Porsche 356

B 1600 Super 90 Roadster | Desirable T5 bodywork

This particular example is a lovely Porsche 356 B 1600 Super 90 Roadster by Drauz from 1960 with desirable T5 bodywork. The car was originally delivered via dealer Islinger in Mannheim, Germany, to Herrn Bruno Schoechle from Heidelberg. The 2nd owner was a Mr. Zubile from Stuttgart and a 3rd owner is also mentioned on the copy of the Wagenkarte. The car was delivered new in Reihergrau (a light grey) with a Kunstleder interior with Liegesitze (adjustable seats) and Dunlop tyres.

Between 1960 and 1966, the car went back for work to the dealer no less than 7 times for ‘Gewaehrleistung’. In 1966 the mileage was 50.587 km recorded. After that we know the car went to Italy where it was registered in the Registro Italiano Porsche. We are trying to find more history from the years in Italy.
According to the built sheet, the car was delivered new with engine nr. 800765. Sometime during its 64 year life - probably in the early days - the engine was changed to correct type S90 engine nr. 800739, so only 26 nrs. apart from the first number.

In 2000 the car arrived in the Netherlands with its first Dutch owner on whose behalf we sold the car in 2002 to the current owner. The body has been repainted, has had a good anti rust treatment and still shows very well. The underside is straight, clean and in very good condition. The interior has kept up very well. The cars starts easy, runs on 12V and shifts easy.

In the 22 year ownership the car has seen some 30.000 km of pleasurable touring. The car comes with valuation reports, pictures from part restoration work, invoices and Dutch registration. In 2020 the convertible roof was renewed (3.500 Euro) and in July 2024 new Michelin XWX ‘White Wall’ tyres were fitted (which could be turned around).

A rare Super 90 Roadster delivered new in Germany and attractively priced. Fresh out of 22 year ownership!

The price is Euro 189.000,-.

Please call or app for more information or pictures.

Very Superior Old Cars is a classic sportscar consultancy company founded in 1992. We work for our customers to assist with all aspects of their car interests. From acquisition consultancy with restoration advice and management to private sales in our boutique art gallery.

VSOC is centrally located between Amsterdam and The Hague, only 17 km (11 miles) from Schiphol Airport. There is a broad selection of classic sports cars on display, in very good or excellent condition, varying from beautiful yet affordable sports cars to rare and valuable collectors’ items. When you intend to visit us in The Netherlands, we would advise you to make an appointment so that we can give you some quality time. If you arrive by plane or train, we would be happy to pick you up at the airport or train station. Besides Dutch we speak English, German, French and Italian.

Model History

Prior to World War II Porsche designed and built three Type 64 cars for a 1939 Berlin-to-Rome race that was cancelled. In 1948 the mid-engine, tubular chassis 356 prototype called 'No. 1' was completed. This led to some debate as to the 'first' Porsche automobile, but the 356 is considered by Porsche to be its first production model. It was created by Ferdinand 'Ferry' Porsche (son of Ferdinand Porsche, founder of the German company), who founded the Austrian company with his sister, Louise.

The Porsche 356 is a 4 cylinder, air cooled, rear engine, rear wheel drive car with unitized pan and body construction. The chassis was a completely new design as was the 356's body which was designed by Porsche employee Erwin Komenda, while certain mechanical components including the engine case and some suspension components were based on and initially sourced from Volkswagen. Ferry Porsche described the thinking behind the development of the 356 in an interview with the editor of Panorama in September 1972. '...I had always driven very speedy cars. I had an Alfa Romeo, also a BMW and others. …By the end of the war I had a Volkswagen Cabriolet with a supercharged engine and that was the basic idea. I saw that if you had enough power in a small car it is nicer to drive than if you have a big car which is also overpowered. And it is more fun. On this basic idea we started the first Porsche prototype. To make the car lighter, to have an engine with more horsepower…that was the first two seater that we built in Carinthia (Gmünd)'.

The first 356 was road certified in Austria on June 8, 1948, and was entered in a race in Innsbruck where it won its class. Porsche re-engineered and refined the car with a focus on performance. Fewer and fewer parts were shared between Volkswagen and Porsche as the 1950s progressed. The early 356 automobile bodies produced at Gmünd were handcrafted in aluminum, but when production moved to Zuffenhausen, Germany in 1950, models produced there were steel-bodied. The aluminium bodied cars from that very small company are what are now referred to as 'prototypes'. Porsche contracted Reutter to build the steel bodies and eventually bought the Reutter company in 1963. The Reutter company retained the seat manufacturing part of the business and changed its name to 'Recaro'.

The 356 was built in four distinct series, the original ('pre-A'), followed by the 356 A, 356 B, and finally the 356 C. To distinguish among the major revisions of the model, 356s are generally classified into a few major groups. The 356 coupés and cabriolets built through 1955 are readily identifiable by their split (1948 to 1952) or bent (centre-creased, 1953 to 1955) windscreens. In 1956 the 356 A appeared, with a curved windshield. The A was the first road going Porsche to offer the Carrera four-cam engine as an option. In late 1959 the T5 356 B appeared; followed by the redesigned T6 series 356 B in 1962. The final version was the 356 C, little changed from the late T6 B cars but disc brakes replaced the drums. In the 356 B series the engine could be ordered with 60 hp, 75 hp as a Super or 90 hp in the rarest Super 90 series. The Roadster is one of the rarest 356 Convertibles and only made in the B Series. The S90 is the most desirable and fastest version.