Vehicle Description
The Porsche 356A offered here is a very rare RHD T2 1600 which was exported from new to Australia. Constructed in 1957 it was delivered to its first owner on November 22nd 1957 via Hamilton of Melbourne, the Australian Porsche importer. Being built late in the year the car was specified as a T2 1958 model-year and was fitted with the appropriate MPH speedometer and a correct 1600cc flat-4 engine. It was finished in Aquamarine Blue with Tan leather interior and Tan carpets. The car then spent the next 55 years in Australia where it was subject to a bare-metal restoration by one of the world’s leading Porsche specialists before being imported to the UK in 2012. At the time of the restoration the original matching number engine and gearbox were painstakingly rebuilt and the colour was carefully matched to original specification using the correct factory formula.
Carefully maintained since then it is currently presented in stunning condition and as such presents an unmissable opportunity to acquire one of the rarest versions of the highly desirable Porsche Speedster.
Please contact us for further details, price on application.
The 356 was the first production automobile to carry the Porsche badge, being conceived in 1948 by “Ferry” Porsche, son of the company’s founder. Although it shared a number of features with its cousin, the VW Beetle, the 356 was specifically designed with speed in mind and so featured a completely new Porsche-designed chassis and 2-seater body, which was significantly lighter and more agile. When these weight reductions were combined with the new Porsche’s uprated engine, the 356 delivered vastly improved performance compared to the Beetle.
Over 17 years of production, the 356 would be progressively uprated and four main series of car can be identified charting this evolution. The earliest, or Pre-A, models were built from 1950 to 1955. These were followed in 1956 by the 356A which ran to 1959 when the B series was introduced. The final C series saw out the last years of production from mid-1963 to 1965. Within these series a number of different body styles were available including the Cabriolet, the Coupe and the highly desirable Speedster, which was conceived in 1957 for the US market by Max Hoffman, Porsche’s American distributor.
Initially the cheapest model in the 356 line up, the Speedster quickly became one of the most coveted with its sleek and sporty styling. Fitted with a low windscreen, bucket seats, lightened body, special gearing, minimal weather equipment and a simplified dashboard inspired by the Porsche Spyder race cars, it was the model of choice for sports car enthusiasts in America and further afield. Overall the Speedster was built in rather modest numbers with just 3677 examples produced between 1955 and 1959 but the RHD version was incredibly rare with only 22 cars being finished in this configuration. SOLD
