World’s oldest “Porsche” models

In the 91 years of “Porsche’s” existence, more than 300,000 sports cars have passed from the car manufacturer’s factory conveyors to their new owners.

The developers of the most famous models were both Ferdinand Porsche himself and his son Ferdinand “Ferry” Porsche, who took over “Porsche” after his father’s death in 1951, and, of course, Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, the grandson of the company’s founder.

“Porsche Latvija” invites you to take a look at the brightest pages of the history of the German sports car manufacturer and learn more interesting facts about unique Porsche models!

The car that started the “Porsche” legend

It is believed that without the “Type 64 #3” there would be no “356”, no “550”, and no “911” models, so this is the car that created the “Porsche” legend.

In 1939, Ferdinand Porsche developed a model called “Type 64 #3”. It was made for the 1,500 kilometer “Berlin-Rome” race, which was scheduled for September 1939, but did not take place due to World War II.

A total of three cars of this series were made, of which only one has survived to this day – the others were destroyed during the war. This car was driven both by Ferdinand Porsche himself and later by his son Ferry Porsche. After the “Porsche” company was registered in 1946, Ferry hand-stamped the “Type 64 #3” with the words “Porsche”.

In 1949, Ferry sold the car to Austrian driver Otto Mate, who participated in and won several classic automobile competitions with it. Surprisingly, the 83-year-old car is still in excellent working order, which was proven by Chris Harris, the host of the TV show “Top Gear”, who drove this car on a race track in 2019 during filming.

The first “Porsche” automobile in the world

On June 8, 1948, the two-seater “Porsche 356/1” was born. It is the first brand car created by Ferry Porsche, thus many historians consider it to be the very first “Porsche”. Only one example of this rare model was made, which can be seen today at the “Porsche Museum” in Stuttgart, Germany.

“I looked around and couldn’t find the car I dreamed of: a small, lightweight, energy-efficient sports car. So I decided to build it myself,” Ferry Porsche later admitted.

It should be noted that the first “Porsche” cars were built in an old sawmill in the Austrian town of Gmund, using Volkswagen parts, so each car was special.

Serial production of this model began in 1950. The 356 was available in Coupé, Speedster and Convertible variants. In total, until 1965, about 76,000 Porsche 356 automobiles were produced.

An integral part of the “Porsche” DNA

The well-known red 911 model was first manufactured in October 1964 as one of the first production models of the “Porsche” sports car. At the time it was known as the “901”, with a total of 82 of these vehicles manufactured. The model was soon renamed the “911” as French carmaker “Peugeot” claimed it owned the rights to all car names with a zero in the middle.

Various improvements have been made over the years, but the concept of the “911” remained the same. The first significant innovations for the “911” model appeared in 1968. The coupes of the updated series were the first cars to have an electrically heated rear window, as earlier models heated the window with warm air from the car ventilators.

Over time, the “Porsche 911” became one of the most famous sports cars of all time, and since 2019, the eighth generation model has been produced. Meanwhile, in May 2017, the millionth “911” model was produced, which can be viewed in the permanent collection of the “Porsche” museum.

As with most world-renowned brands, the success story of “Porsche” also lies in its history, car-building traditions and, at the same time, the search for innovation and new solutions. Each car model is like an improved descendant of the previous one, making the new models more and more powerful and competitive, especially in the sports car segment.

About SIA Baltijas Sporta Auto

The official representative of Porsche in Latvia – SIA Baltijas Sporta Auto – is proud of its dynamic and knowledgeable team, as well as 20 years of experience in the automobile sales industry. Baltijas Sporta Auto is an authorized Porsche dealership in Latvia, which provides reliable and customer-oriented sales and automobile service.