Porsche Museum: Inspiration for the Porsche 924 Project

In mid-June, our team visited the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart, where we took a journey into the history of the brand through the many iconic four-wheelers, taking us back to the very beginning. 

During the visit, we were able to expand our knowledge and gather information for our ongoing Porsche 924 Le Mans project, and further increase our enthusiasm and excitement for the restoration.

Porsche history in brief

Porsche as a brand name first appeared in 1931. This was when Ferdinand Porsche founded his own design office in Stuttgart. Initially, the company only undertook automotive development and consultancy work, and did not produce its own cars. The largest such commission was the creation of the Volkswagen Beetle. 

The first Porsche model was introduced in 1948, the Porsche 356. 52 cars were sold the following year, and by the brand's 25th anniversary, the 10 000 unit milestone had been reached. The success story of the Porsche brand is still being written today, including by Hungarian design engineers, and its popularity is undiminished.

The Porsche Museum

The first museum was opened in 1976 and exhibited prototype vehicles. The facility we know today opened its doors on 29 January 2009, next to the company's headquarters, and contains many interesting and unique cars from the manufacturer's past. 

Of course, there were some rarities, vehicles that the team spent a long time with, but it was the racing cars that really amazed us, as we all have a motorsport past.

Porsche 917

The Porsche 917 was a prototype race car built by Porsche for the 5-litre class. It first made its debut in 1969 and, with continuous development, competed in various endurance championships until 1973. Initially a 4.5-litre 12-cylinder flat engine was used, with a power output of 520 horsepower. The engine capacity was increased over the years to 5.4 litres, reaching a full race power of 1100 horsepower in 1973. 

The 917 series was a hugely successful racing car family, with multiple Le Mans and Can-Am victories and numerous other races won.

Porsche 924

Apart from racing cars, we spent most of our time on the "transaxle" models, as we are currently working on the restoration of a car from this family, a limited edition Porsche 924 Le Mans. Unfortunately, we could not find exactly the same type of car in the museum, but we were still able to gather information about the model, as there were cars from both generations on display. 

The day at the museum was a wonderful memory for us. We learnt about the history of the Porsche brand, which goes back decades, and the fantastic cars that have been made during that time. It has been a great inspiration on the way to achieving our goals, as well as a useful source of information to ensure that the restoration of the Porsche 924 Le Mans is as authentic and factory-quality as possible.