Beschreibung:

1,488cc OHV Flat 4-Cylinder Engine
Twin Carburetors
55bhp at 4,400rpm
4-Speed Manual Transmission
4-Wheel Independent Suspension
4-Wheel Hydraulic Drum Brakes
*Beautiful restoration of a matching numbers, bent-window 356
*Finished in its factory delivered livery with its original body panels
*Documented with Porsche Certificate of Authenticity and copy of the factory Kardex
*Pure and rare Porsche Continental Coupe
THE PORSCHE 356
Although Ferdinand Porsche had established his independent automotive design consultancy in the early 1930s, his name would not appear on a car until 1949. When it did, it graced one of the all-time great sports cars: the Porsche 356. The work of Ferry Porsche, the Type 356 was based on the Volkswagen designed by his father, Ferdinand, and like the immortal 'Beetle' employed a platform-type chassis with rear-mounted air-cooled engine and all-independent torsion bar suspension.
Having commenced manufacture with a short run of aluminum-bodied cars built at Gmünd, Porsche began volume production of the steel-bodied 356 Coupe at its old base in Stuttgart, at first in premises shared with coachbuilders Reutter and then (from 1955) in its original factory at Zuffenhausen. In 1951, a works car finished first in the 1,100cc class at the Le Mans 24 Hours, thus beginning the marque's long and illustrious association with Le Sarthe.
The man responsible for introducing the spartan and sporty Speedster to the USA, New York-based importer Max Hoffman, had begun his series of entry level Porsches with the 1500 America, a 'de-trimmed' 356 powered by the Normal (as opposed to Super) engine. For 1955, the 1500 America was superseded by the better equipped, though still 'Normal' powered, Continental. According to Road & Track: "The Normal produced more torque than the Super below 3,000rpm, and in any given gear, from any given speed, could out-accelerate the more powerful car. In deference to its graciousness, German customers called the 1500 Normal "die Dame - the Lady." The 'Continental' name, however, was dropped after little more than a year after objections from Ford. Today, the refined Continentals are among the rarest and most sought after of early 356s.
THE MOTORCAR OFFERED
Purchased new on 4-7-1956 by a Canadian GI overseas or at least shipped to Canada originally as noted on the cars Kardex from Porsche records. The car made its way to Houston and was owned by a Submarine Commander who broke down in Benson, Arizona while on his way from Houston to Los Angeles. The car was towed to nearby "Precision Motors" in Tucson, Arizona. The parts needed to fix the Porsche were not on hand, so the owner traded in the car for an E-Type Jaguar to complete his journey. Jack Rowe, the owner of Precision Motors sold the car shortly after to Carl Nelson, the owner of "Silver Star Motors," a Mercedes Benz repair shop also located in Tucson. He owned the car until his passing in 1997. A local Porsche restorer / technician Chuck Croteau of Redline Service had always known the car and acquired it after Carl's passing. Chuck underwent a complete restoration of the vehicle to original in 1998 and finished the car around 2000. He cared for the car until he sold it to a local collector in 2005, before trading hands to the current owner in 2022.
Chuck noted that when he received the car it was still wearing its original paint. He confirmed that all the body panels and floors were never replaced and are original to the car. During the restoration, he removed all of the undercoating and opted not to replace it because he did not want to cover up the unmolested factory floors with undercoating. The car was stripped to bare metal and repainted in its original color of "Turkish Red." The paint and body are show quality with only minor chip touch ups from use over the years. Excellent panel alignment as can be expected from a car that retains all of its original hand-crafted panels all stamped with a "35", the last two numbers of its chassis number, standard practice by the coachbuilder Reutter at the time. The panels are nicely aligned, and the paint is fully sanded and buffed to a mirror finish.
The interior was restored in its original color code "B", "Acella Bast" leatherette. The wool carpets are all finished in correct patterns. The wool headliner is tight and unwrinkled. The fold up rear seat has leather luggage straps fitted. All the gauges were restored and work properly. The Telefunken radio turns on and makes noise but cannot get it to tune in to a station. Wipers work fine as do the turn signals. All of the glass is original with only minor blemishes, and all retain correct factory markings. All weatherstripping was replaced with new. All the chrome and brightwork were restored to show quality. It comes complete with its tool Kit with tire gauge.
The car retains its original 1500cc engine and has been expertly rebuilt with all correct ignition, carburetors, and air cleaners intact. The engine runs fantastic and sounds great through the Abarth style exhaust. The synchronised 4 speed transmission shifts great. The car handles amazing with brakes that do not pull when applied, the car stops quickly nice and straight. The wheels are correct 16″ examples with AVON tires.
54035 was restored using most of its original parts with very few reproductions used. It is extremely rare to find such a nice example of Porsche's early history. Not many Porsches of this era have survived with its original body panels and engine. This is truly one of the finest examples of a 1955 Continental offered anywhere. Documented with a Porsche "Certificate of Authenticity" and Porsche Warranty Kardex. It has been concours judged 4 times by the PCA with a best score of 324.1, with judging sheets included. Exceptional opportunity to acquire an exceedingly rare Bent Window 356 that has been an Arizona car since 1962.