"Porsche": who is the manufacturer, brand history

2024 Author: Erin Ralphs | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-19 11:42

Porsche is a brand that needs no introduction. This family business continues to gain momentum to this day, although it was born many years ago. Many generations are watching the changes of this manufacturer. Their history is full of interesting facts that few people know about. In this article it will be possible to find out who is the founder of the Porsche company? Who produces this brand, which country is the manufacturer? What do they have to do with the Volkswagen brand, and who controls this huge corporation? We will try to answer all these and similar questions in the article.

Production country of the brand "Porsche"

During its existence, the company changed its location, but often the production returned to its homeland, the name, by the way, which can be seen on the emblem of the Porsche car. The German manufacturer of these cars ranks among the highest ratings among SUVs, sedans and, of course, sports cars. Germany became the birthplace of Porsche. Country of origin, whose brand itself is already synonymoushigh level cars.

Ferdinand Porsche founded the Porsche automobile company in 1931. Prior to that, he led the development of the Mercedes compressor car, and later designed and built the first Volkswagen car models with his son Ferry Porsche. But let's start in order with the fascinating life story of Ferdinand Porsche.

How many years of history began

Ferdinand Porsche was born in the small town of Austria - Maffersdorf (now the city is called Vratislavitz), September 3, 1875. The family was small, father Anton Porsche owned a workshop, was a professional in his field, even spent some time as the mayor of Maffersdorf. Ferdinand was familiar with his father's craft from childhood, he even thought that he would continue his business, but he actively delved into the study of electricity and his views on work changed.

Already at the age of eighteen, Ferdinand Porsche was hired by the Austrian design company Lonner. During this period of work, Porsche had the idea of creating and developing a car. The goal was to design a car that was compact, fast moving, and most importantly, powered by electricity.

From idea to action - the car was created, driving at a record speed for that time - 40 km / h. There was one drawback - the heavy weight of lead batteries, because of this, the car could not drive for more than an hour. It was a successful start-up at the time, and Ferdinand was offered the position of the company's chief engineer.

First car -hybrid

Lonner liked the car so much that he presented it at a world-class exhibition in Paris in 1900. Auto "Porsche", the manufacturer of which was Lonner's company, was recognized as the best development at the exhibition. No wonder, because it was the world's first Phaeton car, also known as the "P1", which:

1. Had an engine capacity of 2.5 horsepower.
2. He was 40 km/h.
3. It was front-wheel drive, it did not have a manual transmission.
4. Had 2 electric motors located on the front wheels of the car.
5. At the same time, the car remained not only electric, but also had a third - a gasoline engine that rotated the generator.

The morning after the Paris exhibition of Porsche, Ferdinand became famous. Later in 1900 he provided his engine for a race at the Semmering and won. Although the creator considered the car unfinished, Lonner loved the car very much and often drove it.

In 1906, Ferdinand Porsche began working with the "Austro-Daimler", arriving to them as a technical manager. In 1923 he was invited to the Daimler Stuttgart company as technical manager and board member. In Stuttgart, his ideas were focused on the creation of a compressor race car Mercedes S and SS class.

Foundation of the Ferdinand Porsche Company

During the period of work at Daimler, Ferdinand Porsche worked not only on automobiles, but alsospecialized in the tank and aviation industries. When visiting the USSR in 1930, he was offered a job as a heavy industry designer, the great engineer refused, but added mystery to his person. Looking ahead, I would like to say that later during the Second World War, Ferdinand was often interrogated about the reasons for his trip to the USSR.

In 1931, having finished working with Daimler, Ferdinand thought about creating his own company for the manufacture and design of cars. And in 1934 he was invited to participate in the project of Adolf Hitler "Volkswagen". The name Volks-wagen" in translation means "People's Machine", later Hitler renames it Kraft durch Freude-Wagen (translated from German - the power of joy).

The year was quite busy, and Ferdinand Porsche, together with his son Ferry, developed the Volkswagen Beetle model car. Since this project, the father and his son have been constantly working together.

Due to the fact that Porsche had previously taken part in the development of one of Hitler's favorite cars - Mercedes-Benz, he was chosen as the chief designer and designer of Volkswagen cars. Thus began mysterious and dark times in the history of this concern. German officials increasingly intervened in the work of the creator of the car. First they demanded changes to the original 1931 design to make it more suitable for a working person, then they took part in the development of the engine and even wanted to attach a swastika to the emblem. WV.

First sports car

In the spring of 1933, Ferdinand Porsche was commissioned by Auto Union in Saxony to develop a 16-cylinder racing car weighing 750 kg. Immediately after the contract was signed, the Porsche team (who is the manufacturer and idea generator, we found out), led by senior engineer Karl Rabe, began work on the Auto Union P racing car (“P” stands for Porsche). In the future, this project will give rise to the era of the concern "Audi".

The project progressed rapidly and the first test runs of the Auto Union P were already in January 1934, and in the first racing season the new car not only set three world records, but also won three international Grand Prix races. With drivers such as Bernd Rosemeyer, Hans Stuck and Tazio Nuvolari, the Auto Union racing car, improved over time, became one of the most successful racing cars of the pre-war era. The mid-engine concept soon set the trend for all racing cars and is still used in Formula 1.

The impact of the war on the Porsche concern

Despite the fact that Hitler's relationship with the Porsche family seemed mutual and friendly, in fact the situation was different. The family of Austrian Ferdinand Porsche was pacifist and often disagreed with Nazi ideals. Hitler took note of the fact that Ferdinand had helped a Jewish company employee escape Germany during the war.

Volkswagen got its distinctive round shape and airycooled, flat, four-stroke engine. Before the war, Porsche, who is still a popular brand today, invented the Wind-tunnel technology, using it in the development of the ultra-slim Volkswagen Aerocoupe. But with the onset of hostilities, interest in cars declined, and Hitler demanded that the plant be reequipped during martial law in the country.

The war began and Hitler called on Ferdinand Porsche to build military vehicles for use on the battlefield. Together with his son, they began developing models for both the automotive and tank industries. A heavy tank was developed for the Tiger program, a prototype with an improved drive system. True, on paper it seemed like a great idea, but during the hostilities the tank did not show good results. Breakdowns and shortcomings in the development led to the fact that a competitor (Henschel und Sohn) of the Porsche company received a contract for the production of tank equipment. Who was the manufacturer during the war of additional tanks "Ferdinand" and "Mouse"? All the same Henschel company.

Birth of the Porsche 356

After the war, Ferdinand Porsche was arrested by French soldiers (for his Nazi affiliation) and was forced to serve a 22-month prison sentence. During this period, the automobile manufacturer Porsche decided to move its operations elsewhere. The city of Carinthia, Austria was chosen. It was in Carinthia that his son Ferdinand developed a new machinePorsche. Austria was already listed as its producer country.

The Cisitalia model was equipped with a 4-cylinder engine and had a displacement of 35 hp. This car with the Porsche name was registered on June 8, 1948 - model 356 No.1 "Roadster". It's the birthday of the Porsche brand.

This model was classified as a sports car and was very popular among we althy customers. Manufactured until 1965, and the number of cars sold approached 78,000 units.

For fast speed and aerodynamics, Porsche began experimenting with lightening its cars. Deciding to save a few ounces, they forgo painting the car. Since the cars were made of aluminum, they were all silver in color. With the appearance of competitors in the automotive market, there was a tendency to highlight the car with the color of its country. For example, the German racing color is silver, the British racing color is green, the Italian racing color is red, and the French and American racing colors are blue.

This sports model was followed by a whole series of cars of this type. According to Ferdinand Porsche Jr., when meeting with this model, the founder of Porsche said: "I would have built it exactly the same way, down to the last screw." The father-son team continued to pursue automotive history until 1950.

Porsche was already a separate automobile corporation both as a dealer and as a manufacturer, but was still very much associated with Volkswagen. Now these two brands are considered asseparate companies, but very closely related.

Legend of the concern - model "Porsche-911"

The son of Ferdinand Jr. styled the most famous Porsche 911. It was the world's first turbocharged sports car and was designed as a more advanced replacement for the 356, the company's first sports car. The 911 was originally designated the Porsche 901 (901 being the project's internal number), but Peugeot protested on the grounds that they owned the trademark for all car names using three numbers and a zero in the middle. So, before the start of production, it was decided to change the name of the new Porsche from 901 to 911. In 1964, Porsche started selling this car. Germany is already considered its producing country.

"Despite the fact that over the past decades, the Porsche 911 has been updated and increased many times thanks to modern technology, no other car has been able to maintain its original creation in the same way as this model," says the director of the concern Porsche Oliver Bloom. “The models currently being developed and planned for the future are based on this sports car. The 911 has become a dream sports car, capturing the hearts of fans all over the world.”

Futuristic Porsche, or what awaits us in the near future

"Mission E" is a new electric car model of the Porsche concern, whose manufacturer is already approaching the starting line. This concept vehicle is based on technology fromZuffenhausen combines distinctive Porsche design, excellent handling and forward-thinking functionality.

Four-door model delivers over 600 hp system performance. with a travel range of more than 500 km. Accelerates "Mission E" to 100 km/h in less than 3.5 seconds, and the charging time will take only 15 minutes. Porsche has invested more than a billion euros in this project. Approximately 1,100 additional jobs have been created at the headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany, where Mission E will be built. Frequently asked question, "Porsche" whose brand, country, manufacturer? The answer will always be the same - Germany!

Of course, a quick transition from gasoline to electric will not happen, although by 2020 it is predicted that one in ten cars will be hybrid or electric. Porsche plans to launch its last diesel car in 2030.

Interesting facts you didn't know

1. Famous designer Ferdinand Porsche worked as a personal driver for the Prince of Hungary and Bohemia.
2. The German company designs and manufactures Porsche cars, motorcycles, and engines of all types.
3. Porsche's first passenger car in 1939 was called the Porsche 64. This model became the basis for all future cars, despite the fact that only three cars were produced from the factory.
4. In total, more than 76,000 Porsche 356s were produced. The staggering fact is that more than half of them have survived to ourdays and they continue to function.
5. It is interesting that the Porsche company (whose car, country of origin, we analyzed in the article) began to actively use its official logo only in 1952 after the brand entered the American market. Prior to this, the company had simply stamped the Porsche wording on the hoods of its vehicles.
6. For 50 years, Porsche cars have achieved more than 28,000 wins in different speed racing categories! Other car manufacturers can only dream of such an amazing motorsport success.
7. Porsche Panamera gets its name from Team Porsche's successful performance in the Carrera Panamericana.
8. Porsche 904 Carrera GTS 1964 is a legendary car, as you can see from its specifications. It has a height of only 1067 mm, weighs 640 kg, and its power is 155 l / s. The Porsche 904 is a truly outstanding car, even by today's standards. It can easily compete with today's supercars.
9. The most commercially successful model is the Porsche Cayenne. The manufacturer named this model after the city of Cayenne, the capital of French Guiana. In addition, cayenne is a type of red pepper (guinea spice, cow pepper and red chili pepper). Some new generation Porsche Cayennes are made in North America.
10. Porsche 911 has one of the most recognizable designs in the supercar world. Over the years of its existence, it has had continuous updates, although the basic concept has not changed much. His distinctive visual style andtechnological superiority remained constant for 48 years. In addition, this supercar model is the most mass-produced in the world.
11. The founder of Porsche made the world's first hybrid car back in 1899. The Semper Vivus was an electric car, and the generator was created using an internal combustion engine. Moreover, the Semper Vivus had brakes on all four wheels.
12. Ferdinand Porsche was also the designer of Auto Union cars. The collection also featured the Auto Union P, which featured a mid-range 16-cylinder engine.
13. The horses on the Porsche and Ferrari badges are really similar. However, for Porsche it makes much more sense, as the horse is the symbol of Stuttgart. This is a significant nuance in the Porsche logo, whose country of origin is depicted on the coat of arms.
14. Porsche 365 was used by the Dutch police.
15. Porsche 917 can outperform any race car available today with 1100 hp. and a speed of 386 km/h.
16. The concern was also engaged in the design of tractors for agriculture. History has shown that Porsche not only manufactures quality tractors for agriculture, but even developed special harvesting machines for the coffee industry. They were equipped with a gasoline engine, so the diesel fumes did not affect the taste of the coffee.
17. The cockpit of the Airbus A300 was built by Porsche! Along with several advances, they also added digital screens to the cockpit rather thananalog.
18. Porsche has demonstrated its special efforts and dedication to technological advancement and performance. Porsche 959 was another product of the company, which can rightfully be classified as the most technically advanced sports car, accelerating to 320 km / h. This model not only won at Le Mans, but was the champion of the Paris-Dakar rally, which, due to the difficult route in this area, is considered the most brutal motor race.
19. 944 was designed as the world's first car by Porsche, whose manufacturer added passenger airbags, and the first country to buy such a feature is America. Prior to this introduction, airbags were only on the steering wheel.
20. Porsche and Harley Davidson - an amazing union, right? Some of the Harley Davidson motorcycles use a Porsche engine.
21. Another fascinating fact - Porsche designed the grill!

For his achievements in mechanical engineering and development, Ferdinand Porsche was awarded an honorary doctorate degree from the Imperial Technical University at the age of 37. At 62, Ferdinand Porsche was awarded the German National Prize for his contributions to the arts and sciences.

We found out who makes Porsche, the country of origin.