Porsche 356 Cabriolet Review

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4.5 stars
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demousey's Review of Porsche 356 Cabriolet

28th Oct 2003

Overall Rating

4 stars
  • Value for money
    3.5 stars
  • Practicality
    4 stars
  • Performance
    4 stars
  • Reliability
    4.5 stars
Good Points

Porsche badge Cachet, beautiful lines (in my humble opinion), full parts support (new and used), good levels of performance and handling(for a 1960's 1600), more refinement than most convertables of that era.


Bad Points

Associated costs of restoration can be huge. Twin choke carbs hard to tune. Heater if not working perfectly can be a nightmare (ah-la VW beetle). Often considered the 'poor cousin' to the 356 speedster.


General Comments

I first saw my baby sitting forlornly in the rain at the rear of a local car dealer who had just traded her on a new BMW (poor misguided individual). She was a 1962 LHD 1 owner Porsche 356b Cabriolet, I did the unthinkable and purchased her on the spot, no mehanical check, and just a short test drive.
Fortunately I was lucky, and she was in good condition. At first I couldn't believe how agricultural she was, but given the context of her year of manufacture, she drives wonderfully.
There is an initial feeling of understeer which (unlike the more powerful porsche 911) can't really be neutralised with a heaver right foot, but choose your line (stay off the exceptionally good drum brakes)and keep accelerating through the corner and it feels great, the independent torsion bar suspension is good (even better if you have the optional transverse leaf spring).
Because my car has no real competition history and is not one of the more desirable (see rare) models, a full concourse restoration is uneconomic, one could easily spend twice the purchase price of the car (in New Zealand) on a full restoration with correct parts.
As with any classic, the reaction to her is generally positive, with none of the associated 'rich w@nker' status often associated with the porsche badge (I previously owned a porsche 964).
Although the 356 and the VW Beetle share a common ancestory, they are two completely different beasts (in my opinion the beetle being the more practical of the two). The low stance and high and wide sills of the 356 making entry and exit quite difficult while with the top up visibility is poor with huge blind spots. Having said that, on a sunny day, with the top down, picnic basket strapped to the luggage rack, there's hardly a better way to get to that grassy hill over there.

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