Some people need to learn some matters.

I know the feeling, Years ago I went to a casual porsche get together, I drove my 1976 911s. Its a nice driver but not perfect !! It shows its age and I have enjoyed it for over 10 years. So I'm fine with the fact I have no chance of placing in this little show.

This old hag walks over to me and says " Hey the least you could do is clean the bugs off you windshield" little did she know I have driven 75 miles to get there. So I looked right at her, licked my index finger and rubbed a spot on the side mirror. "Hey thanks for the tip It does look better don't you think" I replied     .As I watched her walk away I could see there car, A perfect low milage 911 SC. It was like new, I was impressed as it rolled out on the trailer and then pushed into the row of cars.

So I have a few beers, talked to some old friends and enjoy the day. The judging for the event started at 5:00. I stood there watching and looking around to see who the winners were.

The person heading up this car show,says my name out over the crowd. "what " I think to myself, did I do something wrong? Surly I could have not placed??

I was handed a plaque with the words 

                                    FIRST PLACE

                                    Best Preserved 911

I was overjoyed and could not believe my old car won first place. I watched as the other awards were given out. I noticed that the prefect condition 911 SC the was owned by the old bitty was never mentioned, and did not place.

So as the event was winding down, I walked over to the angry old bag and said" Excuse me but do you like apples" She replied "yes, why do you ask" I held up my plaque and said "How do you like them apples"   

Great story, AG.

Terry, if she has a '58 Coupe AND a real Speedster, why didn't she send her butler over?

oh no you di-int!

Autobahn, well played sir!! 

Took my car to that cars and coffee in Hunt Valley MD yesterday.  For the most part, I just stood back and observed. I saw a few Porsche guys with their Porsche hats and Porsche shirts, point out the handbrake, inner fenders and other details as they turned their noses up at it. Far more people commented on how nice it was while taking lots of pictures.

I find that in addition to manners, some people need anti-stick-up-their-ass pills.  

I have driven Porsches off and on for decades. 911SC, 944, 912, 914. They were great cars and the first two were driven many years. My favorite? The Vintage Speedster I bought last month! I am having a ball with this car. My experience in the Porsche Club was like most things, a few stick up the butts, mostly pretty nice car guys.  Too bad the Sticks tend to stand out. Bet they would all be eager to take a spin in one of our replicas if they had the chance!

Big ones, so they remember the experience... Al

Autobahn:

Sounds like the Baroness didn't understand the difference between preservation and restoration. Clearly two different ways of judging a car. I guess with cars like ours thrown into the mix there should be four categories: Preservation, Restoration, Replication and Inspiration.

Then every variation is covered.

For some of the true Porsche owners (the majority, actually) the replicas are mostly a curiosity - some things are cool and different, somethings aren't and they see them as nicely executed cars (that perform better than theirs).

But then there's this minority who relish picking out all of their perceived "faults" in our cars.  When I went to a cruise recently, John Eastman showed up (I invited him, just to see his new SAS) with what is arguably the most advanced SAS Cabriolet on the planet.  All one guy could do was go over it with under close inspection to find things wrong/different with it.  To his credit, he drives a '55 356-A coupe - a LOT - but you'd think they'd see these cars for what they are; REPLICAS! and leave it at that.  I didn't point out that his hood handle was off by 1/4" (but then, most of them are on the "real" 356's).  Besides......he got lost just getting to the cruise starting point.  

In general, though, you replica folks are WAY more fun and far more casual than the 'original' drivers.

Next year, if I decide to enter I'm going to sit with the VW guys. 

They seemed a whole lot nicer.   You know, maybe we just get

under the skin of the "other" group.

We "enjoy" driving our cars, we can Work

on them ourselves with money left over,

and we are more fun to be around.

I understand where they are coming from. They have spent $$$$ of dollars on their cars and it's a right-of-passage sort of thing. We show up with a really nice looking car that we have spent a small fraction of what they have spent and it gets under their skin. Not all of them are snobs though, I have met some nice ones.

Musbjim has a nice sign that he hangs from the rearview mirror at a gathering. It states what the car is and gives a little info about it. This way a person doesn't get fooled in front of his fellow enthusiasts and most likely curbs a lot of those potential situations.

Well I can't speak for a majority of Porsche owners but for myself (I have owned them since a 1969 911T) they are unique toys but expensive to maintain.  My experience is that they are not expensive to buy, as I have sold everyone for more than I have paid for it.

Several of my friends and neighbors who own Porsches are indeed curious to see and drive my JPS Coupe. I doubt very much that they will be looking down their nose at it as it (hopefully) will be fun to drive and easy to maintain like the VW's of our youth.       

As many of you know, I have a JPS coupe and a ‘73 Carrera RSR tribute car.  I have had a Porsche in my garage since 1966.  I am also the tech chair of the Chesapeake Region of PCA.  I alternate driving my coupe and RSR to our regional PCA events and nobody gives me s---.  Maybe it’s just the region but no one has snubbed their nose at my coupe and many 356 owners are impressed and envious of the drivability.  

Puffinator...tell me, does the JPS handle worth a damn ??  Just looking at the data, it appears to me that the JPS will be a better performer than a original 356 ??

Yes, I know the replica won't appreciate but I have to believe it will be a heck of a lot less trouble and expense to maintain.

I am so old, I wear socks with sandals so I obviously don't much care what people think. 

It handles ok - I haven't yet figured out the best combination of shocks, sway bars, tires and tire pressure.  There is no reason why it shouldn't handle as well as or better than a 356, but I am not there yet.  It oversteers more than I want it to.  As far as power, it is much more peppy than a 356 with my 2110.  I bought the JPS because I wanted a driver - a car I didn't have to worry about and it fulfills that goal.

I too have had both real and now two plastic...and I could not agree more...some look with their noses up, but they are still looking...and I guarantee if I threw my key to someone with their nose up they would grab the key, turn the ignition and take a ride...My car is fake, but it is absolutely cool and hard to pass up when seeing it.  It sounds the part and looks the part and I relish in the fact that I can drive it.  I loved my real cars, but sold last one for this plastic car!

It's like anything else, there is a spectrum of attitudes. One of my good friends has several Porsches, is past President of the central Illinois PCA, teaches competition driving, owns a foreign car repair shop, owned a Vintage Speedster he bought after seeing and driving mine, and couldn't be a bigger supporter of our hobby. He also gave me my PCA grill badge, unsolicited, as a gift.

On the other hand, a young physician friend of mine can barely tolerate the presence of my car in the same parking lot as his Cayman.

Basically, I don't care either way. I'm not in this for anybody else, that's why I don't show my car. Personal preference prevails.

Sure.  I wasn't suggesting that all Porsche owners behave a certain way.  Just a few.  I have a few "real" ones as well.  Even a couple of my "real" ones have been greeted with disdain from certain Porschephiles.  Imagine, a water-cooled Porsche.  The horror! 

As I've said before, real car guys love cars.  If I were at a Porsche show and I walked up to your replica, I would stand and appreciate it for its beauty and execution even after I realized it was a replica, as opposed to stalking away as if I'd just smelled a fart.  That's because I love the cars for the cars themselves, not for the socio-economic status they seem to validate for some.

Bob, your post above illustrates my point perfectly.  The real car guy in your two examples accepts you and your car with open arms.  The youing social seeker, not so much.

Last week I was in the Porsche showroom and a middle-aged guy (like me) came in to see the new Cayman.  They say there are no dumb questions, but they're wrong.  This guy knew nothing about the brand, the car, the difference between the cars...nothing.  After 15 minutes of dumb questions, the sales manager opened it all up for him.  He asked, "Where's the engine?"  By the time I was leaving, he was already sitting down to review the numbers.  Not even a test drive.  Enthusiast?

We brought ours into a locally recommended mechanic that specializes in European / vintage automobiles just to have it gone over and change the oil. When we dropped it off, we noticed a beautifully restored 1958 Speedster and told the Tech at the desk how pretty it was, to which he replied, 'Yeah, that's a real one. We did all the mechanical work for the restoration project and it's just in for a check up.' Irritated my wife a bit but also a little amusing, as her little car gets a ton of attention everywhere we take it, both from people who do and don't know it's a replica. When we picked ours up in the afternoon, the same Tech was pushing the original one into the garage because the engine wouldn't fire.

Beginning '71,30-year member PCA Zone 8 (SoCal). 7 Porsches 356's-911's, our VS is hands-down the most fun car I've owned.

I carry a placard that I put in my windshield anytime I park the car at an event. Eliminates the grandstanding expert BS (fender lip, handbrake, etc.).

Here is how I display our VS during winter events...

...and the placard in the windshield!

1957 Speedster

Replica

Vintage Speedster

Manufactured 1995

Fiberglass Body

1835cc/Dual carb

Disc Brakes

30 mpg

MY DAILY DRIVER

Love those photos, Jim!  Makes me want to get a reutter rack!

Jim, That is so AWESOME!!

Nice, Jim.  I saw a guy point out and make a face at the PCA badge on our Speedster on Saturday.  But...I am a member of PCA.  I used to have PCA plates on my Jaguar too.  I wasn't trying to convince anyone it was a Porsche either.

BobG:  You might want to save this for the right moment with your social climbing "Porsh" friend, but there's a higher percentage of "VW" parts in his Cayman than there is in your Vintage.

I'm jus' sayin........

Oh, and that recent speed record made in a Cayman SP81-CR modified by "Speedart"?  They used a VW diesel engine pulled from the VW parts bin.....

I always park with the VWs , if they'll have me. Most of the car events I go to we are the only 356, real or fake. Most people just love cars and are happy to be there.

Usually when filling up at a busy gas station I'm answering questions about the VS speedster. I always, always, preface answers with "It's a replica, but..."

The other day I got a frown and huffy snear because I display a 356 Registry badge.

"Yes, it was on my 59 coupe 38 years ago...Oh, and also on my 61 roadster 35 years ago"...I still got a dirty look

Gordon:

Priceless! I do believe there will be a time soon when the young physician and I will be discussing vehicles and this data will be perfect. I like him, but he carries the "arrogance of youth and privilege" like a boat anchor.

Maybe I will be able to lighten his load with this.

Thanks, Gordon!!!

I've got a NE T-Register badge and an early serial T-Register dash plaque on Bridget. No one has yet ask me to 'splain. But I guess MG guys cannot afford to be as snooty as your top dog Porschephiles. A nicely redone real TD is about $16,000 these days.

Once at an ice cream shop I did see a dude try to impress his GF by pointing out the VW beam under the front bumper. He did not talk to me, though I was standing in line right there with my wife.

Gotta make up a card like MusbJim's.

Porsche Outlaw i say, they say awesome, or ill kick there a$$

A huffy sneer and a dirty look?

Well, harrumph, having owned a real TD, I guess I can look down on you now.  Isn't snobbishness just grand.

I always grind my doctor friends with the following...

Q: What do you call the med student who graduates at the very bottom of his class?

A: Doctor! 

I own a european auto repair shop, I work on Porsches almost everyday. I have owned 36 that were road worthy and at least the same that became parts cars. I love the guys that walk into the shop and say "hey do you work on Porsches?  Yes I have for 24 years what can I help you with. My car is fast but I want to make it faster. I look out and see a 924-944 or a Boxster. They walk back in the shop and look around, see the speedster and look at me and  say "hey you know thats not real dont you"  I'm always at a loss for words with guys like that

Remember this my friends, Our cars are not built by a multi-billion dollar company. With hundreds of engineers working on ever angle. With the best designed tools money can buy. 

But instead our cars are built by skilled people in small shops buy hand, or in our garages The hands-on ideas that made Porsche what it is today!  Know this as some yeah who says "its a fake" Most men or groups of men could not even come close to building and enjoying theses interesting cars.    FYI  THERE JUST CARS IN THE END.  I get to drive the best that Porsche has to offer on a yearly basis, from 2013-1955 and the speedster replicas are still at the top of the list on the fun factor. They are dependable,and useable your not loosing much by driving a replica, Unless it a really big deal to tell your buddies and onlookers its a real 356 Speedster. And I paid a 1/4 million for it and I can drive it. LOL a fool and his money soon part

This is an interesting post.  I am new to Speedster ownership, only 1 month in.  I have to say, in my first weekend out with the car over 40 people commented in the positive, and NEVER broached the Real vs Replica topic.  A month into ownership, I have had 1 person who was shopping for a VS recognize it for what it is.  Another girl's father owns one and "asked".  So 2 people in 40 interactions actually knew or asked.  Some of my closest friends assume it is real. (I will get around to telling them, but it is odd ~ most assume it is real.  Perhaps because it fits the rest of my lifestyle and career success)

I have owned a 79 911 SC, and have seen SC's going for about the same amount as our cars.  So, looking at it from a socioeconomic viewpoint does not make sense either.

Final thought, the Speedster is a great way to "trial" owning a Speedster/Roadster class of car.  I do fee very vulnerable next to Escalades and other jumbo trucks on the road.  Even though I have owned Ghia Convertables, BMW Z4, and raced Miata's for a short time --- I have to say, I do not think I could pay the premium for an original.  I simply could not enjoy it, nor am I 100% positive on if it is a long term endeavor.

Cheers,

Ronin

To add some more observations:

I was at the CO Concours d'Elegance today.  The primary marque sponsor was Porsche. 

There were 3 Speedster Replicas, and there seemed to be NO "bad blood" that I could detect.  They were separate from the real speedsters, but still in the mix with all the other 356's. 

Just a casual observation.  Unfortunately, I couldn't find any of the owners to chat with while I was in the area .

Headed to lunch today, rural NE Oklahoma, a late model 911 flicked his lights and gave us thumbs up. Pretty sure they realized we were in a replica.

Here is a replica question to ponder...

In the late 60's Carroll shelby built the infamous Cobra by dropping a Ford 289, and then a 427 into an AC Ace/Bristol aluminum bodied car. Shelby didnt own the patent to the shape of the AC cars, but he licensed them as Shelbys with a CSX VIN number.

It became one of, if not the most, copied platforms for replicas. Shelby decided he wanted to get in on that, and started building "continuation" cars.  Many were fiberglass, but you could get a Kirkham-built aluminum body from Shelby and build an almost identical Cobra.  These too carried a Shelby CSX-prefixed VIN.

So the question is, Is a car built by the same manufacturer, with most of the same parts, with a similar VIN number, just 30 years later  - a replica?