No Sports Car Icon Is As Important As The Porsche 356

By Christian Moe Oct 10, 2019

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By Christian Moe Oct 10, 2019

"I looked around and could not find quite the car I dreamed of, so I decided to build it myself." - Ferry Porsche

The Porsche 911 is maybe the greatest sports car of all time. For more than 50 years the 911 has been defining how a sports car should drive and perform, consistently setting the benchmark for driver engagement and enjoyment. The 911 was not the first car Ferdinand Porsche created though. The true heritage of the 911, and the Porsche brand as a whole, can all be traced back to one machine. This is the Porsche 356 Pre-A.

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As a machine on its own, the 356 doesn’t get as much recognition or attention as the legendary 911, but don’t let that relative obscurity dampen its impact and legacy. With a rearward-mounted flat four-cylinder engine and humpbacked profile, the DNA of the 911 is evident. The 356 was also the starting point for many of Porsche’s future traditions. The car was the first machine to wear the Carrera nameplate that adorns 911s today, and the 356 was used extensively in motorsport.

In short, the 356 is in many ways the birth of what we consider a “true” sports car today. And now you have a chance to own one. Canepa is currently offering a near factory-perfect 1953 Pre-A 356 1500 Coupe. It’s a numbers matching car that is fresh off of an extensive restoration that won several awards. This particular car took top honors in the Concours Restoration Group at the 2018 Porsche Parade, won the Gmund Achievement with a near perfect score of 299.8 points, and it was scored first in the Class Restored Category. This is conclusively and objectively one of the nicest Porsche 356 cars in existence.

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But owning this 356 would be about so much more than meticulous restoration and winning awards. You would be the steward of history and heritage. Every Porsche in this world today owes some semblance of its existence to this car. You will be the keeper of a legend so impactful that its influence will be felt for hundreds of years from now. Just as Henry Ford redefined what the automotive business could be with the Model T, It was Ferry Porsche and the 356 that launched a performance icon.

Become part of that history and that lineage with this 1953 Porsche. Just make sure you treat it as the great Ferry himself envisioned, and keep driving it on public roads so that the rest of the world can bask in its glory.