Porsche was just starting out in the racing arena and Richard von Frankenberg became the head of the Porsche marketing department. On a chance meet at an event, von Frankenberg and upcoming illustrator and car enthusiast, Erich Strenger, discussed the new car Porsche was building – the 550 Spyder. He asked Strenger to capture their latest victory as a poster so they could display them in their dealer showrooms. On every continent, Porsche was successful with their 550 Werks Teams and Strenger was commissioned to design a new poster to mark the win of each race. Today Strenger’s original posters are highly collectable works of art and demand serious prices at auction.

To reignite the passion of these victories, Type550.com has decided to produce five vintage race posters downloads, that encapsulate the essence of 1950s racing and the winning teams of the Porsche 550s. The posters will mark the famous races of:

-       1954 Le Mans

-       1954/1955 Mille Miglia

-       1955 Sebring 12 hours

and two more to come shortly

-       1956 Nürburgring 1000 km

-       1953/1954 Carrera Panamericana

With the use of 50’s typography, vintage color palettes and period era designs capturing accurate 550 renders, the series is perfect for any garage, workshop, office or home.

The posters are also designed with the option to be customized by the individual if desired. The option to include your surname as one of the drivers can be made online and saved as the final download file. This can also make a great personalised gift for a car enthusiast partner or friend.

Using today’s technology, the posters are offered as a download at an affordable price of US$8.50 which allows you to get a massive 24” x 36” quality poster. The beauty of the download is that you can choose where to get it printed – locally or online. The site also includes a number of suggested print companies that offer an online upload service where they will print and deliver the poster for you. Once they are printed, they can be framed, mounted or hung.

Share the passion and help support the type550.com site to grow and provide more of the rich history of these iconic Porsche 550 cars.

Another year has come and gone for ‘the most beautiful race in the world’, the 31st Mille Miglia. Although the promoters kept in high spirit, the rain certainly tried to put a dampener on both the 1000 mile route and also the excited spectators who line the streets and every corner. The Spyders being open

Most of the men weren’t too enthusiastic about racing against women and although they all had their reasons, the majority were more afraid of being beaten by them. The Porsche 550 Spyder was a small, light and very agile race car and the female drivers found it the perfect car to burn up the tarmac in. There were quite a number of notable female drivers who scored a winning reputation on the track in a Spyder, including Ruth Levy, Loretta Richert, Betty Shutes, Jean Speidel, Louise Cano, Suzy Dietrich, Annie Bousquet and Gilberte Thirion.

These ‘Spydergirls’ were always very competitive and skilled on the track and once they caught the racing bug of the Porsche 550 Spyder, it rarely let them down.

After a couple of years racing her Porsche 356 super, Ruth Levy moved to race for John Edgar’s Porsche racing team along side fellow driver Jack McAfee. They shared Edgar’s silver 550RS at a number of meets on the West coast throughout 1957, where she usually finished in first or second position.

For the America 500 mile race, Ruth teamed up with Denise McCluggage. Denise was always recognized trackside by her red polka dotted white race helmet. Starting her race career in a Jaguar XK140 in 1956, she soon moved into a 550A which she purchased in 1957. Besides racing her Spyder in the Venezuela GP and at Nassau, she also travelled across to Europe to race at the Rheinland Nürburgring in an Alfa Romeo Giulietta Veloce. Appearing at many local tracks like Lime Rock and Cumberland, Denise certainly made a name for herself. She ended her racing career in the late 1960s and eventually became the founding editor of the U.S. automotive magazine AutoWeek.

Annie Bousquet started racing in 1952 around the European circuits. She shared the driving with a number of experienced racers such as Josef Jeser and Gilberte Thirion. Annie bought a French blue spyder 550-0043 which she got direct from the Porsche factory. This Spyder was a newly built spyder using a spare frame and the body off a Buckelwagen prototype, 550-07. Before the 12 hour Reims race in 1956, Annie had to collect her modified spyder from Zuffenhausen and drive back to Reims just in time for the practice sessions. As she was very sleep deprived during the race, she crashed and rolled her car on a corner, killing her instantly.

Loretta Richert lived in Hawaii and raced her red Spyder against the best drivers on the island. She was the only female member of the Sports Car Club of Hawaii and from 1957 to 1959 she achieved many wins on the track., with her three children among her fans.

Suzy Dietrich loved to race and from 1953 to 1967, she had a stellar racing career in a variety of marques. Starting in her husband’s MG TC, she was allured by the Porsche 550 which she raced mainly in Ladies events with great success, including 2nd places at Dunkirk and Watkins Glen.

After Annie Bousquet’s accident, the Automobile Club de l’Ouest, organizers of the Le Mans 24 Hour race, banned female drivers from competing, a decision only revoked in 1971 when Marie-Claude Beaumont drove a Corvette there.

I have previously done a blog about the lightweight drilling of the wheels and chassis of 550-0073 done by Paul Sagan. Recently I had an email from the daughter of Paul with additional information about the car. Paul Sagan was a Porsche/VW dealer in Uniondale New York and like many, he was also a weekend

These days everything happens so fast due to the latest technology, which is the same for cars that are over 60 years old. Although I try and update this blog as much as possible, I find it easier just to post photos and stories on my Type 550 Facebook page which is always in a

One of my favourite Porsche researchers and author, Tony Adriaensens has just sent his latest book to the printers, which is a magical window focusing on early Porsche competition history. Titled ‘SportErfolge’, this magnificent 640 page photo-essay covers a part of the rich racing and rallying history of the Porsches from as early as 1951

In honour of the famous Italian race – the Mille Miglia, last week saw the spectacular collection of classic cars line up in Tokyo, Japan for the 2012 La Festa Autunno. The 93 entries rallied along the highways and through the mountains for the four day round trip finishing along the coast back to Tokyo.

Back on the first January 2012, there was a forum post by the owner of a very special 1956 Porsche 356 Carrera coupe. The car was originally built by Dean Jeffries who was widely known in Los Angeles as a painter, so he built this car to showcase his talents as a customizer and it

Porsche 550 Spyders are well known for their successes on the track, usually on European endurance circuits like LeMans or the airfield tracks of the US. Once the 550As and the RSKs were competing in these races, the nimble RS550 weren’t as fast against them and many were sold off for the latest offerings from

It all started with an email asking for assistance from the current owner of 550-0088. He is not a collector of exotic cars or holds a ‘VP’ position in a Fortune 500 company – he bought the car back in the early 70s against his Father’s advice, and has treasured it ever since. The Spyder,