Lecha Khouri beside the 1962 Porsche 356 B Karmann Hardtop Coupe “Notchback”.
When was the last time you’ve driven a 60 horsepower German engineered car? Was that car a supercar? I don’t think that any automotive manufacturer produces a 60hp engine in 2017. In fact, the 2017 Mitsubishi i-MiEV ES is the least powerful car produced, with 66hp coupled with a 1 speed automatic! I didn’t think that contraption existed!
Well, we learn something new everyday. What brings me to this story is the 1962 Porsche 356 B Notchback. Its official name wasn’t “Notchback”, that was a name given to it due to its styling, but it was referred to as the Karmann Hardtop Coupe. It all started in 1961 when Porsche decided to change things up a little bit. They installed a hardtop on a 356 Cabriolet body and welded that into place to create what is called the 356 B T5 Karmann Hardtop Coupe (Notchback).
The Porsche 356 B Notchback sitting at Autohaus Hamilton in Sydney.
So much for the 60’s isn’t it? Ideas like that don’t exist in this day and age. Because of that, the Notchback was produced in very low production numbers, in fact they only produced less than 1900, with many of those lost to accidents and deterioration. Porsche only produced the Notchback for two years, 1961 and 1962. They were all produced in left hand drive only.
The 60’s was a wonderful time, Democrat John F. Kennedy wins the U.S. Presidential Election after defeating Republican Richard Nixon. Kennedy became the first president and was the youngest person to have been elected into the highest office at the time. The comic book character Spider-Man makes his debut in the Amazing Fantasy #15 comic. Last but not least, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin become the first men to arrive on the Moon during NASA's Apollo 11 mission.
Side view showing the lines and the cabriolet based body.
And then there was the Porsche 356 B Notchback. Today, in 2017, I find the drive very engaging. What more could you want out of a classic sports car? I have an air-cooled, 1600cc flat 4 cylinder engine that produces 60 horsepower mated to a 4 speed manual stick shift gearbox. As we all know, the stick shift is a dying breed and driving this beauty revives the sensations that are created through the engagement of shifting through gears.
The 356 by all means is no speedy monster, it provides the right feel and definitely doesn’t rev out at all, we are talking about a redline starting at 4,500 rpms! Believe me, the forever demanding driving skill that one needs to adopt whilst sitting behind the wheel of the 356 is an experience that you would crave.
Without spoiling it too much more, take a look at my latest episode featuring the full drive by clicking on the window below.
This article is written by Lecha Khouri at Supercar Advocates, Sydney, Australia.