‘The Porsche Effect’ classic car exhibit highlights the history of the famous brand
‘The Porsche Effect’ A spectacular classic car exhibit called ‘The Porsche Effect’, currently running at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles, California, celebrates 70 years of Porsche’s production and racing cars. The exhibit will continue through April 21, 2019. ▲
In the beginning… In 1939, having already created the Volkswagen, Ferdinand Porsche and his chief body designer, Erwin Komenda, designed a sleek two-seat coupe, designated Type 64, for a planned race from Berlin to Rome that never happened. Post-war, however, much of that car’s streamlined form found its way into the first production Porsches – like this 356-2 model, displayed at the entrance to the exhibit. ▲
Porsche 356-2 ‘Gmund’ Coupe After the war, Porsche’s design facilities had moved to Gmund, Austria and it was there that Ferdinand’s son Ferry, along with Erwin Komenda and engineer Karl Rabe, conceived and built the Type 356. This 356-2 was the 50th Gmund car and possibly the last one built in Austria. ▲
2016 Porsche 911 GTS Club Coupe While the 356-2 is the oldest model in the exhibit, the newest is this 2016 911 GTS Club Coupe – a limited edition model built to honour the 50th Anniversary of the Porsche Club of America. Only 59 cars were produced, in this distinctive Club Blue colour, and they were all reserved for sale to Club Members via a lottery system – except for one lucky member who won one for free. ▲
1979 Porsche 911 Turbo Between those two periods there were a host of memorable models such as this iconic 911 Turbo, with its massive ‘tea-tray’ rear spoiler. Its design conveyed a well-deserved image of power and aggression, while retaining at its core the iconic silhouette of its predecessors. ▲
2015 Porsche 919 Hybrid WEC Race Car Of course, there are race cars, including this 2015 919 Hybrid WEC racer – chassis 1506 – which won the six-hour races at Nurburgring, Fuji and the Circuit of the Americas and came second in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. It is powered by a 500-hp turbocharged gasoline engine and a 400-plus horsepower electric motor. ▲
1955 Porsche 550/1500 RS Spyder At the other end of the racing spectrum is this 1955 Porsche 550/1500 RS Spyder, the first production Porsche model developed specifically for racing. It was also the first production Porsche with a mid-mounted engine. ▲
1955 Porsche 550/1500 RS Spyder With a lightweight aluminum body, tube-frame chassis and four-cam flat-four engine, the 550 RS Spyder established Porsche’s reputation as a giant killer on racetracks around the world. That it was the same model in which actor James Dean was killed just added to its infamy. ▲
2000 Porsche Carrera GT Prototype More than 50 years on, this Carrera GT prototype resulted from a challenge to Porsche engineers and designers to combine the most advanced racing technology of the time with an aesthetic form that was clearly derived from its Porsche forebears. Only two prototypes were built and this is the only survivor. ▲
1955 Porsche Continental Cabriolet Clearly, this car is a 356 but, for a brief period it was sold as a Porsche Continental. The influential New York importer, Max Hoffman, convinced Porsche that the car would sell better with an evocative name, not just a number designation. But Ford cried trademark infringement and the model was quickly renamed European, before reverting to its original 356 identification. ▲
1964 Porsche 901 Arguably, the most iconic of all Porsches is the 911, which began production in 1964. It was introduced at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 1963, however, with the designation 901. When it showed up at the Paris show a year later with that numerology, Peugeot cried foul, claiming the rights to three-digit auto IDs with a zero in the middle. Hence the 901 became the 911. This is one of about 80 cars built before that change in designation. ▲
1976 Porsche 911 Turbo Carrera Near-countless variations of the 911 have evolved since the original, one of the most important being the 911 Turbo Carrera. Developed pursuant to the introduction of turbochargers on Porsche racing cars, the 911 Turbo arrived in North America in 1976, along with flared wheel-wells, huge tires and a big rear wing. And the sports car world was changed forever. ▲
1969 Porsche 917K One of the first Porsche racers to benefit from turbocharging was the all-conquering 917/30 Can-Am car, which derived from earlier, non-turbo, flat-12-powered versions like this 917K Le Mans competitor. In 1970, a similar model delivered Porsche its first of 19 wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. ▲
1969 Porsche 917K This is the view most competitors got of the 917K and its derivatives over several years of competition. ▲
1979 Porsche 935 K3 Ditto for this Porsche 935 K3. When the racing rules changed to favour production-based cars, Porsche was ready with this 911-based, slope-nosed 935 model, the ultimate 911-derived racer of its period. The K3 in this car’s designation referred to Kremer Racing, the German race team that prepared it. It is one of the very few production-based cars to have won Le Mans outright. ▲
1997 Porsche 911 GT1 In 1996, Porsche’s works racing team dominated the competition with a new model called the 911 GT1, which featured a mid-engine layout and a water-cooled engine, both for the first time. Three more cars, including this one, were built for use by private teams the following year, along with 20 road-going versions needed to homologate the race cars. ▲
1968 Porsche 911S Targa A totally different variation on the 911 theme was this 1968 Targa – the first open-air version of the classic coupe. It incorporated a stylized, built-in roll-bar to provide necessary structural rigidity and in anticipation of U.S. federal regulations that never materialized. ▲
1958 Porsche 356A 1600 Super Speedster A decade earlier, the 356A 1600 Super Speedster was the open Porsche of choice for road and track use. This one was once owned and driven on both by then-aspiring actor Steve McQueen. ▲
1989 Porsche 989 Well before there was a Panamera, Porsche experimented with this 989 four-door concept car. While its styling resembled a 911 in front, it featured the drivetrain of a 928 coupe, with a front-mounted V-8 engine driving the rear wheels. The project was abandoned when it was decided the market wasn’t yet ready for a Porsche family car. ▲
Porsche Design Motorcycle Study McQueen, who was also a celebrated bike fan, would have loved this motorcycle design study, created by Porsche Design as an example of its industrial design capabilities for outside clients. Reflecting the design ethos of the brand, it features a simple, unadorned appearance that belies the complex engineering beneath the surface. ▲
1966 Porsche 906 Carrera 6 Equally illustrative of the form-follows-function Porsche design essence is this 1966 906 Carrera 6 race car, which must qualify as one of the purest automotive forms ever. While it was at the time street legal, only 50 cars were built – just enough to qualify it for racing in the FIA Group 4 Sports Car category. ▲
1966 Porsche 906 Carrera 6 The 906 was the first Porsche race car to benefit from wind tunnel testing. All that work and its exceptionally lightweight construction paid off as the 906 regularly won its class at venues such as Daytona, Sebring, Le Mans and the Nurburgring. ▲
Porsche 956 Group C To satisfy new FIA Group C regulations for 1982, Porsche built the 956, which became one of the most successful race cars ever. A factory-backed car, in Rothmans livery, won the 24 Hours of Le Mans, as well as the World Endurance Championships for both manufacturers and drivers. Between 1983 and 1986, Porsche built 17 more cars for use by private race teams. ▲
2008 Porsche RS Spyder In 2005, Porsche developed the RS Spyder for competition in the LMP2 (Le Mans Prototype 2) class, which was off-limits to factory teams. So Porsche partnered with Penske Motorsport as the entrant. Over three seasons, RS Spyders took 26 class victories and 11 overall wins, as well as winning the manufacturer, team and drivers’ championships three times. ▲
2015 Porsche 919 Hybrid WEC Race Car The 919 Hybrid represents a new era in race cars, with electrified powertrains and computer-defined aerodynamics dominating the cars’ design. While the purity of form may be gone (from the race cars but thankfully not the production models) Porsche continues to be at the cutting edge of technological development. ▲
Keyword: 70 Years of Porsche at the Petersen Automotive Museum