Vehicle Description
1968 Porsche 356 Speedster Replica
Some iconic cars are very hard to find. Whether it be from rarity,
low production numbers, or out of this world costs when you do find
the example you like. Enter the repli-car. Nearly 750 companies
produced any number of models over the years. Many were made from a
fiberglass mold that was taken from the original. What better way
to have access to almost any classic, where you can build from
frame up, as per your wishes, materials and skill level. Only
limited by your imagination and budget.
It's easy to understand why they built this handsome 1968 Porsche
356 Speedster replica: it looks great! Originals were frequently
neglected and abused, never mind their legendary finicky nature, so
it was probably a smart idea to recreate the look in fiberglass and
put reliable running gear underneath. Iconic and outrageously
expensive for the original, we give you a replica that checks all
the boxes and then some! A worked 1900cc air cooled 4 cylinder,
heat and air conditioning, a chromed out engine bay and dual
carbs...what more can a budget minded Porsche lover want?
Exterior
The Porsche 356 colloquially known as the "bathtub" Porsche is a
product of a fiberglass mold from the original and until you take a
closer look you'd be hard pressed to tell it from the original. It
is bathed in a beautiful Titanium Gray Metallic, and of course has
no rust, nice chrome and a like new brown complimentary canvas
convertible top with side curtains. Its round design, looking very
much like the original, has thin chrome bumperettes front and rear
adding to the racer look. Round screened headlights and small
pointed oval "squinty eye" tail lights for the back add to the
beauty. A chrome vented panel with a German eagle badge graces the
rear deck and dual exhaust peek out the bottom back of the car.
Flared out fenders dress the sides of the body and provide room for
the extra wide wheels and tires. A wonderfully rounded shape,
gracefully curved around the front windscreen is also trimmed with
chrome framing. Chromed and polished 17-inch wheels with Porsche
center caps are on all 4 corners and are shod in high performance
staggered width high performance radials.
Interior
With the top down we see more nicely contrasting color with the
leather interior bathed in saddle. Bomber style low back but wilder
buckets are inserted and floating on like new thick pile gray
carpeting protected by beige and black Coco woven mats. A wide sill
is filled by the beautiful doors and their saddle leather panels
with some center embossing and a stitched-on pouch for some extra
storage. In the center of the hump is a leather booted shift lever,
and a leather handled and booted handbrake. In the back is a small
shelf with integrated speakers. It is also in saddle leather and
has some tuck and roll inserts just like the buckets in front. In
front, the dash front is fiberglass in Titanium Gray and the top is
covered in saddle leather to match the seats and door panels. In
front of the driver is a curved semicircular eyebrow with a trio of
round gauges in blackface and aqua numeral format. These have shiny
bezels on their edges. In front of the passenger is a Porsche badge
and just next to the door on the dashes a small curved "Jesus" bar!
Below the dash we see the controller and vents for the aftermarket
heater and AC unit as well as an aftermarket AM/FM/CD player and
there are some speakers mounted into the door panels. A very nicely
put together interior right down to the black edging on the blue
carpeting.
Drivetrain
In back is a 1900cc flat 4 cylinders fed by 2 single barrel carbs
that have recently been balanced. This engine is dressed to the
nines with gobs of chrome and polished bolt ons. There is a 4-speed
manual transmissionon the back coupled with a 4.125 rear axle.
Custom stainless steel dual exhaust is on and looking great and
relatively drip free underneath, (try to find that on an original
356!).
Undercarriage
This car is mounted to a 1968 VW chassis and in fact derives its
title from said chassis. The undercarriage is very clean and
rustfree with a solidoriginal VW complete floor pan panel is the
center of this car. Independent suspension is all around, and front
disc braking is on and rear drums are present.
Drive-Ability
Even though it is not an original which I would not drive due to
its value, this one is a driver and an eye catcher. It fired right
up and handled great, accelerated nicely and sounded very nice to
complete the package. Bias free braking on the panic stop and all
other functions were in working order. A fun driver, reliable and
great with the only notable defect being a belt squeal when the AC
compressor was engaged.
With an original example being out of the reach of most, those who
can still have with this replica, which is very nicely done.
Looking very much like the original, and sounding great, (which is
important to this writer), it has nicely appointed letter interior,
a brown canvas top which is like new, and all the trapping of its
expensive original from where this car was cut.
Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special
interest automobile showroom, featuring over 850 vehicles for sale
with showroom space for up to 1,000 vehicles. Also, a 400 vehicle
barn find collection is on display. This vehicle is located in our
showroom in Morgantown, Pennsylvania, conveniently located just
1-hour west of Philadelphia on the I-76 Pennsylvania Turnpike. The
website is www.classicautomall.com and our phone number is (888)
227-0914. Please contact us anytime for more information or to come
see the vehicle in person.