Neighbor’s 356 Turns Car Buff into a Porsche Fanatic

Sometimes, it’s not about purchasing a highly sought after classic but sharing your passion for a car with another enthusiast.

Every auto enthusiast has one car that they lust after for their entire lives. For some, like us, it’s unobtainable ones like a Lamborghini Murcielago, but for others, it’s something more reasonable. For Lyn Woodward, a contributor to Motor 1, it’s the Porsche 356. Woodward recently penned a piece on how she made a connection with her neighbor who just happens to own a neglected 356.

Woodward starts the story by giving some details on why she fell in love with the classic sports car. “When I was a kid, my dad had two Speedsters,” she writes. “The first blew up in a house fire. The second was lost to bankruptcy. It was the first car I fell in love with but has always been just out of reach.”

While Woodward hasn’t found a 356 to call her own, she’s lucky enough to have a neighbor who just so happens to own a 1964 Togo Brown 356C. And she finally found the courage to ask her neighbor to purchase the vehicle. Unlike some hasty enthusiasts, she didn’t knock on her neighbor’s door and pop the question. Instead, she talked to the owner, heard the complete details on the vehicle’s history, and got a feel for her neighbor’s ownership history before asking the vital question of whether she’d be willing to part with the 356C.

It’s a great read and is one that we don’t want to spoil. But long story short, Woodward didn’t end up with the car, at least not on that day. But she did help the owner get the car started. That may not sound like a difficult task, but it’s important to note that the last time the 356C was driven on a daily basis was back in 1987. Still, Woodward was up to the task.

“We drained the oil, which looked more like chocolate sauce, replaced the oil filter, and installed a new six-volt battery,” says Woodward. “Five quarts of 20W50 racing oil went in, and it was time.” After getting acquainted with the H-pattern transmission, Woodward attempted to start the car, which is something she’d been waiting to do for 11 years.

“The first time I turned it over nothing happened,” she says. “A gentle knock of the starter solenoid was enough to wake the slumbering German, and with the help of some starting fluid, the Togo brown specter sputtered then thwaaaped to life around me.”

After driving the vehicle into the sun, the story ends somewhat abruptly. While Woodward didn’t end up with the car at that moment, we have a feeling that there’s more to the story and can’t wait to hear the ending. Hopefully, there’s more to come.