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Working for Porsche in Stuttgart in the 1960s Part II

An early 901 prototype from the pre-production series (1964)
An early 901 prototype from the pre-production series (1964), still without its decorative strip under the door and with a round fuel cap – later this was an oval shape

Between the years 1962-1964, South African André Loubser worked for Porsche in Stuttgart. In Part I of this two-part mini-series, we saw how the author came to work for the Stuttgart manufacturer, and some of the humorous antics that he and his colleagues would get up to. In Part II, the author explains how his responsibilities grew which saw him rubbing shoulders with some of the world’s great names in the field of entertainment and motorsport.

This Type 901 prototype from 1963 sits in an ideal setting
This Type 901 prototype from 1963 sits in an ideal setting – who would have thought back then that this model would still be the mainstay of the Porsche brand in 2020?

Later that year (1963), and to my considerable surprise, I was asked to take over a division called Werksverkauf. This department could best be described as a VIP sales division which sold directly to royalty, the aristocracy, corporate heads, film stars, sports personalities and generally the rich and famous. It was established largely for publicity purposes, so that when well-known customers came to the factory to collect their cars they could be photographed and the event recorded in the house magazine, Christophorus.

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