"Nick Has an Exocet" (nickallain)
08/14/2019 at 22:11 • Filed to: None
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"Nick Has an Exocet" (nickallain)
08/14/2019 at 22:11 • Filed to: None | 3
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Similar to every other early-ish Porsche, the Lohner-Porsche Mixte Hybrid didn’t look like it knew which direction the design was going either.
The Type 12 was basically an early Beetle, which make it as much of a Porsche as the Type 56. It too suffered from “it’s better with your eyes closed”.
It’s arguable that it was even really F. Porsche’s design.
Look familiar? That’s a Tatra 570 from 1931. Let’s face it. That’s a Beetle. The lawsuit over it was interrupted by the German invasion of Czechoslovakia (yay!) and was later settled.
Yeah, the Beetle is ugly. Now let’s jump back a little bit. Here’s the Type 56. The Type 56, which is not a Porsche, because Porsche wasn’t a company until 10ish years later, is going to auction this week . It’s not pretty. It’s kind of awkward. And yes, it looks like a Type 12/Beetle that got left too close to the fire.
The 356 was... better - but it still looks like a sleek Beetle. Plus, it was designed by Erwin Komenda.
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The one thing that Ferdinand Porsche produced that didn’t look like a melted bar of soap was the Elefant Jagdpanzer (Elephant Tank Destroyer) commonly called “Ferdinand”.
Ferdinand died in 1951, 13 years before the 911 was produced - which was also ugly and looked like a Beetle. Which I can only assume was to keep the car “on-brand” since by that point, the typical Pors che buyer was already blind.
In all seriousness, people idolize a guy for a car he never created. The cars he did create when given full control were both ugly and ripped off or were killing machines.
phenotyp
> Nick Has an Exocet
08/15/2019 at 01:11 |
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This is worth a much longer conversation.
Lionizing any one person is stupid. Get what you’re saying, though.
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Nick Has an Exocet
> phenotyp
08/15/2019 at 02:03 |
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Yeah. For sure. It could be an entire damn book.
The funny thing about ole Ferdy, the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart dedicates about 3 square feet to a plaque about his/Porsche’s participation in WWII. He didn’t just get drafted into the German ranks like most people. He gave up his Czech citizenship for it, joined the Nazi party (and the SS) , and was a mentor to Hitler. Ferry Porsche said “My father is Hitler’s father” when asked how close they were.
By comparison, the Mercedes museum dedicates entire displays in atonement for their participation.
It’s very weird and not what you would expect.
sm70- why not Duesenberg?
> Nick Has an Exocet
08/15/2019 at 14:39 |
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Gotta strongly disagree on the 356/911. I find them gorgeous . But I guess that’s what makes personal taste personal.
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Nick Has an Exocet
> sm70- why not Duesenberg?
08/15/2019 at 15:14 |
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I think there are things that they did better than most (like build quality) but if we’re talking about the 50s, there are a lot of pretty cars for sale. BMW 507, Jaguar XK120, MB 190SL, MB 300SL, Na sh -Healy, Lotus Elite, 250GT, XK-SS, etc. I find it hard to put the 356 anywhere in the top 50% of those. But it’s certainly subjective.
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sm70- why not Duesenberg?
> Nick Has an Exocet
08/15/2019 at 16:28 |
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I find all of those prettier than the 356, but to me that doesn’t make the 356 “not pretty”