1958 Porsche 356 A

Chassis No. 101919

Decades before the Outlaw 356 movement began there was a number of 356 owners around the country that were modifying their cars to go faster and look better. In the San Francisco Bay Area Bob Garretson, Kerby Hollis, and Mick Korngold owned three spectacular 356s that stood head and shoulders above the rest. Garretson would set Top Time of the Day at regional autocrosses on a regular basis and won the PCA Parade autocross multiple times. Mick was almost as fast and when Garretson slipped up he would take TToD. Hollis split his time between showing and autocrossing. His car was super clean and featured parts drilled for lightness. The build of this special A coupe was inspired by these three great cars.

My Connection

One of my first jobs when I was going to High School in Palo Alto California was to sweep out the SayRay shop after school. Ray’s shop was the focal point for a number of Porsche racers in the area because it had a chassis dyno. The late Chuck Forge was a regular. Chuck worked nearby at HP and would test out trick parts after work on the dyno. So as the shop kid I got to see these modifications first hand. I was also lucky enough to live right across the street from the Elesworth brothers who were into Off Road racing. Doug and Steve won the Mint 400 and their roommate Bill Bruster won the Pikes Peak hill climb. Their buddy Mick Korngold would hang out and work on his very quick 356 A Coupe autocross car. This car featured widened rear fenders with six inch rear wheels. Glancing at the car it didn’t appear the body had been modified at all.

Years later after college I was working for a graphic design company in Santa Clara. The owner was a Porsche enthusiast and happened to own both the Garretson and Hollis cars. The Garretson car was his daily driver and was kept intact. The Hollis car was famous for all the parts that had been drilled for lightness. Back in the 1960’s one of Kirby’s friends at Lockheed had undergone surgery and was recuperating at home. He could not leave the house because of fears of infection but was itching to do something, and he had a drill press! So Kirby would take a part off his A coupe and put it in a bag on his friends front porch. A few days later he would return and the part had been drilled for lightness. If he could unbolt it, it got drilled. Over the years the parts were pulled off the car because modern Concours required period correct parts, creativity was not rewarded on the show field. They ended up split between Clark Anderson and myself. Some of which have made it onto this car.

On the weekends I would crew for Chuck Forge on his SCCA Speedster learning even more speed secrets. Working with Forge was like taking a master class in how to make a 356 fly. He showed me how to modify the suspension, engine, transmission and brakes. Plus a few tricks that were in the gray area of the rule book. I took that knowledge and built a 356 Roadster for Don Bell to race in SCCA EP. We won the Pacific Coast Road Racing Championship (PCRRC) twice.

By the early 1990’s I had acquired this car in a three way trade that included a wrecked Speedster I had saved from the Forge family orchard. The car was rough around the edges with plenty of what today we would call patina. The previous owner had put in a new Stoddard floor, longitudinals , jack spurs and battery box. The installation was strong but not done to the highest Concours levels as we would do today. It did not have the number matching engine or transmission so I made the decision to built a tribute to the Garretson car and incorporate as many of the “go fast” and New Old Stock (NOS) parts I had been collecting over the years.

The build

Just as on the Garretson car Aquamarine Blue was chosen for the color and the factory GT trim set the style. It was sprayed in single stage polyurethane. The gas filler was poked through the hood, a GT Werks aluminum rear louvered engine lid was added along with GT style bumper trim. Custom hood straps were installed through slots as on a Ferrari. Aftermarket plexiglas door windows with pull straps replaced the heavy glass and window regulators. The glass quarter windows were replaced with NOS factory plex windows. To accommodate six inch wide rear wheels the rear fenders had a slice cut from the door jam all the way back through the tail lights and widened about an inch over stock just as Mick had done on his car back in the 1960’s. Now 205 60R 15 tires on six inch steel wheels with a 1/4 inch spacer easily fit. The rear bumper which had been modified to fit the Garretson car back in the day bolted right up.

An all new GT interior with the alligator skin at the front and gray German square weave carpet in back came from Bob Garretson. A NOS headliner was installed. Fibersteel GT/Speedster seats are upholstered in black leather to match. All the gauges including the 8000 RPM GT tach were rebuilt by Palo Alto Speedometer. All the dash knobs, shift knob, and radio block off plate are NOS factory parts. A factory GT roll bar and period racing seat belts finish of the interior. The Roll bar was modified to tilt it back so it would clear the drivers head better.

The front suspension has all the tricks developed on the Garretson car back in the day. De-cambered “C” links, boxed trailing arms, Koni shocks, and a 17.5mm anti roll bar. Every bearing, link pin, king pin and ball joint are brand new. Even the steering box is a NOS factory part. The rear suspension has new stiffer Sway Away bars, new wheel bearings, Koni shocks and a Vic Scrimants camber control bar. 356 C disc brakes were installed all around with a NOS ATE dual master cylinder, rebuilt calipers, new steel and flex lines, NOS rotors and even NOS ATE brake pads. Wheels are early 911 steel wheels 5.5x15 at the front and 6x15 at the rear.

The transmission is a rebuilt 741 with 644 nose piece and shift rails so it would bolt right up to the car without any modification to the shift linkage. New syncros were installed along with new rear wheel bearings.

The engine was modified and built by the late Chuck Forge back in the day. It is based on a 1956 case and features Forge flowed heads Mahle 1600 Super pistons and cylinders and a Elgin cam. The flywheel was lightened and and all parts balanced. Rebuilt 32 NDIX carbs top off the engine. Best of all the sheet metal is all original and has never been painted and is in excellent condition.

All the Kirby Hollis Swiss cheesed parts were installed with a few new ones created just for this car. The Hollis parts include the gas peddle, floor boards, gas tank straps. and seat rails. New parts include the seat rails, front hood latch, hand brake, horn brackets, and the inside of the engine lid. To keep with the lightweight theme the steering box covers were made out of aluminum.

This is a drivers car not a concours car or garage queen. It is best enjoyed out on the open road.