Chesil Speedster

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Although it looks spartan at first glance, the 356 was in fact a milestone in car design and is one of those rare machines that just gets more impressive the closer you study it.

Porsche’s first production car, the 356 was launched way back in 1948 and remained in production until 1965. Lightweight, nimble and exciting to drive, this iconic rear-engined air-cooled marvel began a cult that continues to this day, winning the hearts of generations of driving enthusiasts who revere the blend of speed, style and wayward engineering genius that is uniquely Porsche.

Designed by Ferry Porsche and styled by Erwin Komenda, it began life with an air-cooled flat-four 1100cc Volkswagen engine producing just 40bhp and was effectively little more than a VW Beetle in a party frock. However, by a process of continual engineering refinement and improvement, it quickly grew into a world-class sportscar and achieved success in such top events as Le Mans, the Mille Miglia, Targa Florio and Carrera Panamericana, as well as countless other races and rallies worldwide.

A bewildering number of sub-models were produced and today they fetch anything from £50k to £1m depending on the spec. Naturally, these high prices have spawned an industry of copy-cat manufacturers to cater for the many people who would love to own a genuine 356 but simply can’t afford to.

Top of the tree is Dorset based Chesil, a company who have built a reputation for providing one of the best 356 look-alikes on the market. Available as a complete factory build, or as a home-build kit, they can be tailored to the customer’s requirements meaning that no two are the same.

Using a Beetle donor car and a top quality GRP body, they certainly look the part and with a variety of Arnie Levics engines on offer can be made to go very well too.

The vendor of this fine looking example commissioned its build from the Chesil factory, providing them with a rolling chassis taken from a show-Beetle that they had owned since 1996, finally collecting the completed car in April 2006.

Fitted with a 1,776cc Arnie Levics engine with stainless twin exhaust, electronic ignition and twin Dellortos, numerous extras were incorporated, including Type 3 drums supplied by the Type 3 Detectives, a limited slip diff and tall ratio Type 3 transmission. More recently a Clifford Thatcham Immobiliser, high torque starter, new battery and cut-off have been added. Used for VW shows and trips to the beach, it has been been refreshed earlier in the year with a full professional respray in gorgeous Aquarius Blue and fitted with new wheels and tyres at the same time, the bill for this work totalling more than £6,000.

Complete with a fitted Covercraft car cover and MOTd until June 2016, it certainly turns heads wherever it goes and is only being offered for sale due to lack of use.