Autoblog

A man and his Porsche 356, never the two shall part

Zach Bowman — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: Classics, Convertible, Performance, Videos, Porsche

Our friends from Petrolicious recently stopped by Savannah, Georgia for a closer look at Ken Sirlin's 1962 Porsche 356 Cabriolet. Sirlin bought the car while he was living in Brussels in 1985 from a man who carefully scoured the Earth for the perfect donor shell. Once he located it, the car underwent an extensive restoration in order to put it back factory perfection.

Unlike so many restoration queens before it, though, Sirlin's 356 went on to enjoy a little excitement after its rebirth. He used the machine in a few vintage rallies all around Europe, including the Liege Rome Liege event.

That was all before he packed up the 356 Cab and moved to Georgia. Now, the little red convertible serves as a daily driver, plodding around the shaded streets of the historic South and enjoying a life of quiet retirement. As usual, Petrolicious has done an excellent job of capturing both the Porsche and Sirlin's attachment to his car. We suggest you check out the full video below for a closer look.

Continue reading A man and his Porsche 356, never the two shall part

A man and his Porsche 356, never the two shall part originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 13 Nov 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Porsche Club's 24th Annual Dana Point Concours shines through the gloom

Frank Filipponio — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 19:01:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Classics, Porsche, Celebrities

356 Club's 24th Annual Dana Point Concours - Click above for high-res image gallery

The 356 Club of Southern California held their 24th Annual Dana Point Concours d'Elegance this past Sunday, with nearly 300 examples of Ferry's handiwork taking their place on the grassy bluff overlooking Dana Point Harbour. Although the gloomy skies kept temps bearable, it was a great relief when the sun finally broke through and quashed any chance of rain.

The 356 Club puts on this annual Porsche fest, so it's not surprising that those models made up more than half the field, but they let others play in their sandbox too, so there were plenty of 911s to join the iconic overturned bathtubs, and even a few non-Porsches were allowed into the park. Check out the gallery we put together and you'll see some of our favorites: 904 Prototype, Glockler, Carrera 2, Carrera GT, Speedster, 550 Spyder, Continental, 934, 930, 914, Carrera RS, GT3 RS...the Porsche Diesel tractor, VW Buses, a pair of Enzmanns, and even an MG. It's a pretty amazing show every year, especially for a regional club, attracting several cars from out of state and a couple of celebrities too. Where else can you have those beautiful views, so many amazing cars and enjoy Porsche tractor rides too? Check out the gallery below.

Gallery: Porsche Club's 24th Annual Dana Point Concours

Porsche Club's 24th Annual Dana Point Concours shines through the gloom originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 12 Jul 2010 19:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rumormill: Volkswagen head (kinda) confirms new entry-level Porsche 356

Jonny Lieberman — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Performance, Europe, Audi, Porsche, Volkswagen, Rumormill

Volkswagen Bluesport Concept - Click above for high-res image gallery

The head of the Volkswagen Group, Martin Winterkorn, spoke with Autocar about the possibility of a new entry level Porsche model. Perhaps fancifully dubbed the 356, the new model would slot into Porsche's lineup below the Boxster and Cayman. In England, the new baby Porsche would cost about £33,000, which means nothing to us here in the U.S. and is about what a base Boxster costs. That said, the article mentions the possibility that the next generation Boxster and Cayman might go way up scale.

Big question: what would this new 356 be? Autocar speculates that the 356 will be based heavily on the mid-engine architecture of the upcoming Audi R4 and the conceptual Volkswagen Bluesport. We don't know if the 356 will be strictly a coupe or also be available as a roadster. In fact, we don't even know if the R4 will be coupe-only. We'd image the two cars will have similar, if not identical, body configurations. Though not the engine. In order to keep some brand DNA in the Porsche, the 356 will ship with a new forced-induction flat-four.

Those that remember the 944 Turbo S and the 968 know this is in no way a bad thing - except the 924 Turbo's engine was the EA831 inline-four originally intended for the Volkswagen Bus and Audi 100. It was never really any good, even in turbo form. The reborn 356's mill (most likely a turbo as opposed to supercharged) should be good for around 250 horsepower - very close to where the base Boxster/Cayman currently sits. Expect the 356 to get much better fuel economy, however.

The new 356 will share a transmission with the R4. Again, the 924, 944 and 968 shipped with a modified Audi 100 transmission acting as a transaxle, so there is precedence. As to what that transmission will be, we don't know but we'd guess a DSG of some sort. Audi's R4 should arrive sometime in 2011, with the Porsche 356 bowing in 2012. Is any of this going to actually, you know, happen? Magic 8-Ball says, "Ask again later."

Gallery: Detroit 2010: Audi e-tron Detroit Concept

Gallery: Detroit Preview: Volkswagen BlueSport Concept

[Source: Autocar]

Rumormill: Volkswagen head (kinda) confirms new entry-level Porsche 356 originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 28 Jan 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hemmings Find of the Day: Rare Porsche 356 Prototype hits the market

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Classics, Convertible, Performance, Porsche, Specialty

Porsche 356 Prototype - Click above for high-res image gallery

Update: Although the seller bills this car as a Porsche, Porsche historians note that it was never claimed to be a genuine Porsche and is in fact based on a VW chassis. That said...

The Porsche 356 holds a special place amongst the ranks of historic automobiles. As one of the first vehicles to wear the Porsche badge after World War II, this car has direct ties to the model that would forever define the German maker of fine sportscars. That, of course, is the iconic 911.

Collectors, take note: one of two early 356 prototypes is now up for sale, located in New York. We wonder, would that make this a 355? No, probably not. Looking over pictures of the car, it's clear to see the shape that would eventually turn into the classic 356 as well as the expected air-cooled powerplant sitting aft of the cockpit and driving the rear wheels.

Notable features that didn't make it to the production car include the front grille that directs cooling air to the rear-mounted engine and the head lamps that are sunk into the bodywork on either side. No price is listed on this particular sale, but we certainly wouldn't expect it to be sold without a large sum of money changing hands. Check out the high-res images below and click here for the car's description from the seller.

Gallery: Porsche 356 Prototype

[Source: Hemmings Auto Blog]

Hemmings Find of the Day: Rare Porsche 356 Prototype hits the market originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 30 Dec 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Stuttgart meets SoCal at the PCA-GPX Queen Mary Concours

Frank Filipponio — Tue, 19 May 2009 19:58:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Classics, Performance, Supercars, Porsche, Event Alert

Click above for massive high-res gallery of some of Stuttgart's finest

The Grand Prix region of the Porsche Club of America (PCA-GPX) is centered in the Long Beach area of Southern California. It takes its name from the Grand Prix held every year since 1975 on the streets of the coastal city south of Los Angeles. Besides getting together for the race every year, the PCA-GPX also hosts a number of driving and dining events throughout the year, including a spectacular concours d'elegance in the shadow of the Queen Mary.

We tagged along with the 356 Club this year to see what the show was like. Besides seeing some of the greatest Porsche models from the past 50 years, we also met some great people, had some terrific food, and learned a thing or two about the 356, 911, 912, 964, 993, 996, 997, and the rest of the offerings from Stuttgart and Weissach. We rekindled our love affair with the iconic Gruppe B-inspired 959, we made a new friend in the form of the 1977 SCCA Trans-Am Championship-winning 934.5 and we spotted an "Outlaw" 356 with a 3.3-liter 930 turbo motor that's probably as fast as either of those two.

Primarily we discovered that despite the state of the automotive industry, one thing remains true: people are still celebrating their cars. Join the celebration by checking out the massive gallery below.

Gallery: Stuttgart meets SoCal at the PCA-GPX Queen Mary Concours

Stuttgart meets SoCal at the PCA-GPX Queen Mary Concours originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 19 May 2009 19:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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