1960 Porsche 356 B Super 90 coupe

• “Stock looking” air-cooled engine producing 130 HP

• Restoration managed by Rod and Zayne Emory at Emory Motorsports

• Most powerful 356 available in 1960

The 356 received engine and body revisions in 1959, including the “Super 90” engine, seen here in this car on display, and the model designation was now referred to as 356 B. The Super 90 engine referred to its 90-horsepower output, a 33% increase from the 356 “Pre-A” cars of the early 50’s. Super 90 was the most powerful push rod engine available from Porsche at the time, prior to 4-Cam engines being introduced.

This car was purchased in highly original condition, though was desperate for some love. This car was fully restored by Rod Emory, Zayne Emory, and the team at Emory Motorsports to original specification, with all details carefully considered down to the specific color of the carpet, which is no longer available. The Super 90 engine was built by Ed Pink, and though it appears in stock form, utilizes a stronger camshaft to produce a beefy 130 horsepower, comparable to the 356 Carrera 2 which was the most powerful production 356 sold to the public.

The 356 is referred to as a cousin of the Beetle, both utilizing air-cooled flat-four engines. Ferry Porsche drove a supercharged Beetle during the 1940’s, understooding that a small, light car with a smaller engine was just as exciting to drive as a bigger vehicle with a more powerful engine. Originally, the engine case and suspension components were sourced from Volkswagen, though as the company evolved in the 50’s and 60’s, both engine and suspension setups matured evolving to be much more complicated and capable.

The Porsche 356 is the first production Porsche built over the course of 17 years from 1948-1965. All 356 models featured different variations of an air-cooled flat-four-cylinder engine mounted in the rear of the car, ranging from 1.1 liters to 2.0 liters in the most powerful models. The 356 was created by Ferry Porsche, a few years after his father Ferdinand Sr. designed the original Volkswagen Beetle. Porsche built just 50 cars during the first two years of production, though a class win at the 1951 24 Hours of Le Mans boosted popularity, and after production concluded in 1965, 76,000 examples of the 356 were built.

Specifications:

Engine: 1.6 Liter air-cooled Flat 4-cylinder

Horsepower: 130 hp @ 5500 rpm

Torque: 125 ft lbs @ 4500 rpm

Top Speed: 115 mph

Weight: 2100 lbs