70 Years of Innovation Forges an Australian Institution

70 years of

A chance meeting brings Porsche to Australia

On June 8, 1948 the first automobile to bear the Porsche name was registered – 356, simply called the ‘No.1’ Roadster. This day is considered to be the birth of the Porsche brand.

However, Ferdinand Porsche was already designing ground-breaking innovations in automobile construction at the beginning of the last century. Ferdinand (Ferry) Porsche built an electric vehicle in 1900 – the Lohner – Porsche. He used it as a basis for building the first all-wheel-drive passenger car in the world. That same year, he provided a template for hybrid vehicles with the development of a gasoline-electric mixed drive.

Innovation forges an Australian institution

The successor to the 356, the Porsche 911, was designed by Ferry Porsche’s son Ferdinand Alexander. It was this car that helped the company achieve its breakthrough as one of the world’s leading sports car manufacturers in terms of technology and style. The 911, presented to the world for the first time in 1963, has now been constructed more than one million times. Long before the Porsche 911, the Porsche brand made its mark in Australia through the vision of Norman Hamilton, who was on his way from Austria to Switzerland when he spied a low-slung silver sports car on the road – the Porsche 356. The 356 captured Hamilton’s imagination. Ever the fearless entrepreneur, he saw a market in Australia for such a remarkable car. After meeting Ferry Porsche, the two shook hands on a deal to secure the Australian and New Zealand commercial rights. Norman subsequently became only the second Porsche agent outside Europe.

The Hamilton Porsche legacy begins

On 1 November, 1951, Hamilton introduced Porsche to celebrities and motorsport identities at a function at the South Melbourne Town Hall.

Those early days of the brand’s Australian presence were difficult though, as import restrictions severely limited sales. The day of the launch was fateful in another way. During the event, Norman’s son, nine-year-old Alan Hamilton, was unforgettably introduced to the marque. Captivated by motorsport but a little less captivated by school, Alan tried his hand at several vocations before Norman decided it would be best to take his son into the family business. Back then, Porsches were ordered ex-factory to customer requirements. Even more of a risk-taker than his father, the newly recruited Alan wanted to order cars for stock rather than to firm customer order.

Finally, at the age of 29, Alan took over the family business. Over the years, he transformed it into a substantial, vibrant company with its roots firmly in motorsport. Then, in 1989, the recession struck. It all came to a head in February 1992, when Porsche AG took control of all Porsche operations in Australia, ending 41 years of Hamilton family control that laid strong foundations on which the company has grown to be one of the Australian motor industry’s longest continuously represented makes.

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Porsche 911 victorious on and off the track

Without any doubt, the Porsche 911 has had a long string of successes on Australia’s racetracks. It won the Australian Sports Car Championship six times in succession between 1976 and 1981, and has not had a rest since.

Because of the Australian market’s unique and longstanding relationship with the factory and its flair for marketing innovation, many unique 911 Porsches have found their way to Australia. These included three roll cage–festooned 911s built to contest the 1968 London-Sydney Marathon, the show prototype of the first production 911 Turbo, the world’s only right-hand drive Type 964 911 RSR 3.8, and a unique Type 996 911 Aboriginal Art Car. In this benchmark year for Porsche Australia, these distinctive examples will be joined by another unique 911 model – a limited edition, Australiaonly version in Fish Silver Grey metallic. The colour harks back to the 356 Cabriolet first imported into Australia by Norman Hamilton in 1951. ‘Porsche and Australia have a close bond and tradition and Australians love our sportscars, especially the iconic Porsche 911,’ says Detlev von Platen, Member of the Executive Board for Sales and Marketing at Porsche AG.

The special edition model will be a feature of the 2021 celebrations. ‘It’s fantastic that the new special edition model for Australia will be based on an iconic, modern Porsche sportscar, but with a nod to the very first car we shipped to Australia all those years ago,’ says Grant Larson, Director Special Projects, Style Porsche in Weissach. ‘It’s especially pleasing to hear that those first two cars, like most Porsches, are still on the road being enjoyed by their owners to this very day.’ g

The Porsche 911 GT3 70 Years Porsche Australia Edition is the first Porsche that has been based on a market-specific edition of a 911 GT product, and the first time a special edition has been created by Porsche for the Australian market.

This distinctive model was designed in collaboration with experts from the Style Porsche design team, the Porsche Exclusive Manufaktur customisation department and Porsche Cars Australia. Only a limited number will be produced, each painted in a new customised colour developed by Porsche Exclusive Manufaktur. The colour, Fish Silver Grey Metallic, is a modern interpretation of ‘Fish Silver Grey’. Available with either manual or PDK transmissions, the car is based on the new 911 GT3 with Touring Package (Type 992). Deliveries are to commence from the end of 2021. •

The 911 GT3 70 Years Porsche Australia Edition features a unique list of additional specifications over and above the 911 GT3 with Touring Package:

• Exterior ‘Custom Colour’ in Fish Silver Grey Metallic • Wheels in Darksilver with wheel rim borders in Fish Silver Grey Metallic • Badge on B-pillar (both sides) with Australian flag and ‘70 Years

Porsche Australia Edition’ lettering in silver • Full bucket seats in leather Graphite Blue with seat inlays in

Madraskaro check fabric in Graphite Blue and Crayon • Dashboard trim painted in Fish Silver Grey Metallic with ‘GT3 70 Years

Porsche Australia Edition’ lettering in black • Indoor-car-cover in Graphite Blue with piping in Crayon and ‘GT3 70

Years Porsche Australia Edition’ lettering on the sides in Crayon as well as the ‘Porsche Exclusive Manufaktur’ logo on the front in Crayon • Centre console trim painted in Fish Silver Grey Metallic

• Storage compartment lid with embossing of logo ‘70’ • GT3 multi-function sports steering wheel with 12-o’clock marker in Crayon • Vehicle keys painted in Fish Silver Grey

Metallic • Gear shift pattern on gear lever in Crayon • Door sill guards in brushed Aluminium in black with ‘GT3’ (illuminated) and ‘70 Years

Porsche Australia Edition’ lettering • Key pouch in leather in black and Graphite

Blue with stitching in Crayon

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The following specifications are standard over and above the 911 GT3 with Touring Package:

• Chrono Package including preparation for lap trigger • Light Design package with additional ambient lighting • Touring package exterior painted in Black (tailpipe trims and side window sills), but with ‘PORSCHE’ logo on rear painted in Lightsilver • Tinted LED main headlights including Porsche Dynamic

Light System (PDLS) • Brake callipers painted in black (high-gloss) • Wheels painted in satin

Darksilver • Lightweight full bucket seats with Porsche crest embossed on headrests • Roof lining and sun visors in

Race-Tex • Leather interior Exclusive

Manufaktur in two-tone combination of Graphite Blue and black • Loudspeaker trims painted in interior colour • Cup holder trims in leather • Extended package leather interior Exclusive Manufaktur • Storage package • Interior package with decorative stitching in Crayon • BOSE Surround Sound

System.

Other features standard on the GT3 70 Years Porsche Australia Edition include:

• Automatically dimming mirrors including rain sensor • Lifting system for front axle • ParkAssist (rear only) • Rear-view camera • Tyre sealing compound with electric air compressor • Digital radio. The 911 GT3 70 Years Porsche Australia Edition will be available on order for $494,300.