Classic Cars
From Germany
PORSCHE SE
The Porsche motor car manufacturing
operations were formed by Dr Ferdinand Porsche in 1930.
Join my Forum and have your say.
References
Of course, Ferdinand Porsche designed the first Volkswagen shortly after
the company was formed and from that design, also designed the first Porsche
which was created specially for racing, the Porsche 64.
Car production only began after World War II by Ferdinand's son, "Ferry". While
his father was imprisoned for war crimes, "Ferry" Porsche began borrowing a host
of parts from the Volkswagen factory and assembled the first 356.
Porsche now holds a 35% stake in the Volkswagen Group and leading up to 2009, is
in the midst of major corporate restructuring between the two companies.
(*1)
Between 1963 and 1998, all Porsche engines have been air cooled which,
considering their enumerable successes in racing and rallying, should be
surprising to most. The perception may be that air cooled engines cannot sustain
the same high speed as water cooled engines.
The history of Porsche had essentially begun with the 356 first produced for
sale in 1948. Such was its well known success that 76,313 were sold before
production stopped in 1965, 2 years after its more famous
(maybe)
successor the 911, was born. The 356 came in open Speedster and Cabriolet as
well as Coupe and with engines ranging from 1.1L to 2.0L.
The 1956 356 Speedster differs little from the external design of other
356 models.
All are highly sought after by collectors and units like this one can fetch up
to US$100,000.
The 356 was phased out to make way for an increased investment in the 911 which
had already been in production since 1964. It remained air cooled but the engine
began at 2.0L where the 356 left off, and continued through 7 engine sizes to
3.3L. This is the 1973 911 Carrera RS
Production of the 356 had been stopped and the 911 was much more expensive.
Porsche rightly believed that a cheaper version should be introduced with the 4
cylinder engines from the 356 range. Hence this 1965 model 912 was born. Outwardly, the 912
differed only slightly from the 911 but its price tag assured that for a while
at least, it outsold the 911. The 912 was only produced between 1965 and 1969
although a small number were built purely for the American market in 1976. The
912 is well sought after by collectors.
The 914 of 1969 to 1976 could be placed under either Volkswagen or Porsche
because both companies labeled it as their own. Volkswagen eventually
relinquished its claim over the model and after ceasing production of
unsuccessful 6 cylinder model (912/6), Porsche went on to produce 115,646 of the
914/4 as a replacement for the outdated 912.
The 924 is worthy of mention because of its relative scarcity, its lower price
and the interesting manufacturing collaboration between Volkswagen and Porsche that ended with
(or because of)
this model.
The 924 replaced the 914 as the entry level Porsche and came in a 2+2 coupe with
either 2.0L or 2.5L engines. The 924 was Porsche's first water cooled engine and
was a commercial success with over 120,000 being produced between 1976 and 1985.
The 911 may be the favourite to most, but my preference has always been the 928
of which only 61,056 were produced in many forms between 1978 and 1995. The V8
came in 4 sizes from 4.5L to a whopping 5.4L and for some time, was the fastest
car sold in America. Prior to 1980, only the standard 928 was available, the
many improvements, upgrades and variants being produced during the next 15
years. This is the standard 928 of 1979
Nominate your preference; Take a poll.
See my Blog.
*1 -
Wikipedia
International Driving Licenses
Full Expatriate
Insurances
Worldwide
Insurance Cover
Back to
Home Page