The History of Porsche cars

Dr Ing h.c. F Porsche AG (thankfully most commonly shortened to just ‘Porsche’) was founded by Ferdinand Porsche in 1931. Although they didn’t manufacture their own car for many years after that, you may recognize the similarities between the bug-eyed Volkswagen Beetle, one of the world’s most iconic cars, and the early Porsche range. This is because, it was in fact Ferdinand Porsche’s design. After designing the most iconic car the world as ever known for a different manufacturer, Ferdinand Porsche went on to design tanks during WW2. He lost out on the contracts in the end and subsequently lost his position at Volkswagen. In a further twist of fate, he was arrested and imprisoned, although never tried for war crimes. His son, Ferry Porsche continued to work in the motor industry and launched the Porsche 356 whilst his father was in jail. With some success in the world of motorsport the production of the 356 switched hands from Porsche Konstruktionen in Austria to Porsche AG in Zuffenhausen, which is still home to Porsche today.

Iconic

It seems that iconic was in the blood. In 1964, the 356 was redesigned and became the 911, a new legend was born. It seems that frog eyes add character to a vehicle, and as well as speed comfort and reliability, facial features are what people really want. With a 6-cylinder ‘boxer’ engine 911 was headed by the son of Ferry Porsche, Ferdinand. Quickly (yes, that is a pun) becoming one of the most successful cars on tracks, in rallies and sales for the road, the 911 has remained Porsche’s showcase vehicle all the way through every decade since. Consistent with the 911 branding, other variants have appeared over the years such as the Carrera. The Carrera GT topped the charts for the best sports cars of the noughties and came in the top eight of all time. Their first V8 engined vehicle came in the form of an SUV. The Cayenne launched in 2002 and in 2017 broke the world record for the furthest distance a production car could pull an aircraft. The Cayenne pulled a 285-ton Airbus A380, forty-two metres along the tarmac. Other notable models along the way have been the 1996 Boxter. A two-seater roadster which saw the addition of its fastback, coupe cousin, the Cayman. The Boxter and Cayman both proved popular with those not quite earning enough to nab a 911 and flooded the streets worldwide. A more recent edition to the Porsche line-up is the luxury cross-over SUV, the Macan. Keeping in tow with global trends the cross-over SUV’s have gained in popularity for offering comfort, safety without losing performance. The Macan is no exception, in fact it’s quite possibly pound for pound, one of the best cross-overs on the market today.

Back to the Future

Today, the Porsche is as popular as ever. Their solid builds offer fast, highly functioning sports cars with luxury linings and cockpits with real comfort. Their latest venture into the all-electric world with the Taycan has seen petrol-heads across the globe recoil in fear. Porsche promises that the 911 will be going nowhere fast (poorly chosen wording), and the Taycan is merely a glimpse into what the future holds. For more on the Taycan, check our review here.