10/10/20 3:30 AM Pasadena CA
I can’t believe I actually slept, today is one of those days where anticipation makes it almost impossible to sleep. All the best adventures start at ass o’clock in the morning, time to hit the road. Today should be an unforgettable day.
5:00 AM Bruce’s shop
Bruce Brown is the king of the LA Porsche scene, the man who invariably ends up welcoming most new enthusiasts with his quick-witted humor, and a mountain of automotive knowledge. I met Bruce at a Porsche show in Santa Monica back in the normal world, about a year ago, back then I wouldn’t have dreamed that today would happen.
“Yeah I am going to have you drive the Convertible D; it’s a 1959, made to replace the Speedster, essentially the same thing but with a somewhat taller windshield. It’s worth about two hundred and thirty thousand dollars.”
Holy shit Bruce! I thought you were going to have me drive the much less rare and valuable unrestored notchback, not that I am complaining! Not only is this Convertible D one of 1351 made, it is just one short windshield and a couple of badges away from being a Speedster. In other words, the most beautiful car I have ever driven.
Ever since Bruce told me I could drive one of his cars I found myself wondering, what does a 356 even drive like? After all, driving this delightful little jellybean is my first experience with a four-speed, carburetors, and drum brakes.
First impressions, the clutch is freakishly light, and pushing the pedal in feels like flipping a light switch. The buzzy 80 horsepower beetle based 1600 CC engine has plenty of torque to make starts easy but feels like a stressed-out hamster on the highway. The shifter knob looks like a tiny plastic mushroom mounted to a twig the Germans probably found it in a fairy tale forest. The shifter action is a little stiff this early in the morning, but it frees up as the car warms up, and I can feel the synchros doing their thing with every shift.
The convertible D is not just a car, it is a living thing, the driver must treat it carefully. The sun hasn’t risen yet, and the headlights work about as effectively as campfire lanterns. I’m losing track of Bruce, who I was supposed to be following to the show.
5:45 AM Oak Canyon Park, Cars in the Canyon.
Luckily, Bruce’s much faster race car is very loud, and very yellow, so it wasn’t hard to catch up.
“What took you so long? I thought I lost you.”
“Um, Bruce this car is worth more than my whole life.”
At the very least I got to see what this car can really do, and I am already in love. No time to fawn over it though, we didn’t drive all the way to a park in OC at ass o clock in the morning for fun, Cars in the Canyon is the last car show standing and Bruce and I are helping run it.
3:30 PM, Cars in the Canyon.
We are only about a thousand masks away from the normal world. Miraculously, Cars in the Canyon avoided the fate of other 2020 car shows because the hosts graciously provided masks and hand sanitizer for everyone. Just as importantly, Oak Canyon Park, the venue for Radwood So Cal 2019, is plenty big enough for everyone to keep their distance. Better still, all of the proceeds are going to the Orange County Food Bank at a time when their need for food has only gotten more urgent. It seems a lot of people were looking for a good time; we had excellent turnout today. Bruce says it’s time to get going, someone is hosting an after party, better still the roof is down.
Convertibles are wonderful and unique in their capacity to condense life down to its simplest elements. When the roof is down all there is is sun, wind, a steering wheel, a shifter and 80 spunky German horses for company. My god have I missed driving stick! And my god have I missed convertibles!
The 356 Convertible D is the most joyful car in the world; I feel about five years, and one pandemic younger behind this massive plastic steering wheel, and unlike the ten Corvettes, there is time to enjoy the ride. A 1959 Porsche 356 is slow, dangerous, and unsophisticated, and I love it; there is no rent to worry about behind this wheel, behind this wheel the American turmoil is on hold. I am not worried about who is going to be president anymore. In the Convertible D all that really matters beyond the wind and sun is the telepathically quick steering, and the pulsating brake pedal.
It should come as no surprise the Convertible D is a truly delightful handler, the kind of car that you have to drive like you mean it. Truthfully though, this car is about the way it makes you feel, and right now I feel better than I have in months. If everyone had a Convertible D, the world would be a much better place.
Bruce’s Shop, 7:30 PM.
I get back into the Mercedes, and in the course of one day, my two-ton luxury cruise feels like it has gotten way faster. How do I even sum this wonderful day up? A mere thank you seems insufficient. Bruce, thank you for introducing me to the happiest car I have ever driven. Bruce, thank you for helping me put 2020 on hold for a day. Bruce, can we do this again? Pretty please hahaha.
👍👍
An old Porsche like this is on my bucket list of cars to drive. To me they come across as elemental – driving in it purest form, with the car being an extension of the driver.
Sounds like an amazing day! Thanks for sharing it with us!
Lucky you! The Convertible D has always been my favorite open-top 356.
What a great day! There are few things as fun as getting to drive an interesting, unfamiliar car. You hit the jackpot on interesting.
Great opportunity!
There’s a 356 coupe in my neighborhood, we’ve driven past each other a few times when I’m in my 63 VW and I always wonder “how different can it be?”
Depends on how old it is. They steadily diverged more over time, although the 356’s roots were always apparent.
But the really early ones used a lot of components still sourced from Wolfsburg.
Days like that… 🤙🏻
What a great piece, Mr D. You’ve fully conveyed the joy for you and the car both, a thing especially valuable to do in a world that’s pretty dark-clouded for now.
Unlike you, I don’t think the 356 a beautiful car, but I do think it almost as attractive as one for its eccentric and functional singularity. It is not mistakeable for something else.
I don’t know Bruce Brown and anyway live in another country, but I must find his like here, because I want to do what you have done. A drive of a 356, roofed or not, is a longtime wish – well, in truth, it was originally ownership until I was too late to that party – and you’ve inspired me to do something about it.
well, in truth, it was originally ownership until I was too late to that party
Seriously? After your perpetual reflexive Nadaristic hellfire-and-brimstone damnation sermons about swing axles, especially on rear engine cars, you’re now going to tell us that you actually wanted to own a car with that guaranteed-to-kill-you feature? And that you still aspire to drive one?
I’m never going to listen to anything you say ever again. 🙂
No no, I’m a snob, it’s no swing axles for the great unwashed, you see.
As for your last line, I couldn’t agree more, I’ve tried to listen to myself before but I find it’s mostly rubbish.
Lucky you! What a sweet car…always fun when you get to drive something different, rare and totally off the wall, mine was when I drove the R5 Turbo2.
Great story which shows the fun factor and attraction of older, analog sports cars. They just are more alive than modern computer controlled cars with electric power steering, drive by wire gas pedals and brakes, and computer controlled transmissions.
Agree with you Paul, this is the 356 to have – just wonderful!
One thing you have to understand about 356s is how precise and modern they must have felt in comparison to other sporting cars of their day – a big Healey, for instance, which, whilst having its charms, must have felt so crude in comparison. I’ve experienced both and they are startlingly different….
The 356 is a car that I had no interest or appreciation of as a youngster. I thought that it was too plain and under powered. Dare I say, ugly? These were overshadowed during my youth by the 911s and Corvettes. I’ve read several contemporary roadtests of these early Porsches. I can see how the appeal of these early sports cars was in comparison to a domestic car, it must have seemed like it came from a different planet! As I’ve matured I’ve come to appreciate these early Porsches. I visited a great display at the Petersen Museum a few years back. There’s a really good series of 356 videos on the Petrolicious website. My Son has a Boxster, which is the entry level Porsche of Today. Maybe I need a Porsche to go pig hunting.
Jose, try to go to a Porsche event and beg to passenger in a 356 – you will “get it” and be able to recognize the lineage in your son’s Boxster. (Which era of Boxster does he have, btw?)
Even after working for Porsche for years, It took me a ride in a 356 to really understand the appeal of its first product.
Warning: after riding in, or driving a good 356, you will become obsessed by them!
Absolutely fabulous article !!! I love this car & Bruce awesome…. thank you for sharing the day with all of us at Cars in the Canyon.