Porsche 356SL John Von Nuemann bought this car from Max Hoffman in 1952. It was one of three that were imported at the end of 1951, all coupes. Von Nuemann raced his new coupe but the car was not competitive. He cut the top off the car, turning it into a stripped down roadster that he called a 'speedster' and then achieved racing success with the car, the first time that a Porsche won a race in the United States. Von Nuemann claims to have pressured Max Hoffman to import a low cost roadster. From that effort came the America Roadster and the Speedster. Bruce Anderson has a nice article about this car and the owner Chuck Forge. I asked Chuck if there was any possibility that his car was the class winning 1951 Le Mans car. He answered that there are those who think so. |
