Porsche In North America For Over 70 Years
The first Porsche sports cars arrived in the North America in the autumn of 1950, some 70 years ago. This was the start of a growing success story and significant to the success of the marque.
It was a stroke of luck, a meeting between Professor Ferdinand Porsche and Max Hoffman. This led to a decision to Porsche exporting its cars to America and this year, 2020, is the 70th anniversary of their arrival.
Austrian Max Hoffman arrived in New York on June 21, 1941. Six years later he opened a car showroom on Park Avenue, the Hoffman Motor Car Company. Hoffman started importing and selling European brands to the American public. This proved so successful that Hoffman could take chances with less known marques.
Hoffman already knew Ferdinand Porsche when he was working as a lawyer in Vienna. But it was Max Troesch, a journalist, who drove a Porsche 356 and proclaimed: “I am sure this car will make a name for itself.” When Troesch visited America, he showed Hoffman the photos and persuaded him to connect with Porsche.
The first two 1.1 litre 356 coupes When he travelled to America, he showed Hoffman photos of the car and encouraged him to connect with Porsche. The first two 1.1-litre 356 coupes were delivered to Hoffman in the autumn of 1950. He met Porsche at the Paris Motor Show that year. In early conversations with Hoffman Ferry Porsche said he would be happy to sell five cars a year in America. Hoffman famously replied: “If I can’t sell five a week, I’m not interested.” The initial contract was eventually agreed on a U.S import contract of 15 cars per year.
Porsche’s first sports car received certification for road use in Germany on June 8, 1948. Only two years before the first car would arrive in the America. The relationship between the U.S and Porsche is nearly as long as the company history itself.
Porsche lacked the budget for any advertising campaign, so it left Hoffman to establish the unknown brand to American customers. His marketing materials described the 356 as “One of the World’s Most Exciting Cars” with “a new conception in handling, roadholding, suspension and safety never known before”.
Hoffman started to gain traction and by 1954 he was selling 11 car a week which equated to 30 percent of the annual production. In 1965, the final year of the 365 model, the share of cars sold in the U.S was 74.6 percent.
The first two Porsches sold were very much like the beautiful green 356 in the photographs. A 1950 356 1.1-liter coupe.
Another Austrian was very influential in Porsche’s success. John von Neumann operated his Competition Motors dealership in North Hollywood since 1948. It took a single test drive for Neumann while visiting Hoffman in New York in 1951 to buy a Porsche 356 and take it back to California. Neumann was an avid racer himself and played a part in introducing the Porsche brand to the growing motorsports scene in the Golden State.
The nimble new Speedster model in particular would prove popular with its lower starting price of just $2,995. The Speedster was inspired by the 356 America Roadster. This was due to Hoffman’s influence on the company, he had specifically asked Ferry Porsche for a lightweight, entry-level car.
Neumann being well-connected in Hollywood and had a long list of celebrity customers. One of which was actor James Dean. this helped to build the image of Porsche as the cars were used for both racing and commuting.
Porsche grew in popularity with more cars established in showrooms. Popular culture influence was growing too. To manage all the growth an independent distribution network, The Porsche of America Corporation, was formed in 1955. From 1969 the company formed part of the Porsche Audi division of Volkswagen of America, Inc. Lastly, Porsche Cars North America was established in Reno, Nevada on September 1, 1984.
After the global financial crisis of 2008 many automotive companies struggled. But Porsche had a strong decade of growth after 2009, which saw U.S sales drop below 20,000 cars. Vehicle sale climbed year on year with the addition of new model lines such as the Panamera, and later the Macan. On May 12, 2011, Porsche Cars North America announced that it would build a new headquarters in Atlanta. This new dedicated home for Porsche in America is not just a centralised location for the business, but as a brand embassy. Visitors could use the Porsche Experience Centre which opened its doors in May 2015. Complete with a driver development track, fine dining restaurant and Heritage Gallery.
A second Porsche Experience Centre was opened In November 2016 in Los Angeles, making America the first market with two
PECs. California is responsible for about one quarter of all U.S. sales. In 2017 Porsche would sell the millionth 911 and the car travelled to New York in recognition of the first steps with Hoffman in 1950.
September 2018 was to see 81,000 people attend four days of racing at the WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca in California. The event was to stage the Rennsport Reunion VI. The festival founded by Bob Carlson, former head of PR for PCNA’s. this was a regular running event since 2001 as a way to honour the Porsche motorsports legacy.
2019 was Porsche’s biggest year in America with record sales of 61,568 vehicles. But also, it was the premier of the new all electric Taycan in September. The first worldwide deliveries were to American customers in December of the same year.
Many thanks to Porsche for the use of the images.
If you like Porsche there are some great images attached to the 917 celebration article; Porsche Top 5, A Colourful Mixture Of The 917 Models Liveries, and the First Porsche 917 from 1969.
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