1964 Porsche 901

The Porsche 356 was in production from the late 1940s, and by the early 1960s, a change was needed. The lightweight, nimble, rear-engine, rear-wheel drive, two-door was offered in both hardtop coupe and open configurations. Over nearly two decades of production, approximately 76,000 examples of the Porsche 356 were built.

Creating a replacement for the venerable 356 was a delicate and important endeavor, one that was preceded by years of development. Several prototypes were built from 1959 to 1961, with the Type 695 T-7 four-seater having the closest design shape to the forthcoming replacement.

The new car was called the 901 and introduced at the Frankfurt Motorshow in September 1963. After several additional months, the cars were ready for sale to customers. French carmaker Peugeot objected to Porsche using any three-digit number where the middle number was 0, claiming ownership of the naming rights as they had sold many models with that scheme. Instead of selling their new model with a different name in France, Porsche's solution was to replace the middle 0 with a 1 and called the car Porsche 911.

The Porsche 901 was based on a 356 unitary structure with a new front suspension comprised of lower wishbones and strut-type coil springs over damper unit. The rear trailing arms suspension of the 356 was modified and adapted for the 901. Disc brakes from the 356C provided the stopping power. Ferri 'Butzi' Porsche created the 901 design and many of its design cues would continue to be used in future generations.

The Type 745 2-liter flat six-cylinder engine was created for the 901, with overhead camshafts that eliminated the need for pushrods. Two Solex carburetors helped the air-cooled engine produce 130 horsepower.

Between September 14 of 1963 and November 16 of 1964, 82 examples of the 901 were built. An additional 150 examples were built in 1964 and labeled as 911s.

by Daniel Vaughan | Mar 2020

The Porsche 901, the forerunner for the famous 911, was the first 'new' vehicle Porsche had ever produced. Prior to the 901, there was the 356. This vehicle had lived a relatively long lifespan and was nearing its end, both in mechanical capabilities and in appeal. Many variations of the 356 had appeared during its production-run, most improvements where mechanical with very few visual improvements. Albeit, the 356 was a very beautiful car and improvements to its design were not necessary. In the Mid-1950's, the Porsche company began producing prototypes for the successor of the 356. The result was a vehicle built on the same unitary structure used for the 356 but with a new front suspension, front disc brakes, and a six-cylinder engine. The design was penned by Ferri 'Butsi' Porsche and was dubbed the 901. The name would not last due to the French company, Peugeot. Peugeot used the naming scheme where numbers were on the outside with a zero in the center. The 901 name was infringing on Peugoet's claim to the name, so the vehicle was designated 911 a year later. As a result, only a few Porsches used the 901 name. The Porsche 901 was introduced to the public in 1963 at the Frankfurt Motorshow. The silhouette body was available only in fixed-head coupe form. In 1967 a Targa bodystyle became available featuring a removable center roof section. The 1991 cc flat-six engine was air-cooled. It's 2-litre capacity was the same as its predecessor. The six-cylinder engine was chosen over the four to allow more room for growth and improvement in the future. Two Solex carburetors aided in the 130 horsepower output. This time-tested design and unmatched performance has made the 901/911 a legend.

by Daniel Vaughan | May 2014

The name originally picked for the Porsche 911, the Porsche 901 was first debuted in Frankfurt at the Internationale Automobile-Ausstellung (Frankfurt Motor Show) in September of 1963. The first 'new' vehicle Porsche had produced, the Porsche 901 was the forerunner for the famous 911. Porsche project design numbers had reach into the 800s by the early 1960s and it was time for a big change. The successor to the Porsche 356, the 901 required several months following the show before it was ready to be offered to customers.

The 356 was the predecessor to the 901 and had lived a relatively long production run but was nearing the end of its mechanical capabilities and popularity. Porsche began working on prototypes in the mid-1950s for a replacement for the aging model. The 901 was built on the same unitary structure as the 356, but featured a new front suspension, front disc brakes, and a six-cylinder engine. The design was created by Ferri 'Butsi' Porsche.

Eighty-Two cars were constructed between September 14 and November 16th 1964, and then the 901 was introduced at the 1964 Paris Auto Salon in October. Asserting ownership over naming rights with a three-digit number with the middle number being 0, French carmaker Peugeot strongly objected to Porsche's naming convention. To rectify this Porsche simply replaced the middle 0 with a 1 and renamed the car Porsche 911.

Since the 901 had already officially been constructed, and were currently used for testing and for exhibitions, Porsche just sold none to private customers. The silhouette 901 was only available in fixed-head coupe form. In 1967 a Targa body style soon became available and came with a removable center roof section. Regardless some of the cars kept by Porsche at the time did make it to private ownership. Since other cars were affected which had been intended solely for racing, but also sold as road legal cars, Porsche kept the internal part number of 90x, but changed the names. For example the Porsche 906 was renamed the Carrera 6, while the Porsche 904 was redubbed Carrera GTS. Some pure racing cars designed by Porsche that were not manufactured for road use, and therefore not competing with an Peugeot models carried the design numbers 907, 908 and 909.

The 901 number is also often used by Porsche enthusiasts to refer to the aluminum five-speed transmission used in early 911s. It is also used to identify the part number for these transmissions using an 11-digit code being with 901 along with numerous other parts on the early cars. From 1969 on, later 911s used a different magnesium case and a part number that began with 911. The design of the 901/911 was a time-tested design that featured unmatched performance that made the vehicle an unforgettable legend.

By Jessica Donaldson