| The Porsche 356 was a two-seater based on the | | | | involved in racing as a way of promoting its cars |
| Volkswagen, code-named Type 356 after its | | | | and it was apparent that they needed a new |
| design office number. With Fiat-based Cisitalia | | | | engine for more power. One of Porsche's younger |
| sports cars as an inspiration, the first Type 356 | | | | designers, Dr Ernst Fuhrmann, was given his head |
| had a tubular frame; and its body, designed by | | | | and produced an advanced |
| Erwin Kommenda, was the first to bear the | | | | four-overhead-camshaft flat four-cylinder unit with |
| legendary name Porsche, cast in a logotype that | | | | Ferry Porsche and chief engineer Karl Raabe who |
| is almost unaltered to this day. | | | | was one of the old professor Porsche's first |
| The Type 356 cars that followed had a platform | | | | employees, looking over his shoulder. |
| chassis like the Volkswagen, but retained the | | | | This high-revving engine was installed in a racing |
| same basic mechanical lay-out and Kommenda's | | | | Porsche with spyder, or skimpy open, body and |
| distinctive body. Why change the chassis so soon? | | | | the car given a new type number, 550. |
| That is a question that might be asked about the | | | | Porsche's American agents encouraged the |
| myriad changes to Porsches ever since. The | | | | production of these highly specialized vehicles |
| reason is simple; Porsche people are perfectionists | | | | which, in ever-improving form, took the German |
| and, because the cars have always been | | | | firm through top-class competition in the 1950s; |
| produced in relatively small quantities, it has been | | | | and as the Spyders spent their time racing, the |
| easy to change things in detail. Wherever the | | | | 356, in continually developing form, provided the |
| technical wizards could see a way of improving a | | | | production backbone and competed in classes for |
| component they would, usually after testing it on | | | | more standard cars. |
| a racing Porsche. | | | | As the Spyders developed, they became more |
| The result has been a stream of fascinating, | | | | like open-wheeled racing cars in concept and little |
| complex and confusing cars, each one almost | | | | modification was needed to enter them in Formula |
| invariably a little better than the one before. But | | | | 2 events from 1957. These cars were an |
| as their logo remained unaltered, so did their basic | | | | immediate success and when the capacity of |
| lay-out for 27 years: with only a brief flirtation | | | | Formula 1 cars was limited to 1.5 liters - Porsche |
| with open-wheeled racers, they have all been | | | | size - in 1961, the men from Zuffenhausen |
| rear-engined, air-cooled, all independently sprung | | | | plunged into grand prix racing with great |
| sports cars. Only since 1975 have there been | | | | enthusiasm. |
| more conventional front-engined, water-cooled | | | | This ultimate form of competition proved to be |
| Porsches, and they are still true sporting cars. | | | | too expensive for them, however, and Porsche |
| By 1951, high-performance versions of the 356 | | | | retired after two seasons with only one victory |
| were racing at Le Mans as a result of a plea by | | | | of note - in the 1962 French Grand Prix - despite |
| the race's organizer, Charles Faroux, who had | | | | spending a fortune on developing a new flat-eight |
| helped free the professor from prison. Ferdinand | | | | engine. |
| Porsche lived long enough to see his 356 coupes | | | | The sports-racing and production cars were stilt |
| win their class in the French race and establish | | | | very successful so they decided to concentrate |
| themselves as a great force in Continental rallying. | | | | on them. Ultra-lightweight Spyders made the |
| He had a stroke in the autumn and died the | | | | European Mountain Championship their own, as |
| following year, leaving his company in the hands | | | | befitted cars with an Austrian origin. High |
| of his son, Ferry, with the Piech family for | | | | performance road and rally cars were produced |
| support. Hardly anything changed at Porsches. | | | | bearing the name Carrera to commemorate their |
| Production was transferred to Zuffephausen, near | | | | class win in the Carrera Panamericana, a gruelling |
| Stuttgart, West Germany but the cars were the | | | | Mexican road race with an especially emotive |
| same, constantly developing versions of their | | | | appeal to their biggest market on the west coast |
| creator's original work. | | | | of America. They backed up the Spyders, winning |
| By 1952, the Porsche company was deeply | | | | such classics as the Targa Florio road race in Sicily. |