ziim

I have an discussion going on and would like to gather some information.
Thanks.

ked

philosophically, the 356 might be considered sort of an evolution of the VW (esp the Paris-Rome cars of '39), but much had to do with the circumstances of Ferry Porsche starting a sports car company after the ruin of WWII, and the design & engineering + IP relationship w/ the reconstituted VW business (started in the '30s by his Dad under Reich auspices) in the late '40s / early '50s.

early on Porsche used mass produced parts from VW whenever they could, but (significantly) the bodies weren't seperate from the frame. as things developed, Porsche was focused on a personal vision informed by competition & elite qualities, while VW paid attention to becoming an industrial enterprise in a market driven by volume, cost/price targets and general consumer needs & tastes.

as time went by, Porsche quickly diverged from the VW, esp in drivetrain and susp... and interior and...

now that the Porsche family (esp inc Piech) controls both, I'd say both approaches were right.

Reimu

That was a very good post...

Pedro356C

Beware of the Porsche Gods!!!!!

Just kidding...other than basic concept and Gmund era interchangeable parts, completely different cars...charming transportation versus remarkable sports car...drive both and you'll understand...

Johnny G Pipe

Here's a list of interchangeable or shared parts from an unconfirmed source. No responsibility accepted. (And can I add from my own experience that VW brake light switch works fine on a 'c', but valve cover gasket and clips are waaayyyy off!). Like Pedro says, mainly older models on this list.

Front Suspension


Rubber steering cookie that fits between steering shaft and steering box
Tie rods
Tie rod clamps, bolts, and washers
Tie rod ends - VW tie rod ends do not have the grease fittings [check size of tapered stud - Porsche wnet to larger ones with "A" types]
Rubber grease cups that fit under the rod ends
Steering knuckle (spindle) [only up to about '55, maybe some '56]
King pins and bushings
Link pins, bushings and shims (The only part that does not come in the VW link pin kit that you will need in rebuilding your Porsche front end is the specially shaped retainer bushings that fit in the eye of the suspension arm. They serve to hold the rubber O-ring in place to keep in grease and keep out dirt and water. You may be able to use your own retainer bushings, but if not, they are still available through the dealer.)
Bolt, nut and washer used to adjust link pins.
Steering damper - VW bus
Rubber bumper between front trailing arms for 1950-55 Porsches
Front wheel ball bearings for 1950-58 Porsches
Steering gear box for pre 1958 Porsches
Front drum seals for 1950-63 Porsches
Front trailing arms and link pin carriers 1950-55 Porsches
Some front torsion bars
Rear Suspension


Large and small rear axle O-rings
Rear axle seal and outer bearing [and bearing inner and outer spacers, bearing retainer for 1950-63 -- 356C uses the bearing and inner spacer]
Rear axle tubes and shafts
axle boot
36mm rear axle retaining nut
some torsion bars and trailing arms
Brakes


Master cylinder resevoir for all 356's through 1963 - VW bus through 1967. Plastic resevoir that fits the Porsche master cylinder with no alterations. I am a purist, but this is definitely an improvement over the Porsche aluminum resevoir that has a tendency to sprout holes after several years of use. The cost is about 1/2 of the Porsche replacement part.
Backing plate retaining bolts
19mm wheel cylinder overhaul kits [3/4" cups available at auto supply stores which is all you usually need]
Almost all nuts, bolts and washers used on the VW front suspension are interchangeable with Porsche
Interior


Hella interior lights mounted on roof are the same as those used on early model Karmann Ghia
Interior door handles are VW parts
Window crank will fit - they have white ***** which would be fine for most "A" models and earlier
The accelerator pedal rubber is an Opel part
Clutch and brake pedal rubber are 914 and 911 parts
Light bulbs
Speedometer cable (VW sedan)- check length as some VW cables are a bit short when suspension is fully extended
Some windshield wiper motors for early 356's
Rear window latch ***** on 911's on the same as those used on 356's
Shifting lever boot same as the 914
Exterior


Headlight assembly early VW - If you specify that you want the lens that says Hella instead of VW. It is still available and is the original and authentic Porsche lens [editor's note: Remember, this article was written in 1996!]
The front directional lens and lens gaskets on 1960-65 are available through Mercedes Benz. They were used on the 190 and 220 series
The rubber window washer spraying units on 356C and late "B" mounted by the windshield wipers are 914 parts
Windshield wiper blades
The license plate light assemblies for 1960-65 are the same as those used on the early Mercedes 190 and 220 series
The backup light assembly for 1960-65 is the same as those used on 1967-72 VW bus (change bulb to 6-volt)
The rear reflectors are the same as those used on the Mercedes 190 series
In case you are short a spare tire wheel, the VW 5 lug wheel will fit until a Porsche wheel can be located
Early fuel tank cap ("A" and early "B")
Older VW jack
Engine (36hp VW Only)


Generators brushes and bearings (from 40hp VW also)
Cooling fan, generator and pulley (from 40hp VW also)
Starter and solenoid (from 40hp VW also)
Distributor cap, points, rotor and drive mechanism
Oil pressure relief valves and sprin, for pre-1958 356's
Oil pressure sending unit (all VW)
Flywheel seal
Crank shaft end play spacers
Dowel pins for main bearing location
Some oil pumps and gears for pre-1960 Porsches
Some oil pump housing for pre-1958 Porsches
Crankshaft timing gear, key, spacer, distributor drive gear and clip
Crankshaft timing gear - will have to drill dowel pin holes
Some gaskets on 1500 Porsches except valve covers
Some fuel pumps on early model Porsche
Throw out bearing (ball bearing type - any VW)
Clutch disk and pressure plate assembly (VW transporter. Rigid center and spring center disks available for 180mm and 200mm. Coil spring pressue plates available for 180mm. 200mm pressure plate not usable)
Dipstick, only on 1500 Porsches
Spark plug connector
O-ring on distributor shaft
Valve adjusting nut
Oil cooler seals pre-1958
Camshaft end-plug
Oil drain screw
Lock washer for flywheel bolt
Spring washer for crankshaft pulley bolt
Cooling fan hub
Gasket for small oil pump cover
Drive pinion for distributor
Washer for pinion
Spacer spring for pinion
Camshaft for 2-piece Normal engines
Transaxle


Spring for gear lock (reverse gear). Also detent *****, maybe interlock plungers
Shaft for differential pinion
Lock pin for differential pinion shaft
Differential carrier
Differential side gears and spider gears
Differential bearing opposite ring gear - also availabe at local bearing supply houses
Transmission input shaft rear bearing - also available local supply houses
Differential fulcrum plates
Transmission rear rubber mounts for 1950-55 Porsche
Addendum by Capt. Stan Stanton
Published in the "356 Porsche Technical and Restoration Guide"

VW has a rubber gasket (Porsche is cork) for the fuel gauge sender that can be used on the 1962 BT6 with the flat gas tank and bottom sender and the 1963-65 gas tanks with top senders (VW part #113.919.133)
The overhead courtesy light in the BMW 2002 is the same as the dash courtesy light in the "C"
A standard VW spark plug wire harness will work on a 356, but the #1 wire is a tight fit.

ked

a neat trivia question would be, "what is the last VW catalog part that was utilized on a Porsche?" might want to have 2 questions, one for 911s (evolution of the 356) and a seperate one for 914s (a VW-Porsche hybrid). I wouldn't include the 924/928 side of the family - let's not get into THAT debate (I think they outnumber 356 owners on RL...). also, not to include fastners...

ziim

thanks for the replies