The 46th Grand Prix d'Endurance on 10–11 June 1978 was one of the most densely populated editions of the Group 5 era, with a record number of Porsche 935s on the entry list. Among them, chassis No. 48 — the red-and-yellow Mecarillos-Cégécol car — stood out as an all-Swiss privateer effort fielded against the full spectrum of competition, including Porsche's own works 935/78 'Moby Dick'. Spark Model has catalogued this specific entry as a hand-painted resin 1:18 scale model, SKU 18S634, with display case included.
Porsche 935/76A: the first-generation customer racer
Introduced in 1976 as the homologation-based Group 5 evolution of the 911 (930) Turbo, the Porsche 935 was built around a unitary steel chassis with fibreglass body panels, a minimum weight of 970 kg, and a 2,992 cc twin-turbocharged air-cooled flat-six producing approximately 560–600 bhp through a Bosch mechanical fuel injection system. The 935/76A designation identifies the first-generation customer body — distinct from the revised 935/77 and the radical 935/78 'Moby Dick' — and the wheelbase measured 2,271 mm on a 4,820 mm overall length.
Three Swiss drivers, one Le Mans campaign
Herbert Müller — known to the paddock as 'Stumpen-Herbie', a two-time Targa Florio winner (1966 and 1973) and three-time Interserie champion (1974–1976) — led the driving roster alongside Swiss privateer Claude Haldi and Nick McGranger, nicknamed 'Nico'. Haldi had acquired a new Porsche 935 for the 1978 season, entering it under the Mecarillos-Cégécol Racing Team banner, whose red-and-yellow livery reflected the Swiss Mecarillos cigarette brand. The trio completed 140 laps — roughly 14 hours of racing — before a gearbox casing failure ended their run, classifying the car 38th overall. A sister team entry, No. 60 (Porsche 934), failed to qualify, leaving No. 48 as the sole Mecarillos car on the grid.
Spark Model 18S634: resin construction at 1:18
Spark Model produced this 1:18 resin model as part of a broader series documenting classic Porsche Le Mans entries. The body is hand-painted and finished with tampo printing, photo-etched components and waterslide decals to render the Mecarillos-Cégécol livery accurately. A 1:43 sibling of the same car exists in the Spark catalogue, confirming the marque's ongoing commitment to this specific entry. A display case is included with the 1:18 model.
In the display cabinet
At 1:18 scale, the model measures approximately 26.5 cm in length, requiring a shelf depth of at least 12 cm. The all-Swiss crew narrative and the visually distinctive red-and-yellow Mecarillos livery make No. 48 a natural companion to Spark's 1:18 rendition of the works 935/78 'Moby Dick' (No. 43, Stommelen/Schurti), allowing collectors to display both the customer and factory configurations from the same 1978 race side by side. For those focused on Herbert Müller's career, it sits alongside his other 935 appearances across the 1977–1979 seasons.
