If Imitation is in fact the sincerest form of flattery, Porsche would have been very pleased by one very unique car making its debut on Saturday morning, June 22.

By the time I arrived at my weekly car show, the vehicle in question was already parked along Porsche row, positioned next to another of the unique Porsches in attendance; its neighbor was the white with blood orange striped,1967 Porsche 911R tribute as shared previously on this blog. However, the car drawing the largest crowd was the silver roadster seen below…

I had received some inside information ahead of time, and knew the true identity and origins of this car. And thanks to a friend who had contributed to its build, I knew that this silver roadster had been built as a tribute to Porsches first car, the 1948 356-01.

This tribute / recreation was correct right down to its mid engined configured, healthy cc infused, 4 cylinder motor and transaxle as seen below…

Interior details, complete with its period correct Porsche “Banjo” style steering wheel…

This tribute / recreation even incorporated the correctly positioned cooling slots found on 356-01, located and aligned along the edges of the rear deck lid and engine cover.

The company responsible for this tribute / recreations debut that morning was Vintage Replicar, located in Vista, California, and the only firm that I know of producing a 356-01 recreation. Their website can be accessed using this link.

The fit and finish of this car, both inside and out was excellent, and anyone interested in driving a unique Porsche recreation, can be assured of owing a car that will stand out in a crowd for many years to come.

(Just for comparison, the following two photos were taken of Porsche 356-01, during my first visit to the Porsche factory back in July of 1977).

(All photos by the author)