Porsche's Most Uncompromising Race Car Had Carcinogenic Brakes - Jalopnik

Porsche’s 909 Bergspyder, a light hillclimb racer, was raced only twice in 1968 before being retired from competition. Built as much as a technology prototype as a trophy hunter, it’s described as Porsche’s lightest race car, stripped down to 826 pounds ready to race. With rules that were relatively flexible for hillclimbs, Porsche included only what was needed, pushing weight-saving to extremes, including exotic materials. One standout was a design without a fuel pump, using a small titanium spherical tank pressurized with nitrogen. The car also used beryllium brake rotors—later known to be carcinogenic. The article notes lung disease risk at concentrations as low as 0.01 microgram per cubic meter.