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Genuine Cabriolet In British Racing Green on 2040-cars

Year:1958 Mileage:1000 Color: British Racing Green /
 Tan
Location:

Galveston, Texas, United States

Galveston, Texas, United States
Transmission:Manual
Body Type:Convertible
Vehicle Title:Clear
Engine:Type 1 VW 1600
Fuel Type:Gasoline
For Sale By:Private Seller
Condition:

Used

VIN (Vehicle Identification Number)
: 151194
Year: 1958
Number of Cylinders: 4
Make: Porsche
Model: 356
Trim: Cabriolet
Options: Convertible
Drive Type: RWD
Mileage: 1,000
Exterior Color: British Racing Green
Warranty: Vehicle does NOT have an existing warranty
Interior Color: Tan

Up for auction is a 1958 356A Porsche Cabriolet painted in British Racing Green.  A classic example of a rare open A style Porsche with smooth, streamlined headlights.  The car was discovered in Houston Texas in 1988 and has been owned by the same owners ever since.  We replaced the floor pan, longitudinals, and front torsion tubes, the bottoms of both doors had suffered from rust when we found it, so we welded in replacement panels.  Significant body work was done, as well as lots of mechanical restoration to get the car up and running and on the road. The front and rear suspensions have been rebuilt, all new bearings, etc were installed. Please see all photos in the link provided. I have included some photos of the restoration, as well as some recent movies of the car running. The car is currently 12V. Please visit the Photobucket link: 


Details:

-Originally the car was painted Fjord Green by the factory, with a tan interior. We painted it a Jaguar British Racing Green.
 
-It also featured side trim moulding running on both sides of the car like the trim found on Speedsters. This is a very rare feature to be found on Cabriolet models. However I did not like the way that these lines distracted from the organic shape of the car, and brazed in the holes. See the link photos for this detail. Those holes could be drilled back out if you were trying to achieve more authenticity. I do not have any of that trim to offer.

-The car passes inspection and runs. It is currently registered. The turns signals work, as do headlights, horn, windshield wipers, brakes, and the gears shift smoothly. The radio antenna provided by Stoddard is mounted, however not connected to stereo.The convertible top opens and closes well without any problems. It seals well when closed, there are no leaks when it rains. Car drives well, but I have had some problems with it over heating lately. I can only drive it about 20 minutes before the oil light turns on and I must stop the car to cool things down. 
 
- The car has the Lojack detection system installed, which allows the police to track the car if ever stolen. However, since the car has been restored over the years, the car sat up without the battery connected. The lojack device is most likely defunct at this point. Lojack claims that they will inspect and replace it for a fee.

-The front hood, engine lid, seats and drivers door are original to the car (#151194). The front hood has not suffered any kinks.

-The passenger door, transmission (#26906), bumpers and convertible top (#64376) were taken off of 356A parts cars and are OEM.

-The doors have all glass and metal vent windows. Metal was re-chromed during our restoration. The regulators work well, the windows roll up and down smoothly. Vent windows open and close well.  

-The engine is a rebuilt Type 1 VW 1600cc. Its running with dual Weber carbs and features an SVDA Aircooled.Net distributor. The engine could stand a tune up, does drip oil, but runs fairly well. It is currently 12 Volt.

-The gas tank was removed, sandblasted, and chemically sealed using the "Gas Tank Renu-USA" service. It is the original gas tank.

-All brake slave cylinders were relined with stainless steel linings to prevent rust corrosion, a service provided through Stoddard cars.

-The seat upholstery, fabric convertible top, and tan headliner were purchased from Autos International, and installed by local upholsterers.

-The Odometer was restored by North Hollywood Speedometer & Clock. The tachometer is not connected. The speedometer works fine.

-Most of the exterior rubber trim is in good shape. It has been replaced within the last 10 years. The metal exterior trim is in good shape, with little light rust spots here and there that could be polished out. 

-The OEM over rider tubes were purchased online and re-chromed locally. The bumper guards are reproductions from Stoddard Cars. 

-The tires are relatively new, in good shape. I am missing the spare wheel.

-The lot includes a working 12V battery, and a functioning 356 jack, one worn though original sunvisor, and a few misc. hardware sets for the interior.  

Areas in need of attention:

-As the photos show, the car does not have any floor mats or interior carpeting, or side door panels on the interior. I do not have any of those pieces to offer.

-Please look at the photos closely. The finish is not perfect, while en large the paint job looks great there are several small chips here and there. The passenger door has a small dent in it. Also on top of the front right fender, there is a slight noticeable rift where the nose panel was welded on. Originally this was invisible, however after several years, the plastic filler has distorted slightly.

-There is also a tiny penny sized rust hole on the underside of the rear passenger cowl. See photos.

-The floor pan and majority of metal underneath is solid and well protected by undercoating. However I have recently noticed a small pin hole in the front of the battery box panel. It could be ignored, or patched. The original battery box has all been replaced with metal repro panels, however the area is not as tidy as it could be. Some of the seams are not as square as original. This is probably the area that would need the most attention to improve the quality of the restoration. 

-As stated earlier, we replaced the front torsion bars since they were damaged in a collision before we acquired the car. While my repair and welding work is solid, it may not be as seamless and as cosmetically pleasing as possible.

- The finish on the bottom of the rear cowl has suffered from overheating, and filler has cracked in that area. See photo.

-The car does not have a glove box interior. It does have a contemporary car stereo with a detachable face plate mounted in there. Two speakers are mounted in the small "dug outs". They are not the Blaupunkt original. The working horn installed is a 12 Volt VW make, not the original 6V Bosch.

-The car was in a few collisions before we acquired it, so there has been extensive bodywork done on it. There is plastic filler in various areas. See photos.

  

I have plenty of documentation of the ongoing restoration and could provide that with the sale if interested. Please email me if you have further questions.









On Aug-31-14 at 20:51:34 PDT, seller added the following information:

A Correction about the mileage: the speedometer reads 3449. 

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