

With Erwin now at the wheel alongside Helmut Kelleners and Willi Kauhsen, Kremer win the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps. It is their first major title. The same drivers and the same 911 go on to win the European Touring Car Championship that year as well.

Erwin goes on to lead the team to its first Porsche Cup win, proving once more his skill as a racing driver.

Piloted by Clemens Shickentanz, the Carrera RSK 2.8 is the first Kremer to wear the infamous “K”. The duo win the team its first treble, with victories at the Porsche Cup and the European GT Championship and a class win at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Enough to keep the practice going.

In recognition of their sporting exploits, Kremer become the first in Germany to earn the status of official Porsche dealer. A new hybrid facility is built in Robert-Perthel-Straße, Cologne, which was completed in 1975.

A change in the Group 5 homologation rules grants the teams more freedom to develop their own competition cars. Kremer make the most of it and answer with the first of their 935 evolutions, the K1. It is a living testimony to the team’s craftiness. Failing to find an adequate intercooler, driver Hans Heyer is tasked with building one himself. Kremer win more silverware with Bob Wollek clinching the Porsche Cup driving a 934.

Wollek strikes again. This time winning the 1977 Porsche Cup at the wheel of the legendary Kremer 935 K2 Vaillant. Kremer also claim a Group 4 class victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans with the Kremer-Burton Porsche 934.

The 935 K3 is tested by Klaus Ludwig for the first time on a frozen Hockenheimring in early spring. Three months later, the K3 driven by Ludwig wins overall at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, as well as clinching the Porsche Cup and the German Racing Championship (DRM). All in quick succession. Demand for the K3 skyrockets. Kremer Racing have now become a racecar manufacturer.

The team bids farewell to Group 5 with an overall victory at the Porsche Cup. This spells the end of Kremer’s 935 evolutions, with the K4 being the ultimate variant. As sights are set on Group C, prototype development of the Kremer Porsche 917 K81 begins.

Kremer enters Group C with the CK5. The lessons learned from the 936 and the 917 K81 prove to be priceless in the vehicle’s development.

Walter Wolf is a man on a racing mission. Owning supercars is not enough for him. His dream is to build a racecar for the road. And what better inspiration than the car that won overall at Le Mans five years earlier? The result is a vehicle that shares 98% of its components with the K3 and only 2% with the 930 Turbo. It is dubbed the K3 Le Mans.

Ground effect has now become a necessity in endurance racing. The 962-CK6 is the culmination of Kremer’s response to the technology. The alloy honeycomb compound chassis is another advancement making the car safer and enhancing its performance on the track. Kremer’s engineering prowess proves pivotal as the CK6 clinches victory at the prestigious Porsche Cup and dominates overseas in Japan.

The new regulations call for open sports prototypes. Kremer is prompted to innovate and does just that with the K7 Spyder. It proves its merits swiftly, winning the interseries with Manuel Reuter in 1992 and with Giovanni Lavaggi the following year.

The regulations stand in the way of the Porsche factory team’s entry in the 24 Hours of Daytona. That, along with the fact that Ferrari are favourites to win the race, means that stakes are high. Kremer are underdogs starting from 17th place. In the end, they secure an overall victory with a five-lap lead. The team’s winning margin is in large part thanks to the contribution of Marco Werner, a driver who was actually meant to watch the race as a guest. His involvement was unlikely. So much so, that Erwin has to convince him to get his helmet before boarding the flight to Florida. It proves handy.

Kremer enter Le Mans with the K8 Spyder Evo and the 993 GT2 Evo competing in the LMP1 and GT1 classes respectively.

The Porsche 993 GT1 is Manfred’s last project before retiring in 1998. It is at the wake of the team’s 30th consecutive entry in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1999.

Following the death of Erwin Kremer, a sense of responsibility motivates Manfred to come out of retirement and take the helm. He remains at the head of the company before eventually deciding to put an end to his tenure. Kremer’s involvement in professional racing decreases gradually, with the company now focused on maintaining its competition cars and bluechip Porsche vehicles more widely.

The page is turned on a new chapter in Kremer history, with glory in sight.