by Jacquie Ang

If fate works in mysterious ways, then the hand of Destiny must have steered Ferdinand Porsche away from becoming a plumber to become a legend in motorsports.

At his birth on 3 September 1875, it seemed certain he would follow in his father’s footsteps. Until he found himself at the World Fair in Paris at the turn of the century, where the ingenuity of his wheel hub engines turned the spotlight on the young engineer. Before the dust could settle, Porsche had developed an all-wheel-drive racecar as well as the world’s first hybrid petrol-electric automobile.

Six years after his meteoric rise, Porsche was appointed Technical Director at Austro-Daimler in Wiener Neustadt. Under his charge was the model range of one of Europe’s largest automotive enterprises. He was only 31 years old then.

In 1910, his design of the Austro-Daimler touring car scored a triple victory in the Prince Henry Trials. In 1923, he notched up another triumph with the legendary Mercedes Compressor sports car. Without losing momentum, a two-liter racecar developed under his aegis won the prestigious Targa Florio the following year.

To cap a successful 25-year career in Austro-Daimler, Porsche founded a consultancy in engineering and vehicle design. Ever the pacesetter, his work went beyond creating vehicles for renowned manufacturers like Wanderer and Zündapp; he discovered trendsetting solutions in details like the Porsche torsion bar suspension.

His revolutionary ideas found its way in other cars — he was the designer behind the original Volkswagen Beetle, for which he received the official order to design and construct in 1934.

In 1939, he built three racing coupés called the “Berlin—Rom-Wagen”, considered the forefathers of Porsche sports cars, for long-distance endurance competition. It took another 9 years before the first sports car to bear Porsche’s name was introduced. Shortly after, the 356, a lightweight mid-engine roadster, emerged a first class victor at the Innsbruck Stadtrennen.

The evocative name of Porsche today has come to stand for the spirit of ceaseless innovation — the man never stops scaling new heights in the world of automobiles, even after his death at the age of 75 in 1951. That same year, the 356 SL won class victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The success was a pivotal moment that garnered international acclaim for the young sports car manufacturer. It is an undisputable statement that the rich legacy of Germany’s most famous sports car manufacturer will continue the successful run of triumphs and rewrite history on the tracks, cementing Porsche’s name in the hall of racing fame.

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JACQUIE ANG
Junior Assistant Editor
TAXI Design Network

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