1957 Porsche 356A 1600 Speedster. Photos by Teddy Pieper, courtesy Auctions America, unless otherwise noted.
Prices for Porsche 356 models have been on the upswing in recent years, so it was no surprise when Auctions America predicted that an unrestored 1957 Porsche 356A 1600 Speedster, recently pulled from long-term storage, would sell for $200,000 – $250,000 at its November Hilton Head sale. When the car crossed the auction block on Saturday, November 5, even the most optimistic couldn’t have predicted the final hammer price of $605,000 ($665,500 including fees), more than three times the original low estimate.
Originality enhances value, and in the case of this particular Porsche 356A T1 Speedster, it enhances it significantly. Purchased in June of 1957 by John Casper of Chicago, Illinois, the Porsche remained in his ownership for 54 years, though it was reportedly driven for just 18 of those years before being placed into storage in 1975. As Auctions America relates, Casper used the car as a summer driver, regularly attending Porsche Club of America events in the Midwest – always as a spectator and not as a racer.
Casper’s tale takes a sad turn in 1975, when the Porsche was parked by its owner for the final time. Auctions America is vague on the reason, saying only, “Unfortunately, at that time the owner became unable to drive the car anymore so it was put into storage.”
Most owners would sell a car that could no longer be enjoyed, but Casper kept his Aquamarine Blue Metallic Speedster in storage until the time of his death circa 2011. Five years later, a longtime friend took possession of the Porsche, enlisting the help of Auctions America to find the car’s next owner.
As presented, the unrestored car showed 31,257 miles on the odometer, and is said to come with the original interior, tonneau cover, top, side windows (yellowed, but otherwise in good condition), spare tire, jack, dealership invoice (listing a purchase price of $3,502), owner’s manual and service book. It isn’t clear if the car’s 60-horsepower, 1.6-liter air-cooled flat four is operational, but as with any car parked for over four decades, a thorough mechanical sorting prior to an attempted start-up would be well-advised. As for rust, the Speedster has very little, confirmation, perhaps, of its summer-only usage.
1963 Chevrolet Corvette. Photo by Pedro Carrillo, courtesy Auctions America.
Other lots in the top-10 at Hilton Head included a 2004 Porsche Carrera GT, which sold for $800,000; a 1967 AC Shelby 427 Cobra, which sold $726,000; a 2006 Ford GT Heritage Edition, which sold for $305,250; a 1960 Maserati 3500 GT by Touring, which sold for $222,750; a 1983 Ferrari 512 BBi, which sold for $175,000; a 1965 Jaguar E-Type Series I 4.2 Roadster, which sold for $163,900; a 1958 Jaguar XK 150S Roadster, which sold for $125,400; a 1965 Shelby continuation Cobra, which sold for $115,000; a 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Coupe, which sold for $110,000; and a 1967 Porsche 911S Coupe, which also sold for $110,000.
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