The Porsche 550 Spyder was introduced at the 1953 Paris Auto Show and completely changed the world of racing. This low-slung mid-engined marvel earned the reputation of being a giant killer because it punched way above its weight. Its motorsport abilities also helped introduce Porsche to American buyers.
From its conception until 1956, just 90 examples of the 550 Spyder were produced. And because they were built to race, many were involved in crashes. Thus, when a real 550 Spyder with racing history comes up for auction, collectors and investors bid it to the moon. Four years ago, a 1958 Porsche 550A set a record at Bonhams for $5,170,000 (ยฃ4,115,763).
While this might not have exactly the same caliber, we believe it’s just as interesting. The car is set to be auctioned in September at the Gooding & Company event in London, to be held at Hampton Court Palace. It’s been valued at up to ยฃ1,750,000, equivalent to $2.1 million, though we wouldn’t be surprised if it’s worth more because of the history.
A Porsche 550 Spyder barn find? Yes, please.
You have to wonder how one of the most famous race cars of all time ended up in a barn. Originally, this example of the 550 Spider was used as a promotional car outside of the Porsche factory and was painted bright red with white accents.
After that, the hood was painted white and the car went to Rita Rampinelli, a trailblazer of women’s motorsport. she raced the spyder in June of 1956 at the Saint-Ursanne-Les Rangiers race.
In September that year, #550-0079 was sold to fellow Swiss race car driver Heinz Schiller, who competed at Avus, Monza, and a number of Swiss races before it was sold again. In 1958, the car went to Edouard Margairaz, who competed at Swiss hill climbs, followed ft the Formula 1 driver Jo Siffert.
You may have noticed that this doesn’t look like a Porsche 550, and that’s because it was converted with the Porsche RS60 kit in the 1960s, presumably to make it more competitive.
The RS60 (also called the RS 60) is more streamlined and helped Porsche achieve a historic victory at Sicily’s Targa Florio in 1960. Porsche would go on to win the Florio another seven times with race cars such as the Porsche 904 Carrera GTS, the 906 Carrera 6, the 908, and the 911 Carrera RSR. By the way, this is all tied to the heritage of the current 718 series.
The car went into storage in a barn somewhere in Switzerland in the 1980s and hasn’t seen the light of day until now. More than 35 years of patina are visible, but at least aluminum doesn’t rust.
