1949 Porsche 356/2 Gmund

Ferdinand Porsche established his automotive design consultancy in the early 1930s, but his family's name would not appear on a production car until the late 1940s. His early career included working with Austro-Daimler and Mercedes-Benz, and by the close of the 1930s, he was consulting with the state-run Volkswagen company. The Type 64 (also known as the Type 60K10), is considered to be the first automobile from what was to become the Porsche marque, built before the outbreak of hostilities in Europe. Karl Froelich drafted, under supervision by Erwin Komenda, formal plans that were then developed into a wooden scale model. The design was sent to Stuttgart University where it was wind-tunnel tested by Josef Mickl. Although not known for sure, it is believed the Reutter Karosserie provided the alloy coachwork.

The design of the Type 64 incorporated a split windshield, sliding-door windows, wheel spats over all four wheels, a narrow two-seat cockpit, and a dual spare-wheel compartment under the front trunk lid. Power was sourced from a 985cc Volkswagen engine fitted with dual Solex carburetors.

The first car created by Ferdinand 'Ferry' Porsche to wear the 'Porsche' nameplate was the Porsche 356/1, a two-seater open roadster prototype powered by a mid-mounted, air-cooled flat-4 engine displacing 1,131cc. Most of the mechanical components, including the engine and suspension, were sourced from the Volkswagen Beetle that Ferry's father, Ferdinand Porsche, had designed. Its width measured 65.4-inches and it wheelbase at 82.7 inches. The engine was a 1.1-liter (1131cc) Type VW369 B4 unit powering the rear wheels. The roadster design was courtesy of Erwin Komenda and its aluminum coachwork was built at Gmund.

The design of the Porsche 356/1 had a clear lineage of its Volkswagen Beetle cousin and Type 64 predecessors, continuing the family heritage of graceful curves and rounded edges. Its design would set the tone for later 356 models, albeit the engine of the production cars was placed behind the rear axle which allowed room for two additional seats.

After the single 356/1 prototype example was built, Porsche's Gmund factory finished the first coupe, designated as Type 356/2, in early June of 1948 and road certified in Austria on June 8th. The early examples built at Gmund were constructed from aluminum, while the cars built at Stuttgart, German were clothed in steel. Porsche contracted Reutter to build the steel bodies and eventually bought the Reutter company in 1963.

The Gmund factory-built approximately four coupes in 1948, twenty-five the following year, and 18 examples in 1950. (As many as 50 hand-built all-aluminum cars were produced in Porsche's first 'factory.'). Most were sold primarily in Austria and Germany.

The 356/2 had a split windshield, mechanical brakes, and was powered by a 1100cc, 40 horsepower, air-cooled engine with two Solex carburetors. These early vehicles relied on aerodynamics and lightweight construction to compensate for their lack of outright power.

A class victory at Le Mans in 1951 helped give the 356 notoriety, and numerous victories followed as the model evolved. It was built in four distinct series through 1965 with around 76,313 examples built during that time. The original 'pre-A' series was followed by the 356 A in 1955, which by this point in history was commonly fitted with a 1,582cc four-cylinder air-cooled pushrod OHV engine. Next came the 356 B in late 1959 which initially used the T5 body type before switching to the T6 body type in mid-1962. The 356 C was introduced for the 1964 model year and came with disc brakes at all four corners, and could be purchased with the 'SC' engine which produced nearly 100 horsepower.

The basic design of the 356 remained consistent through its production lifespan, with the coupe body style later joined by a roadster, convertible, cabriolet, and a split-roof. The 356 'Speedster' was introduced in late 1954 at the request of Max Hoffman who was seeking a lower-cost, open-top model to sell to his American clientele.

After nearly two decades of production, the Type 356 was replaced by the short-lived 901, which was quickly renamed the 911 after French car maker Peugeot objected to the use of any three digit number where the middle number was 0.

by Daniel Vaughan | Mar 2022