Even though Porsche wasn’t born on the race track, it certainly matured there.
This aerodynamically-shaped 356, called the SL Gmund Coupe, is Porsche’s first racing car, which won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in its class after the race organizers convinced the Porsche family to take part in the 1951 race.
Porsche’s racing pedigree is as old as its first car, which – according to the Germans – was certified for road usage in 1948, in Austria, and then raced a fast demonstration lap at the city street race in Innsbruck. However, since it was the very first 356 prototype and had a mid-engine layout, many didn’t see it as a racecar.
Following “production number 1”, Porsche adopted the FR layout and built about 47 road-going 356 models in Gmund, Austria, before relocating the production to Zuffenhausen. These are now known as pre-A Porsches and are regarded as valuable irreplaceable machines; they all featured hand-made aluminum bodies, as opposed to the newer steel-bodied variants, and 1100 cc air-cooled flat-fours.
The Super Leicht Gmund Coupes were manufactured after Porsche moved to Zuffenhausen, from the company’s own supply of aluminum bodies left from Gmund, and the number 46 is the most important of all. Besides winning the 1951 Le Mans race (finishing 1st in its class, and 20th overall), the car went on becoming a successful in the United States.
Of course, the vehicle’s story doesn’t stop there, but we’ll let you find out more by watching Jay Leno’s video down below.