Sculpting the Future

Long before the Speedster became a Porsche icon, there was this remarkable one-off: the 1951 Porsche-Sauter 356 Pre-A Sportwagen Roadster.

Built for Stuttgart racing driver Heinrich Sauter, the lightweight roadster received a bespoke aluminium body by Hans Klenk, complete with distinctive rear-hinged 'suicide' doors and a host of competition-focused details. Underneath sat an experimental 1.5-litre flat-four – the largest engine yet fitted to a 356 – making it both a serious racing machine and an important development car for Porsche itself.

Its competition career took in the Nürburgring, Liège-Rome-Liège, Monaco and later California's burgeoning sports car scene, before Porsche bought the car back to help develop the Type 528 engine that would power the America Roadster. In many ways, this unique machine became the evolutionary bridge between the very first Porsche roadster, the America Roadster and, ultimately, the legendary 356 Speedster.

After decades of obscurity, the car was painstakingly rediscovered and restored by Porsche historian Dr Ray Knight, returning one of the marque's most significant early competition cars to its original form. Today it stands as a fascinating reminder that some of Porsche's most influential creations weren't production models at all, but hand-built experiments that quietly shaped the future of the brand.

This hugely important 1951 Porsche-Sauter 356 Pre-A Sportwagen Roadster by Klenk will form part of Broad Arrow’s upcoming Quail Auction, taking place between the 13-14th August 2026. It’s estimated to fetch between $1.8-$2.2m. Photos © Broad Arrow Auctions.