A superb and rare photo of the assembly and manufacture of the magnificent Porsche 904 in the racing department of the Porsche factory in the German city of Zuffenhausen in 1964!

The Porsche 904 was officially called Porsche Carrera GTS due to the same naming rights problem that required renaming the Porsche 901. After having retired from F1 at the end of the 1962 season, Porsche focused again on sportscars. The 904 debuted in 1964 as a successor to the Porsche 718 which had been introduced in 1957. It was the first Porsche to use a fibreglass body which was white. While many German race cars had used unpainted aluminium bodies since the famous 1934 Silver Arrows, most 904s were painted silver which is the German racing color. The 904 marks also the beginning of a series of sportscars that culminated in the mighty Porsche 917. Porsche designed the GTS variant first to compete in the FIA-GT class at various international racing events. The street-legal version debuted in 1964 in order to comply with GT-class homologation regulations requiring that a certain number of road-going variants be sold by the factory. Both versions featured a fibreglass body which was bonded to its steel chassis for extra rigidity. The 904's mid-engine layout was inherited from the Porsche 718, also known as the RSK, which was the factory's leading race car (the RS referring to the German term for racing, Rennsport). The 1964 models, of which one-hundred were built, featured an aggressively tuned 180 hp (134 kW) version of the four-cam, flat four-cylinder "Fuhrmann" engine originally designed for race use in the 550 Spyder, and later featured in the 356 Carrera with 130 hp (97 kW). To satisfy demand, twenty 1965 models were produced, some featuring a variant of the 911's flat six-cylinder engine. Very few cars that were raced by the factory featured a flat eight-cylinder power plant derived from the 1962 F1 car Porsche 804. The six-cylinder and eight-cylinder units were varyingly identified as either 904/6 or 904/8. Race-prepped four-cylinder 904s weighed in at approximately 1,443 pounds (655 kg), giving them the ability to accelerate to sixty miles per hour from a standstill in under six seconds and to reach one hundred and sixty miles per hour as top speed. However, the 904's fibreglass body was made by spraying chopped fibreglass into a mold, the amount sprayed often varied in thickness over the shape of the car and as a result the weight of the various cars was somewhat inconsistent; some were heavier than others. Due to the less weight issues of the first generation plastic body, the 904's successor, the 1966 Porsche 906 or "Carrera 6", was developed with a tubular space frame covered with an unstressed, lighter fiberglass body. During its debut race season in 1961, the 904 won outright at the Targa Florio race in Italy, one of Porsche's many wins at the event. Another event during that season included the winning of first place in P3.0 at Sebring 12 Hours by Briggs Cunningham and Lake Underwood.

Professor Ferdinand Porsche initially started the company called "Dr. ing. h. c. F. Porsche GmbH" in 1931, with main offices at Königstrasse in the center of Stuttgart. The company offered motor vehicle development work and consulting, and did not initially build any cars under its own name. One of the first assignments the new company received was from the German government to design a car for the people, a "Volkswagen" in German. The first Porsche, the Porsche 64, was developed in 1939 using many components from the Volkswagen Beetle. After World War II, Ferdinand Porsche's son, Ferry Porsche, decided to build his own car because he could not find an existing car that he would be interested in buying. The first models of what was to become the 356 were built in a small sawmill in Gmünd, Austria and had aluminum bodywork: the modern Porsche company was born. The prototype car was shown to German auto dealers, and when pre-orders reached a set threshold, production was begun. Many regard the 356 as the first Porsche simply because it was the first model sold by the fledgling company. Porsche commissioned Zuffenhausen-based company Reutter Carosseri, which had previously collaborated with Porsche on Volkswagen Beetle prototypes, to produce the 356's steel body. Porsche constructed an assembly plant across the street from Reutter Carosseri; that assembly plant is now known as Porschestrasse. The 356 was road certified in 1948. Not long afterwards, on January 30, 1951, Ferdinand Porsche died from complications following a stroke. In post-war Germany parts were generally in short supply, so the 356 automobile used components from the Volkswagen Beetle including its engine, gearbox, and suspension. The 356, however, had several evolutionary stages, A, B, and C, while in production and many VW parts were replaced by Porsche-made parts. The last 356s were powered by entirely Porsche-designed engines. The sleek bodywork was designed by Erwin Komenda who also had designed the body of the Beetle. Porsche's signature designs have, from the beginning, featured air-cooled rear-engine configurations (like the Beetle), rare for other car manufacturers, but producing automobiles that are very well balanced. 

In 1964, after some success in motor-racing, namely with the Porsche 550 Spyder, the company launched the Porsche 911 another air-cooled, rear-engined sports car, this time with a 6-cylinder "boxer" engine. The team to lay out the body shell design was led by Ferry Porsche's eldest son, Ferdinand Alexander Porsche (F. A.). The design phase for the 911 caused internal problems with Erwin Komenda who led the body design department until then. F. A. Porsche complained Komenda made changes to the design not being approved by him. Company leader Ferry Porsche took his son's drawings to neighbouring body shell manufacturer Reuter bringing the design to the 1963 state. Reuter's workshop was later acquired by Porsche (so-called Werk II). Afterward Reuter became a seat manufacturer, today known as Keiper-Recaro.

This is a very nice and very rare non period photo that reflects a wonderful era of Porsche ‘s automotive history in a wonderful way.  This is your rare chance to own this photo, therefore it is printed in a nice large format of ca. 8" x 12" (ca. 20 x 30 cm).  It makes it perfectly suitable for framing.

Shipping costs will only be $ 7.00 regardless of how many photos you buy.   For 5 or more photos, shipping is free!

 (Note: A. Herl, Inc. does not appear on photo, for ebay purposes only)

No copyright expressed or implied. Sold as collectable item only. We are clearing out our archives that we have gathered from various sources.

All items always sent well protected in PVC clear files and board backed envelopes.

We have photographs that came from professional collections and/or were bought from the original photographer or press studio! They are all of professional and excellent quality.

After many decades of professionally collecting photographs and posters we are clearing out our archives. They make the perfect gift and are perfectly suited for framing. They will look gorgeous unframed and will be a true asset nicely framed with a border. They are a gorgeous and great asset in every home, workshop, workplace, restaurant, bar or club!

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