by John Glynn | Feb 23, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog
The name Ferdinand comes from an old Spanish conjuncture of faro, meaning journey and nano, meaning brave. Brought to Austria by the Habsburg dynasty, it spread from there to France, but the origins of Ferdinand are rooted in Iberia, as a traditional name in the house of Castile. In Spain and Portugal, the name is Fernando.
Of course we always have Ferdinand in mind, but we remember a different Fernando today. He is Adolf Ferdinand (Fernando) Roy Stock (above, in the shades): Portugal’s first ever rally champion, finished third in the Tour of Europe and was an Iberian champion in Porsche and Mercedes. Born February 23, 1914, Fernando was celebrated by his family today. Brother Jose sent me a note for his anniversary, and so we remember him too.
Seen here on the 1953 Monte Carlo Rally, Fernando was given the number one plate as lead car on the event. One of 112 participants to depart for Monaco from Lisbon, Fernando and co-driver Pinto Basto drove their early 356 1500 Coupe as one of a record 404 total starters and a highly appropriate 356 finishers.
For all the appropriateness of the finishing tally, Monte Carlo ’53 was not kind to the Porsches. Several of the 356s entered were excluded for being 2cm too low overall, the subsequent furore compounds the mockery earned by Monte organisers over the years. Remember the Mini Coopers.
So many people confuse great Porsches with pristine, ultimate speed machines. But real Porsche is here in these pictures. It is hope and ambition, struggle and risk, joy and pain. Motorsport teaches us highs and lows: don’t forget that all Porsches are born of racing.
Obrigado Fernando, and all those Porsche pioneers. Still a big part of our family!
by John Glynn | Feb 23, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Market & Prices
The market for used Porsche cars of all ages continues to exceed most expectations. I say ‘most’, as I assume someone out there expected this, but I certainly didn’t. Air-cooled classics are still flying along, and collectable water-cooled models are also doing well. Internet asking prices tell one story but less well known are the cars that sell behind the scenes, without ever being advertised.
Scarcely a week goes by without an email offering to buy my Orange 1976 Porsche 911 Carrera 3.0 Coupe, or asking for help finding a well priced project, be it 911 or 944 Cabriolet (just had one of those mails). When I’m offered a project, or asked for advice on where to sell project cars, I point people towards eBay, as I believe in the market and that is where the market decides, or where you get the offer that leads to an early sale.
Away from the exposure of eBay is a different market, fuelled by collectors leveraging networks to find the real gems. I’m not talking silly-money Carrera RS, but slightly closer to normal. The 993 RS and 996 GT3 seen here are good examples of sought-after Porsches, recently sold without being advertised. If I was building a collection for the future, both of these would have been on my list, as would the 964 Turbo which also sold to the 993RS buyer.
If you’re watching the classifieds looking for a bargain collectable, you might be wasting your time. Try emailing those with good connections to a wide range of trade and private contacts. Yes, you’ll give some margin away to a dealer to buy off-radar, beyond reach of the market, but if you pay 5% over the odds and the market jumps 20% between here and the end of 2015*, then so what?
These “private trade” sales are where independent dealerships score big-time over official Porsche centres. Don’t be afraid to discuss your intentions with respected independent specialists. Ask for personal recommendations and find the really good ones: don’t accept everything you read on forums. Do your own research and use common sense.
*note: this is not a market prediction!
by John Glynn | Feb 21, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Project Cars
Another fun email exchange this week was with Jim in Down Under, concerning his 1967 Porsche 911 Soft Window Targa.
“The Targa is almost complete: all very good gaps, road registered and all electrics work. Only real problem is bad rust in a difficult spot around the pedal box area, fiddly to fix but will happen. Interior is so good that I plan to detail it to within an inch of its life and leave as is.
“About the only thing missing is the ash tray and they are a bit hard to find unfortunately (email if you can help – JG). Even the Targa top which needs full restoration is absolutely complete. The early cars had a lot more thin metal detail trim than later cars and they would be impossible to find and a nightmare to make, so good that it’s all here on my car.”
The left-hand drive Porsche came to Australia from the US (left hand drive cars over thirty years old are OK in Australia) and sat in a barn for twelve years. Jim bought it from the importer and send it to Autohaus Hamilton for recommissioning, with instructions not to disturb the patina. Hamiltons flushed the fuel tank, cleaned the lines and rebuilt the carbs, sorted some failed bushes, a dud master cylinder and brakes, and it was ready to go.
Too many people would sand and repaint this car, without savouring it as it came. Kudos to Jim for sticking with his patina-rich classic 911 Targa: it snaps, crackles and pops!
Got a Porsche project you want to share with the world? You know what we like to feature: doesn’t have to be a 911. Send us some pics and a couple of words: mail@ferdinandmagazine.com.
by John Glynn | Feb 18, 2014 | Art and Books, Classic Porsche Blog
The thrill of working with Ricoh UK to print our first Cult of Porsche book keeps growing. This week is my first design meet with the creative team, so Jamie and I have been chopping and changing the list of cars to feature in our three-book series.
We have lots of content to draw upon. As well as shooting brand new material only available in this series, there is some epic work dating back across our seven-year association. Do we try to pick our favourites for book one, or do we go with famous names, fancy locations, biggest build budgets?
None of the above. Our work is not about money, stance or scene. It follows an atomic string of Porsche through standard cars and hot rods, race cars and projects. It is the ghost that rides in the passenger seat, occasionally inhabiting the driver.
With light and shade at the heart of our material, it takes a special kind of photography to really tell the story. Jamie’s multi-layered images pull every ounce of drama from the subject. The energy Mr Lipman brings to our partnership is indescribably excellent.
Reviewing the work we’ve done to date for our first book together, I can’t imagine that many people get to experience chemistry this explosive. Working with James is the most exciting thing I have ever done. It’s not a job: it’s a match made in heaven. And so are these cars and their owners.
by John Glynn | Feb 13, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Project Cars
Those famous Nürburgring Porsche racing heroes have unveiled a Manthey Porsche 997 GT3 4.4-litre upgrade engine conversion for GT3 models.
With increases of up to 80Nm and 95hp available versus stock-engined Porsche 997 GT3s, Manthey’s 530 engine kit includes a redesigned crankshaft. It’s the most powerful engine upgrade package offered by the Nürburgring 24-hour winners.
Olaf Manthey Porsche 997 GT3 Engine Conversion
“Serious engine construction involves craftsmanship far in advance of simple engine map reprogramming,” explains Olaf Manthey. “It is important for a 24-Hour winner to say that engine design and development is done in-house, with no external knowhow. Using Manthey designed and race proven parts is the only way I can hold my head up high, saying “our team did that.” Those driving with one of our engines in the back of their GT3 know that Manthey power is a very special feeling.”
Manthey offers smaller upgrades, adding up to 35hp to early GT3s. The full range of Manthey products can be seen on the Porsche Racing website.
by John Glynn | Feb 11, 2014 | Classic Porsche Blog, Porsche News
There’s a month left to see the Porsche 911 50th Anniversary exhibition at the Hamburg Prototyp Museum.
Until March 16th, the museum will be sharing cars from the Stuttgart Porsche Museum and private collectors, to showcase the 911’s varied history. In keeping with Hamburg’s raison d’etre, most 911s on show are prototype machines. The pics here are courtesy of the museum.
Exhibits include the 1959 Porsche 754 T7 prototype, 1965 Porsche 911 Targa prototype, a 1973 Porsche 911 Carrera RSR, 1986 Porsche Paris-Dakar 959 and a 1998 Porsche 911 GT1.
I’ve been meaning to visit the Prototyp Museum for years. The museum is famously home to much of ‘one-armed’ racer Otto Mathe’s collection of Porsche racing cars and assorted paraphernalia, including the adorable Porsche/Volkswagen mongrel “Fletzenflieger” racer (scrap racer).
Legend has it that, when Otto arrived at the gates of Stuttgart to donate his unique Type 64 Berlin-Rome Porsche racer – sole surviving first true Porsche from a handbuilt run of three cars – back to the factory museum, a security guard told him to “move his old wreck” from in front of the gates. So it ended up at Hamburg.
Would be a very bad day at work for someone if that was true. In fact, Otto (mostly) owned the car from 1949 until he died in 1995. The plot has a few twists, but Otto’s wonderful T64 (below, centre) is now owned by another private collector and often shown at Hamburg, alongside the museum’s own recreation.
Hamburg’s replica consists largely of mechanical parts from one of the two other T64s manufactured under the direction of Ferry and Ferdinand Porsche. The parts were found buried amongst Otto’s spares collection, which was bought by the Prototyp Museum after his death. The Prototyp Museum painstakingly replicated the aluminium bodywork over a wooden buck formed by laser scanning the original.
The aluminium body now sitting in the Porsche museum is another beautiful T64 replica. I seem to remember the shell being presented as original when we visited, but no doubt I was caught up in the moment. The drama of that shape is unbeatable.
