The Porsche 550 was inspired by the original "No.1" mid-engined Porsche 356/1 prototype and Spyder prototypes built and raced by Walter Glöckler starting in 1951. The factory decided to build a mid-engine 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.
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. 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.
The 550 is powered by the Type 547 engine, or "Fuhrmann Engine" after Dr. Ernst Fuhrmann, an all aluminium 1,498 cc (1.5 L; 91.4 cu in) (85 x 66 mm) naturally aspirated air-cooled 4 cylinder boxer engine. Its 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 sandcasted 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, making it a Rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout. This gives it a balanced weight distribution, and allows for largely neutral handling.
The 550's low-slung design was famously demonstrated during the 1954 Mille Miglia when Hans Herrmann drove his car underneath closed railroad crossing gates.
The model is also associated with the death of American actor James Dean. On September 21, 1955, Dean traded his Porsche 356 Super Speedster for a new 1955 Porsche 550 Spyder (VIN 550-0055), which he numbered 130. While traveling to the Salinas Road Race on September 30, 1955, Dean was killed in a collision at the junction of CA Route 46 and 41. Dean's 550 Spyder, nicknamed "Little Bastard," has become infamous .
The 550 was succeeded by the Porsche 718 in 1957. In 2018, a 1958 Porsche 550A Spyder sold at auction for $5,170,000.
The information provided is based solely on the corpus of existing knowledge about the Porsche 550, with no external sources consulted. The corpus includes historical records and technical specifications related to the Porsche 550, its racing history, and its legacy. No additional research was conducted to support the claims made in this article.
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