The auction of the Porsche Type 64 will sell the missing link between Porsche and Volkswagen
Alvaro Avilés
17 May 2019
6 min.
The auction of the Porsche Type 64, the only original unit, will offer for sale the seed of what the brand would become years later.
The first Porsche 356 was built in 1948 and its design derives from the sketches that gave rise to the Volkswagen Type I, that is, the Beetle we all know. Ferdinand Porsche was the engineer in charge of bringing “the people’s car” to life.
However, between the Volkswagen Beetle and the Porsche 356 there was a model that served as a link between the two, a little-known model that laid the foundations for what Porsche would become in the following years. This project was called the Type 64, and only one original unit remains, which will be sold at a car auction this summer. These auctions move enormous amounts of money; proof of this is that Retromobile 2019 moved 42 million euros in transactions.
The Porsche Type 64 was based on the chassis of a Volkswagen Beetle, and its raison d’être was thanks to a whim of Adolf Hitler. The dictator wanted to demonstrate that his “people’s car” could be the fastest in a rally leaving Berlin and finishing in Rome. For this reason, he commissioned a model based on the Volkswagen Beetle but modified to become a racing machine.
The Porsche Type 64 was a heavily modified Volkswagen Beetle
Therefore, the engine originally used was the same one fitted to the 1938 Volkswagen Beetle. It had 985 cc, twin carburettors and 25 horsepower. However, after this modest heart passed through the hands of Porsche’s surgeons, they managed to extract 32, 40 and even 50 horsepower.
By today’s standards, this power may seem laughable. However, at the time it was no joke, and it was enough to catapult the Porsche Type 64 up to 160 km/h.
The bodywork was completely new and made of aluminium panels, creating far more aerodynamic shapes than those of a Volkswagen Beetle. However, the engineers did not want the Porsche to be completely different from the model it came from, so they made sure the design was similar. Thanks to this, the Porsche Type 64 has the characteristic ridge down the centre of the bonnet, the round headlamps at the ends of the front wings, or the grille on the rear bonnet.
One of the things that most draws attention in the design of the Porsche Type 64 is its narrow cabin. It had to be done this way to achieve a harmonious airflow and make the whole car faster. However, this type of design meant that the fuel tank had to be relocated and, most peculiarly, that the seats had to be placed in a staggered arrangement (the driver’s seat was set further forward than the passenger’s).
Two Porsche Type 64s to make one
Three Porsche Type 64s were built to compete in the 1939 Berlin-Rome rally. However, the goal they were created for was never achieved, because that race was never held, since Hitler decided it would be more fun to invade Poland than to test his new racing machines.
Of the three units, the first had an accident in 1939 and was wrecked. The second unit was built later and had better luck. It survived the war, although it was captured by the American army, and its soldiers decided to cut off its roof and leave it abandoned in a wasteland for many years. This unit was recovered in 2011 and, although little remained of what the car originally was, it was used as the basis for a replica.
The protagonist of this story is the third of the units that were manufactured of the Porsche Type 64. This one was built in 1940 and used the chassis of the first unit (it must not have been in very bad shape after the accident) and the engine of the second (the one seized by the American army).
This Porsche Type 64 spent almost 50 years in the same garage
The third unit of the Porsche Type 64 was restored in 1947 and, two years later, was sold to racing driver Otto Mathé. A curious detail of this transaction is that the sales contract specified that the car was a “Volkswagen Sport”. Mathé had a motorcycle accident and his right hand was left paralysed, so rather than abandon his racing car, he decided to move the steering wheel to the right so he could keep racing it.
The German driver raced the car in many events, having several accidents with it. However, he always repaired it and put it back on the track. During one of these rebuilds, Mathé painted it turquoise blue and decided to put the letters of Porsche on the small front grille, so it was the first time the car was christened with its real name.
Some time later it was repainted silver and remained in Mathé’s garage until 1995, the year the driver died. Since then, the car has changed owners several times, and this summer, you could be the next!
The Porsche Type 64 auction, scheduled for this summer
Needless to say, this special and unique unit is going to reach an exorbitant price. Experts claim it will fetch more than 20 million dollars, so it will likely become the most expensive Porsche in the world. The house in charge of the auction is the prestigious RM Sotheby’s.
Very high prices have already been paid at car auctions for some models of the brand, such as this Porsche 911 993 Turbo auctioned for 2.7 million euros. However, the record for the most expensive belongs to the Porsche 917K that Steve McQueen raced in the film “Le Mans”, which sold at a car auction in 2017 for no less than 14 million euros.
The most ruthless will tear their hair out: paying 20 million euros for a modified Volkswagen Beetle? It may seem crazy. However, this car must be understood for what it really is: the seed of one of the most prestigious brands in automotive history.
Kia offers an electric range of 10 models, 50 versions and 400 possible combinations 
The seven finalists for the 2027 European Car of the Year (COTY) are exclusively electric 
Peugeot E-208 GTi: a battery-powered toy that revives the spirit of the 1980s sports cars Comentarios cerrados