Porsche 550 Spyder (1953 - 1956)

Although these modern Porsche race cars set out to make racing records and record win after win, there is one Porsche race car that started it all: the Porsche 550 Spyder.

During the 1930s, Porsche struggled with establishing themselves in the motorsports world. Taking inspiration from Ferdinand Porsche’s Porsche 356 and spyder prototypes built and raced by Walter Glöckler, Porsche sought out to create their own first race car. Introduced in 1953, the 550 Spyder won its first race at the Nürburgring and went on to record class victories at Le Mans and Mexico’s La Carrera Panamericana. What made it special was its engineering design, which set new standards for completeness. Unlike contemporary Italian cars, it was not jewel-like or flashy, but it was a well-engineered tool from tip to tail, making it a dependable and solid starter race car for Porsche.