356, G-body, 964, 997, 991. Random names and numbers to some, these are of course the generations and internal model codes for one of Porsche’s most revered product lines: Speedster.
This journey to what is arguably the ultimate expression of topless sports car began in 1952 with the 356 1500 America Roadster. Widely seen as the forefather of the Porsche Speedster, it flopped, incidentally, after costing more to make than sell, driving coach builder Heuer-Glaser to bankruptcy in the process.
“Clearly used and adored by Butzi, the Speedster wears 2,065 kilometres on its clock today” Lessons were learned, with production moving in-house at Porsche, the Speedster now a cut-down version of the Cabriolet and running off the same production line as other 356s. In 1954, the Porsche Speedster as we…