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PORSCHE will celebrate its 75th anniversary in 2023. The company’s first model, the 356, was launched in June 1948, and the automaker is honoring its past with the new Vision 357 concept. The Style Porsche team worked to reinterpret the 356 for the modern era.
“This concept car is an attempt to coherently combine past, present and future,” Michael Mauer, Vice President Style Porsche explained.
The 357 adopts the proportions of the original while featuring styling details that point to the future.
One of the most striking things about this concept is its streamlining. There are no door handles – the designers hid them in the rear side glass. Cameras replace the traditional side mirrors.
At the front and rear, Porsche hid the lights behind perforations in the body panels while integrating a third brake light into the rear grille motif, one of several callbacks to the original 356. The early 356 had a split windshield with a slat in the center.
Although similar accents were absent on the Vision 357, Porsche played with the concept glass, wrapping it around the black A-pillar to unite the three window elements into one piece and resemble a helmet visor.
20-inch magnesium wheels with “aerodynamically advantageous” carbon fiber hubcaps sit at the corners. Porsche finished the exterior with a two-tone paint scheme with Ice Grey Metallic covering most of the car and Grivola Grey Metallic accenting the front bumper.
Large “75” stickers adorn the doors and hood, while subtle “357” stickers are on the front fenders and rear fascia. The manufacturer even marked the air intakes on the rear side windows with “Air” stickers and arrows pointing to the inlets.
The 357 expels its exhaust through a bluish-colored titanium muffler that has a ceramic interior. The Vision 357 was a styling concept, which placed the powertrain at the rear.
However, Porsche built the car on the technology platform of the 718 Cayman GT4 RS, lending the concept a 4.0-liter naturally aspirated flat-six engine. This engine “theoretically produces” 493 horsepower (362 kilowatts) from the block.
The company said it will design the mid-mounted powertrain to accommodate synthetic fuel, not that Porsche indicated that it has plans to produce the car. The public will get a chance to see the concept at a special exhibition in Berlin to celebrate 75 years of Porsche sports cars.
The exhibition at the Volkswagen Group’s Drive Forum opens on January 27 and runs until mid-February, and Porsche plans to showcase the concept at other international events throughout the year. [sources/photo special]
