The 356 Speedster was the brainchild of Max Hoffman, the New York-based distributor for Porsche cars during the period. He convinced Porsche that a purpose-built machine was needed to compete with inexpensive English sports car offerings from MG, Austin-Healey, and Triumph. Stripped of unessential items, the Speedster featured a raked windshield, lightweight bucket seats, and rudimentary folding top with side curtains. A club-racing star, the Speedster played an important role in Porsche’s early popularity in the US and was a sales success with 4,145 examples built during 1954 through 1958.
For the 1956 model year, the 356 was revised with numerous small but significant changes as part of Porsche’s “Technical Programme 1” (T1). Performance was improved through the availability of more powerful engines while wider wheels and tires, front anti-roll bar, updated steering linkage, and softer springs enhanced handling.
Chassis 82181 is one of 1,056 T1 356 A Speedsters and was completed by the factory in April 1956. Originally finished in white over a red leatherette interior, the Speedster was imported into the US through Hoffman Motors. This Speedster’s earliest history is not currently known, but by 1979 it was sold to R.A. Hendricks of Waynesboro, Virginia, by Weldon Scrogham, a noted Porsche historian, dealer, and collector, who is said to have had more Speedsters pass through his hands than almost anyone.
In 2017, this car was sold to its current enthusiast owner, who subsequently tasked four-time PCA national award-winning Porsche restorer and author Cole Scrogham (Weldon Scrogham’s son) to return the Speedster to stellar condition with a rotisserie restoration. An additional proviso was made that Mr. Scrogham should retain and use as many of the car’s original parts as possible. A solid example to start with, the Speedster’s body was stripped to bare metal and repainted in its original white. The interior and convertible top were reupholstered in correct canvas and vinyl materials. The correct type, but non-matching engine was rebuilt, while the original gearbox was rebuilt by Porsche 356 specialist Vic Skirmants of North Branch, Michigan. The consignor notes that the Speedster retains its original floor pans, doors, deck lid, steering wheel, and nearly all its original panels. Following completion in 2021, a paint-protection film was installed on the front to protect the Speedster’s front end from stone damage.
Driven approximately 1,000 miles since restoration, the 356 A Speedster is offered with a manual, tool kit, jack, Kardex, Porsche Certificate of Authenticity, restoration documentation, and records dating to 1979. This sale is an opportunity to acquire an incredibly well-restored, iconic Speedster that is ready for enjoyment on the open road or the show field.
Weldon Scrogham, Waynesboro, Virginia
R.A. Hendricks, Waynesboro, Virginia (acquired in 1979)
E. Carter Elliot, Charlottesville, Virginia (acquired circa 1983)
Current Owner (acquired from the above in 2017)
EXHIBITION HIGHLIGHTS
Virginia Festival of the Wheel, Charlottesville, 2021
1956 
