1952 Porsche Type 540 American

The Porsche Type 540 Aluminum Roadster preceded the famous 550 Spyder earning it the distinction of being the company's first 'production' race car. Enjoying a brief lifespan with just sixteen examples being built, they were created at the behest of US importer Max Hoffman and West Coast Porsche dealer Johnny Von Neumann. The cars were built only for American export and the cars were never cataloged. The lightweight aluminum bodies were built by Glaser-Heuer Karosserie (along with a single steel-bodied example) and equipped with Porsche's 70 horsepower 1500cc engine. The completed package weighed 1,580 pounds. The doors were hollow, side curtains were used instead of roll-up windows, and other weight-saving measures were employed. Porsche offered alloy bucket seats, a split windscreen or a small plastic racing windscreen, a canvas top, headlamp stone-guards, and leather hood straps.

The early examples were given a single-grille engine cover. Later cars received twin-grille decklids and flared fenders. It is possible a third version may have been built, complete with enclosed rear wheel arches and a fixed windshield.

All examples were built for competition. The project would ultimately bankrupt the coachbuilder due to underestimated production costs.

by Daniel Vaughan | Sep 2018