A 1955 Porsche 550 Spyder, one of just 90 built and two originally sold to Portugal, is set to be one of the stars of RM Sotheby’s inaugural Tegernsee auction, held at the first Concours of Elegance Germany (July 22-27, 2024).
The 1955 Porsche 550 Spyder is one of just 90 built and two originally sold to Portugal
Chassis 038 was completed on April 29, 1955 and equipped with engine P90031 and gearbox 10029, and originally painted white with burgundy accents. The Porsche’s first owner was Fernando Mascarenhas, who raced the car across Europe, garnering podiums at Barajas and Monsanto in 1955. It would also take part at the Nürburgring 500 Kilometres, but its race ended early due to an accident.
In 1958 the 550 passed to Cypriano Flores, who also used it in competition. He kept the Porsche until his passing, leaving the 550 to his son, Caeser. Caeser struggled to find anyone in Portugal with the requisite skill-set to restore the Carrera engine and alloy body, so he sent it back to Porsche for a complete refreshment. The mechanical work was performed at Zuffenhausen, while Wendler – the original coachbuilder – took on the body; all this took place between 1992 and 1994.
During the restoration, the car’s colour changed to silver, and the beige vinyl interior was switched to black leather; Wendler also used modern pop-up rivets at the front and on the floor. RM Sotheby’s states that other undefined technical alterations were made.
The Porsche has not been driven since the restoration, and the engine has, according to the vendor, not been turned over since July 2010. The car retains its matching-numbers engine and gearbox, and is estimated at between €3.5m and €4.2m.
Other Porsche highlights in the sale include: the above 1992 964 Carrera RS (est: €300k-€350k); a 1993 964 Turbo 3.6 (est: €275k-€375k); a 2006 Carrera GT (est: €975k-€1.275m); a 2019 935 (est: €1.1m-€1.5m); and a 959 Porsche 356 A 1600 coupé by Reutter (est: €140k-€200k).
For more details on the Tegernsee sale, to be held on Saturday July 27, 2024, head here.
