1961 Porsche 356B Karmann Notchback Coupe Is a Fantasy Car Come to Life

The same owner has been lucky enough to own this car twice, and now it’s your chance as rare ride heads to auction.

One could argue that the 356 Speedster is the most iconic Porsche 356 body style. For those that prefer a fixed roof over their heads, most would picture a fastback coupe. Less well-known is the Karmann bodied notchback coupe.

While better known for the later Volkswagen creations that bore their name Karmann built bodies for the Porsche 356 in addition to Reutter, Porsche’s next-door neighbor. Karmann’s unique notchback coupe, produced in 1961 and 1962 only, resembled a cabriolet wearing a hard top permanently welded into place. Indeed, that’s the way the car was originally built in 1961, while the 1962 model looked similar but was built from the beginning as a hardtop.

With values for all classic Porsches rising, it was only a matter of time before the Karmann coupes began to get the recognition they deserve. This 1961 example on Bring A Trailer is currently bid up to $36,000, and that price will likely rise as the auction inches towards the end.

The seller owned the car in 1970 before selling it to a racing school. From there, it was owned by a professor who built the engine up and kept the car for around 40 years before the current seller bought it back in 2013.

While Karmann coupes are rare to begin with, with just 1,048 produced in 1961, this one is extra special, thanks to the high-performance 1720cc engine built up for it in 2014. Starting with a 1965 356C case, the rotating assembly consists of a lightened crankshaft with JE pistons housed in Competition Engineering cylinders.

Competition Engineering also supplied the Torque Master camshaft, and the carburetor jetting was also changed to reflect the additional air required to feed the now much hungrier engine.. The engine was further upgraded for power, reliability, and driveability with electronic ignition, and electric fuel pump, and a 12 volt electrical system.

Once again, the seller is ready to let their baby go, and we’re lucky to have a chance to own this very special, very rare 356.

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Cameron Vanderhorst

Cam VanDerHorst has been a contributor to Internet Brands' Auto Group sites for over three years, with his byline appearing on Ford Truck Enthusiasts, Corvette Forum, JK Forum, and Harley-Davidson Forums, among others. In that time, he's also contributed to Autoweek, The Drive, and Scale Auto Magazine.

He bought his first car at age 14 -- a 1978 Ford Mustang II -- and since then he’s amassed an impressive and diverse collection of cars, trucks, and motorcycles, including a 1996 Ford Mustang SVT Mystic Cobra (#683) and a classic air-cooled Porsche 911.

In addition to writing about cars and wrenching on them in his spare time, he enjoys playing music (drums and ukulele), building model cars, and tending to his chickens.

You can follow Cam, his cars, his bikes, and his chickens at @camvanderhorst on Instagram.

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