1950 Porsche 356 Coupe Ferdinand

The Passion of a Car Manufacturer

CarshowClassic.com tells the story. 

While not exactly a prototype, the 1950 Porsche 356 Coupe Ferdinand is one of the-most important cars exhibited at the Porsche Museum as it shows the passion and dedication of the-company’s founder.

The Porsche 356 was developed in during the 1940s and released-in 1950. Although it is not exactly what anyone would call a monumental success, what Porsche 356-has done is indeed a momentous achievement. 

After all, the 356 is the first commercial release of the company—and it-proves that the company has indeed a place in the car manufacturing history. However, for those who-are familiar with the history of Porsche, it is quite known that the company has produced a number-of prototypes before it released the Porsche 356.

One of the company’s very first prototype was the Porsche Type 64—a car-that resembles a Volkswagen Beetle more than anything else, perhaps a sign that Ferdinand Porsche is-indeed influenced by the ideals and the design concepts of the car company. And then there’s-the Porsche 356 No.1, the very first prototype of the 356. But there is another special, one of a-kind 356 that can be found only at the Porsche Museum—the 1950 Porsche 356 Coupe-Ferdinand. 

Technically, the 1950 Porsche 356 Coupe Ferdinand is pretty much like the Porsche-356 No. 1. However, the 1950 Porsche 356 Coupe Ferdinand was not really a prototype. Rather, it was-a test vehicle given to Ferdinand Porsche when he took it for a drive during the Maundy Thursday-(that is, the Thursday before Easter) of 1950. It was the very first 356 out of the factory, and it-was some sort of tradition that Ferdinand got to the ride the very first car from the factory. This-was the same practice that they did with the Type 64. In fact, Ferdinand was drove to have driven-the Porsche Type 64. In any case, it was also tradition that they give the very first car driven by-Ferdinand a nickname. So the car was aptly nicknamed the Porsche 356 Coupe Ferdinand, after the-founder of the company, of course. 

The 1950 Porsche 356 Coupe Ferdinand is currently in display in the Porsche Museum,-although with the other important Porsche units such as the 356 prototype and the Type 64-reproduction. It would seem as the 1950 Porsche 356 Coupe Ferdinand is the least important among-these three, although that is an underestimation of what the Porsche 356. While not a tremendous-success, it was successful in its own right. An updated 356 successful made it to the American-market, while the 356 itself received many updates before it was retired and replaced by the even-more successful Porsche 911. 

Also, the 1950 Porsche 356 Coupe Ferdinand is a testament to the passion of-Ferdinand Porsche. Who have heard of a company founder who took the effort to test drive their very-first creation? Indeed, this really shows how dedicated Ferdinand is, and this is dedication and-passion did bear fruit—Porsche is one of the most successful car manufacturers today, after-all, while the Porsche 356 is considered by many as one of the important cars ever built in the-history of automobile manufacturing.