Toby Wilson
Head of Department
LOT 138
1957 Porsche 597 Jagdwagen 4x4 Utility Chassis no. to be advised
Sold for £175,100 inc. premium
Lot 138
1957 Porsche 597 Jagdwagen 4x4 Utility
1957 Porsche 597 Jagdwagen 4x4 Utility
Chassis no. to be advised
Chassis no. to be advised
*Ultra-rare Porsche 4x4
*One of only 71 made
*Originally built for civilian use
*Running and driving condition
*One of only 71 made
*Originally built for civilian use
*Running and driving condition
Footnotes
Its name roughly translating as 'hunting car', the Jagdwagen was a light military vehicle designed to fill much the same role as the Jeep, VW Kubelwagen, and Land Rover. Porsche developed the prototype in the early 1950s in response to a request from the German Army, although the cheaper DKW Munga was preferred and the Jagdwagen was never produced in significant numbers. In any case, Porsche had nothing like the production capacity required to meet the Army's needs in the proposed time scale. Development costs were estimated to be approximately 1.8 million Deutschmarks.
The vehicle was propelled by the Porsche 356 sports car's air-cooled flat-four engine, which was located at the rear as in the donor car. Early versions has the 1.5-litre engine, later ones the 1.6-litre unit, the latter's 50 horsepower maximum being good enough for a top speed of around 100km/h (62mph). Weighing 990 kilograms, the Jagdwagen featured a five-speed manual gearbox with additional on-the-fly two/four-wheel-drive shifting. With a wheelbase of only 2,060mm, the vehicle could climb gradients as steep as 65%.
The prototype body was manufactured by Porsche in Stuttgart with later versions (featuring torsion-bar stabilisers) made by coachbuilders Karmann. The monocoque body/chassis lacked doors, passengers having to climb in and out over the high sills. One advantage of this design was that the body was buoyant, making the Jagdwagen effectively amphibious. Later versions came with doors and a reshaped bonnet and front wings.
Only 71 Porsche 597s were manufactured between 1955 and 1958, 49 of which were built for the civilian market. Some within Porsche hoped that the company would produce an updated vehicle based on the 597 platform with a strengthened chassis, extended wheelbase of 2,400mm, and a range of five different body types. However, the project was eventually cancelled and this new vehicle never saw the light of day.
Sold new in Germany, this rare Jagdwagen is one of those supplied for private use rather than military purposes. It was purchased by the current owner in Japan in 2012 following a worldwide search, and since then has been used sparingly. The vehicle runs and drives and is described as in very good cosmetic condition. It is only offered for sale because the vendor has decided it is too precious to use on his country estate, despite the fact that it was built for just such a purpose! The ideal acquisition for the Porsche collector who thought they had everything.
Saleroom notices
The chassis number on this vehicle is- 597000106. We are pleased to have been informed by a German based Jadwagen specialist that more of its history is now known. The vehicle was delivered on December, 3rd, 1957 via the german dealer P. Müller in Hannover to the Bundeswehr: Panzer-Grenadier-Lehr-Batallion. In 1992 the car was imported in Japan – from the USA – and exhibited for years in the Shikoku Motor Car Museum. It returned to Germany in 2013. The engine is a 356 or 356 derivative unit and not to original specification.
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