75 years ago on 8 June 1948, Porsche released the 356 No. 1 Roadster which would become the first automobile to bear the Porsche name and receive its general operating permit. Fast forward to today and the German brand celebrates its anniversary with the Porsche Vision 357 Concept Car.
This new Porsche Vision 357 Concept is a reference to the Porsche 356, which itself was the dream of Ferry Porsche of a sports car. This is made immediately clear as the iconic design is brought back and reimagined into the present day. It is truly a dream come true with its progressive design philosophy.
Michael Mauer, Vice President Style Porsche, said, “We created a very special birthday present in the form of the Porsche Vision 357, one which uses the 356 as a basis to underscore the significance of our design DNA. The design study is an attempt to combine the past, present and future with coherency, featuring proportions that are reminiscent of its historical archetype and details that visualise the outlook for the future.” He added.
On top of that, the Porsche Vision 357 Concept is also built on the same technology platform as the 718 Cayman GT4 RS and is emblematic of outstanding sports car performance. What’s more, the exterior of the car is the highlight of the special exhibition “75 Years of Porsche sports cars” at the Volkswagen Group’s “DRIVE” Forum in Berlin, which opened with an exclusive evening event on 25 January 2023.
The design of the Porsche Vision 357 Concept also pays homage to the 356 it is based on through its monolithic form, narrow passenger cell with the abruptly sloping flyline, broad overall stance, the way the windscreen sharply wraps around the A-pillars and many other defining and functional features.
Additionally, the functional details in the Porsche Vision 357 Concept are integrated and underpin the sculptural character of the vehicle. This includes the concealed door openers by the side windows and the tail lights, which sit behind a patterned array of points in the body itself.
With all that, could the Porsche Vision 357 Concept be an early glimpse into the future of the fully electric Porsche 911 EV? Will every other iconic nameplate from the German brand simply take inspiration from its first designs and play on that to deliver a new electrified version?
Well, I see the Porsche Vision 357 Concept as nothing more than just a cool car to pay homage to the brand’s 75 successful years. However, some small part of me does fear that everything mentioned in the earlier paragraph may be true but I suppose we shall have to wait and see. I do think this is not the case though.
So what do you guys think of the Porsche Vision 357 Concept? I love it and can’t wait to see one with my own eyes.
