1488cc air-cooled flat-4 Porsche motor and running gear, Weidenhausen body.
at the Corkscrew.
This is Glöckler-Porsche No.3 of 7, a lightweight, custom-built race car crafted by Frankfurt Porsche dealer Walter Glöckler and mechanic Hermann Ramelow. Built with assistance from the Porsche factory in Zuffenhausen, the third Glöckler special was designed to address handling quirks (such as rear suspension toe-in) found in the earlier models. The team swapped the custom tubular frame used in their first cars for a standard Porsche 356 cabriolet floor-pan, modifying it into an authentic rear-engine racer. Coach-builder Weidenhausen constructed a featherweight aluminum body for the car, featuring cutaway rear corners, semi-skirted rear wheels, and a removable hardtop.
Unlike Glöckler-Porsche Nos. 1 and 2, this car adopted the standard Porsche rear-engine layout. It is powered by a 1,488-cc Porsche engine, originally tuned with high compression to run on alcohol, making 86 hp. Weidenhausen created the body from aluminum, with a nose that bore close resemblance to the 356 Porsche, but which had semi-skirted rear wheels and cutaway rear corners similar to Glöckler-Porsche Nos. 1 and 2. Despite its production-based steel monocoque, Glöckler-Porsche No. 3 weighs only 1,133 pounds.
It heavily influenced Porsche’s factory development of the legendary 550 Spyder and the iconic 356 Speedster. In the spring of 1952, Helm Glockler, Walter’s cousin, driving Glockler-Porsche No. 3, won the prestigious “Eifelrennen” race at the Nurburgring as well as the 1952 German Sports Car Championship. The car was then sold to Max Hoffman (the U.S. Porsche distributor). Hoffman entered No. 3 in several 1953 East Coast events and the 1953 Pebble Beach Road Race with Johnny Von Neumann doing the driving.
Of special note are the two period photos of the Glöckler-Porsche provided by Uwe Biegner whom we thank. The first picture (car #29) shows the Glöckler Porsche with his creator Mr Weidenhausen, coachbuilder in Frankfurt; he had a very small company right across the street from the Glöckler VW Porsche dealership. The 2nd photo was most likely taken at Watkins Glen. The woman standing next to the car is most likely Elinor, the wife of Johnny von Neuman. There are 2 more Porsches in the picture. A Porsche 356 America Roadster right behind the Glöckler. The dark Porsche 356 Roadster is most likely the car of Briggs Cunningham. Our thanks to Tam MacPartland and Peter Darnall for some of the other photos.
Click on any photo below and browse by clicking left or right arrow…
