Image via Porsche
It was back on April 6, 1950 that the first volume-produced Porsche 356 rolled out of the automaker’s factory in Zuffenhausen, a borough of Stuttgart, launching the brand into history. Now Porsche is celebrating 75 years of assembling sports cars in the same German city.
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While Ferdinand Porsche did set up a business in Zuffenhausen in 1938, it was for construction, not building cars. After the conclusion of WWII, the Porsche family returned to the city, it had to relocate thanks to Allied troops occupying the old building.
In 1950, the fledgling automaker assembled 317 cars, a far cry from what it does today. However, the 356 quickly gained notoriety, not in small part because of its prowess in motorsports, proving that winning on Sunday leads to sales on Monday.
One of the innovations Porsche introduced at its Zuffenhausen factory starting in the early days was making different variants from the same model line on the same assembly line. That meant all the 356 Cabriolet, Coupe, Roadster, and Speedster cars were mixed together instead of going through the line on different days or at different times, a practice still done today.
As demand increased for Porsches, the company had to expand its Zuffenhausen operations. The tempo only increased when the 911, a model that was supposed to act only as a temporary bridge for a future line, first rolled out of the Zuffenhausen factory in 1963.
Obviously, over the years Porsche’s operations in Zuffenhausen were improved and modernized, while craftsmanship was still emphasized. Currently, artificial intelligence, driverless transports, and a central cloud for the factory are all in use. Can you imagine what the facility will be like when the 100 year anniversary arrives?
Today, Porsche manufactures three model lines in Zuffenhausen: the 911, 718, and all-electric Taycan.
Images via Porsche
