1953 Porsche 356

background

The Porsche company’s existence as a car manufacturer began in 1948, when it hand-fabricated a series of 49 cars in a temporary home in Gmund, Austria. Christened the Type 356 after its design office project number, the car was well received and the Porsche family decided to go into full scale car production at its pre-war facilities in Stuttgart. The design was refined and the first production 356 was born in March 1950. 

Today these earliest of Porsches are revered not solely for their historical significance but also for their beauty, engineering and craftsmanship. 

history

Porsche 356 chassis #50172 was completed on 12 February 1953 and was delivered via the French importer Sonauto in Paris.  It lived in South Carolina for 40 years before selling to a UK enthusiast in 2009.

The car was fully restored by highly regarded 356 expert Roger Bray before selling to a well-known British club racer, Robert Barrie, who built it up into a lightweight racer with the assistance of the Andy Prill.  The car sold to the current owner in 2017 and he set about developing it into the ‘gentleman’s racer’ that it is today working with such experts as Sportwagen and Jaz Porsche.

The car was raced at the Goodwood Revival in 2024, finishing 3^rd overall in the Fordwater Trophy driven by British Touring Car star Sam Tordoff.

specifications and condition

The car has been built to perform at the highest level in historic racing but not at the expense of either the quality of finish or the feel of authenticity. 

The 1,600cc engine was built for competitive racing by Steve Winter at Jaz Porsche and produces 162 hp at 7,000 rpm. The engine manages to achieve a class leading power output while remaining tractable at normal revs and unfussy to drive on the road. The Type 741 gearbox was also rebuilt by Steve Winter. It has syncromesh on all gears, short ratios and a limited slip differential. 

The car’s interior was fully retrimmed in its original smart blue colourway (as specified on the Reutter build sheets). The work was completed by award-winning trimmer Neil Tadman of Neil’s Auto Interiors. The dash was also refinished by Sportwagen in the correct blue shade it would have had when new.

The car presents extremely well with few signs of use. It comes with a collection of spares including a steel bonnet and engine lid, a valuable 1954 Type 546/1 three-piece engine case and a spare set of wheels. It has had an FIA HTP for the last ten years and this expired at the end of 2025. A new HTP has been applied for and is pending.