Porsche’s 356 No.1 Roadster on display in Porsche Museum, Stuttgart1
Ferdinand (“Ferry”) Porsche’s first ever car is the infamous 356. The 356/1 was a two-seater roadster featuring a mid-mounted, air-cooled flat-four engine producing 40 horsepower with a curb weight of 585 kilograms or 1290 pounds. Its top speed was around 84 mph. The car was produced out of many VW parts, including the swing-arm suspension, steering, brakes, transmission and clutch.
Model No. 1’s aluminum body was designed by Porsche employee Erwin Komenda in April 1948 at Gmünd. On June 8, 1948, the prototype with the chasis number 356-001 was granted a general operating permit. This date is considered the birth of the Porsche brand. After completion, the car was previewed in Swiss Grand Prix and later used to win a local race Rund um den Hofgarten in Austria
Only one unit was ever produced. As Ferry’s company needed money to build more cars, Porsche sold the protoype to Rupprecht von Senger – a racing driver – for 7,000 Swiss francs as soon as Carinthian state government issued the operating permit. Since then, ownership changed several times. The prototype was upgraded from a 1.1-liter to a 1.5-liter engine and hydraulic brakes in 1952.
It laid the foundation for the subsequent Porsche 356 series, which transitioned to a rear-engine layout to accommodate additional seating and streamline production. By 1950, first 356 model went into series production in Stuttgart, offering three variants: Coupé, Speedster and Convertible.
Model No. 1 has been meticulously preserved and is displayed at Porsche’s museum in Stuttgart.
