Visit to Porsche Factory

When my wife and I were first married, we lived in Germany for about two and a half years. It was a once in a lifetime experience that produced a lot of great memories.

One of the most memorable experiences was visiting the Porsche factory in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen, Germany and specifically the factory museum. I was surprised to see how small it was, but ended up being more than an adequate representation of Porsche’s heritage. The 20 or so cars on display held some great examples of Porsches over the years covering both the production line as well as the racing side.

A couple of cars stood out for me. First was “Porsche No. 1”. If I were driving the two hours to get to the factory from where I lived, just to see this car, it would be worth every minute. It’s not often that you get to see the first product of anything a company 60 years old manufactures. Especially in the auto industry.

I walked past #1 the first time not even realizing what it was. As I came back by, I started reading a little bit of the signage and came to realize what was there. Amazingly enough, it wasn’t roped off or behind a glass case. You could walk all the way around it, peer in the windows, etc.

The second car that is stuck in my memory from that visit is a then current Porsche 911 Cabriolet. They had the car, top down, pointed at a wall with a big screen TV mounted about hood level in front of it. The car was linked up to the video game Pole Position displaying on the TV. Once you climbed in the 911 Cabrio, you could use the cars controls to control your car on the video game. Hands down the best games of Pole Position I’ve ever played.

Although small and understated, the museum was potent. From the pictures I’ve seen, the new factory museum looks very cool. With the cars that rotate through, you’re always sure to see something worthwhile.