Porsche · 1953–1956

Porsche 550

The Porsche 550 is a racing sports car produced by Porsche from 1953 until 1956. In that time only 90 Porsche 550s were produced, and they quickly established dominance in the 1.1- and 1.5- liter classes. The Porsche 550 is a mid-engine car with an air-cooled four-cylinder engine, following the precedent of the 1948 Porsche 356/1 prototype designed by Ferry Porsche. The mid-engine racing design was further developed with Porsche's 718 model; Its advantages led to it becoming the dominant design for top-level racing cars by the mid-1960s. The Porsche 550 has a solid racing history; it won the Nürburgring Eifel Race in May 1953, the first race it entered. The 550 Spyder usually finished in the top three in its class. Each Spyder was designed and customized to be raced. A 1958 Porsche 550A Spyder sold at auction in 2018 by Bonhams for $5,170,000 (£4,115,763); it was the highest price for a 550 at auction.

Text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Predecessor: Glöckler-Porsche · Successor: Porsche 718

All Porsche 550 data: UK builds, safety, recalls, model years →

Engine and transmission

The Type 550/550 A is powered by the Porsche 547 engine, or "Fuhrmann Engine" after Dr. Ernst Fuhrmann, an all aluminium naturally aspirated air-cooled 4 cylinder boxer engine. In the 550s, most 547s had bore × stroke measurements of 85 mm × 66 mm (3.35 in × 2.60 in), and a total displacement of 1.5 L (1,498 cc; 91.4 cu in). The 547's valvetrain uses double overhead camshafts on each cylinder bank, driven by vertical shafts, actuating 2 valves per cylinder. The engine is equipped with twin 2-barrel Solex 40 PII carburetors and dual ignition. In its first version it produced 110 PS (108 hp; 81 kW) at 6200 rpm and a maximum torque of 121 N⋅m (89 lb⋅ft) at 5000 rpm. The engine of the 550 is mounted in front of the rear axle in a rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout. This gives it a balanced weight distribution, and allows for largely neutral handling. On the other hand, the low moment of inertia about the vehicle's vertical axis can lead to a sudden, difficult to control rotation of the car. Ferdinand Porsche had pioneered this design layout with the Auto Union Grand Prix car of the 1930s. The first 550 had a fully synchronized 4-speed gearbox. Starting in 1956, a 5-speed gearbox was used, but first gear was only for starts and, like reverse gear, was not synchronized. Excessive slip to the drive wheels in corners was prevented by a limited-slip differential.

History

Inspired by the original "No.1" mid-engined Porsche 356/1 which was created by Ferry Porsche, as well as Spyder prototypes built and raced by Walter Glöckler starting in 1951, the factory decided to build a mid-engined car designed for use in auto racing. The Porsche 550 Spyder was introduced at the 1953 Paris Auto Show. The 550 was very low to the ground, in order to be efficient for racing. In fact, during the 1954 Mille Miglia, German Formula One racer Hans Herrmann drove it under closed railroad crossing gates. Racing history. The first three hand-built prototypes came in a coupé with a removable hardtop. The first (550-03) raced as a roadster at the Nurburgring Eifel Race in May 1953 winning its first race. Later that year the 550 took class wins in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the Carrera Panamericana; the Carrera Panamericana win was commemorated with the Carrera branding for later Porsches with performance options. From 1953 to 1957, the Porsche works team evolved and raced the 550 with outstanding success and was recognized wherever it appeared. The silver Werks cars were painted with spears of different colors on the rear fenders to aid recognition from the pits. Hans Herrmann’s particularly famous ‘red-tail’ car No 41 went from victory to victory. For such a limited number of 90 prototype and customer builds, the 550 Spyder was always in a winning position, usually finishing in the top three results in its class. During its tenure with the works team it was challenged only twice among the smaller cars at the 1954 24 Hours of Le Mans, with a 1.5-liter OSCA MT4 finishing ahead but disqualified in the 1954 race and a 1.1 liter Lotus Eleven trailing the 1.5 liter winning 550 by one lap in the 1957 race. The 1956 version, the 550A with a lighter and more rigid spac

Sections adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0); text is shortened. Read the full article for the complete history and citations.

Specifications

Manufacturer: Porsche
Production: 1953–1956, 90 produced
Designer: Erwin Komenda
Class: Sports car
Assembly: Germany: Stuttgart
Layout: RMR layout
Engine: 1.5L (1,498 cc) DOHC flat four engine
Transmission: 4-speed manual, 5-speed manual
Wheelbase: 2100 mm
Length: 3600 mm
Width: 1610 mm
Height: 980 mm
Kerb weight: approximately 550 kg
Successor: Porsche 718
Body style: 2-door coupé, 2-door spyder

Specification summary from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Measured facts from Wikidata (CC0). Check the linked sources for citations.

More photos

Sources

Wikidata — https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1134282CC0 1.0 · retrieved 2026-10-01
Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porsche_550CC BY-SA 4.0 · Text © Wikipedia contributors; revision 1373354761 · retrieved 2026-10-01
Wikimedia Commons — https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Porsche-550-spyder_(filter).jpgCC BY-SA 3.0 · Photo: see file page · retrieved 2026-10-01
Car Model Index — https://models.autoculturesociety.com/Compiled record. Sources that do not permit reuse are not copied; this index is credited instead.