Not mine - but I wish it was!

Yes it was. It was easier to take the motor out to change plugs and adjust the valves in the 356 body.

Hope whoever buys it actually drives it some. It wasn't originally intended to be an ornament.

Strange that Porsche would put that performance engine in a cabriolet 356.  This mix seems a real juxtaposition of components.  That engine belongs in a real speedster or a 550.

But then, I've never being a fan of how the 356 changed over the years, becoming heavier and less attractive.

At that price, and with the likelihood it will sit in protective storage, how is this car not equivalent to a non-fungible token?  All but a very precious few people will actually see it in the flesh, even fewer may touch it, and who knows if anyone will actually operate it (at least as intended).  It is nothing more than a set of digital photos with a clear single owner.

@Panhandle Bob posted:

Hope whoever buys it actually drives it some. It wasn't originally intended to be an ornament.

It has 65,000 miles on it already. Love that it has been driven

If you desired, for a paltry $1100 (over the price of the 1600 Super engine, which was already $260 over the cost of the 1600 N in a 2500-$3,000 car) the factory would put a GS tuned 4 cam engine in any car, be it Coupe, Cabriolet or Speedster.  A pretty cool option, I think!                                                                                                                                 

The first price list isn't marked as to where or when but the 1300 was still available so I'm guessing that at the latest it's 1955 or '56?   The 2nd is from Auto Europe (Beverly Hills, CA), 1958.

@Panhandle Bob and @WNGD- Wouldn't it be great if it was still being used as it was meant to be?  Unfortunately, the mileage shown is probably from new, with who knows how few since the restoration.  A car doesn't clock much going from the garage to the transport, on the the show field, back to the transport and back to the garage.  It's sacrilege, when you think about it- these cars really were meant to be driven.

At our inaugural NV750 in August 2020, someone brought their Carrera 2 to the rally.  The Carrera 2's were approximately double the cost of a 1600cc 356C.  The Carrera 2 engine, the type 587, was enlarged to approximately 2-litres, as opposed to the 1.5-litres of the Type 547 in the 550 Spyders.

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It looks like these are very good for going through tunnels.

Beyond that, I don't know about bang for the buck.

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@ALB posted:

If you desired, for a paltry $1100 (over the price of the 1600 Super engine, which was already $260 over the cost of the 1600 N in a 2500-$3,000 car) the factory would put a GS tuned 4 cam engine in any car, be it Coupe, Cabriolet or Speedster.  A pretty cool option, I think!                                                                                                                                 

The first price list isn't marked as to where or when but the 1300 was still available so I'm guessing that at the latest it's 1955 or '56?   The 2nd is from Auto Europe (Beverly Hills, CA), 1958.

@Panhandle Bob and @WNGD- Wouldn't it be great if it was still being used as it was meant to be?  Unfortunately, the mileage shown is probably from new, with who knows how few since the restoration.  A car doesn't clock much going from the garage to the transport, on the the show field, back to the transport and back to the garage.  It's sacrilege, when you think about it- these cars really were meant to be driven.

                                                                                                                                                                                               

Adjusted for inflation, I think it’s cheaper to get the GT-3RS version of the 911 over the standard Carrera.

”Paltry” $1100 would probably get you a VW sedan back then. Our 67 was $1750 fob.

@Kevin - Bay Area posted:

At our inaugural NV750 in August 2020, someone brought their Carrera 2 to the rally.  The Carrera 2's were approximately double the cost of a 1600cc 356C.  The Carrera 2 engine, the type 587, was enlarged to approximately 2-litres, as opposed to the 1.5-litres of the Type 547 in the 550 Spyders.

I seem to recall reading that they made a few 1300cc 547’s as well, to comply with class regs at Le Mans.

The 4-cam engine, for all the hype over the years, sounded just like all of our type 1 engines below 4,500 rpm and was available as a factory (and often as a dealer) option for those who wished to drive the price of their tiny, little German sports cars up higher than the cost of a similar year Corvette.  Of course, putting that engine in, say, a 550 Spyder to annihilate said Vette happened more than once, for sure.

BUT!  Get that same 4-cam up over 5 grand and into the 7K - 8K rpm range and that Banshee wail was both mesmerizing and terrorizing, especially when it went quickly past said Vette driver.

Few of us ever get to hear a 4-cam at speed on a track, these days.  The last I heard one was at Lime rock Park a few years back on one of their "Historics" race days.  They have a glorious, upper register sound, to be sure.

I believe that 2-liter version of the 4-cam made close to 200 horsepower. A real feat in the day.

If you have access to the latest Panorama magazine, they have a great article about a 1957 356A Carrera GT Coupe, original condition, with it's original Type 547 4 cam engine to boot. Crusty, crappy and just perfect!

110 hp @ 6400 rpm from the factory according to the article.

120 hours to assemble by an experienced tech. With timing taking as much as 8 hours.

I read the article yesterday.  The engine builder took a year to complete the engine.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=...amp;feature=youtu.be

To hear someone who knows the four cam refer to it as “obscenely complex” made me chuckle.

@edsnova posted:

I believe that 2-liter version of the 4-cam made close to 200 horsepower. A real feat in the day.

I've heard that as well, Ed.  I think I remember reading that one of the last versions of the 2 liter GT dynoed at 190 hp at 7,000? 7500 rpm (maybe in a 904)?  That would be a blast in a Speedster!

Does anybody know where the battery is located in a GS/GT Speedster?  Between the larger gas tank and the spare tire it doesn't look like there's room for it up front...  Al

These 4-cam engines were made for racing primarily, not realy for street use but hey...if you had the dough and your own 4-cam trained mechanic for tune ups, what the hey!!!

@ALB posted:

I've heard that as well, Ed.  I think I remember reading that one of the last versions of the 2 liter GT dynoed at 190 hp at 7,000? 7500 rpm (maybe in a 904)?  That would be a blast in a Speedster!

Indeed it would. But you could have a 200hp Subie or Type4 for less than the cost of a 547 cylinder head. And it wouldn’t require a $1,000 tuneup every 10-15 hours.

Yeah. But they make great sounds and are aircooled. What could be cooler than that?