Only from the driver’s seat of a Porsche from this mid-‘60s era can you really understand the truly unique package that remains the aspiration of so many who are knowledgeable about cars and believe that there was no more desirable car on the market in 1965, and remain dedicated to that original impact.

So much of the fun of driving a Porsche 356C comes from knowing this is no ordinary automobile….knowing that it is a thoroughbred whose superiority has been demonstrated over the years in countless races – amateur and professional.

This mainly original 1965 Porsche 356C represents the final model year in which the car was offered. The bodywork, suspension and equipment remained primarily unchanged from the prior year; still revered by the motoring scene, the 356 platform would soon give way to the 911.

This car has only had two owners; the first for only a year, and from December 1966 to present, it has been warmly cherished by the second owner and his family. The original invoice accompanies the Porsche and shows that Mr. Harry Potter of Potter Sports Cars on North Main Street in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts sold the car to the excited second owner in nearby Chicopee, Massachusetts when it was only a year old on December 2, 1966. It was paid for on December 5 at the cost of $3,295.

The code 6403 Sky Blue with Red upholstery 356C “was the light of the new owner’s eye. He raced it and won rallies all over New England with the Porsche Club in the late sixties, taking home more than 20 trophies in the winning auto. It was garaged and placed in storage in 1979 while still fully functional. It is all original and complete.”

Although the Porsche needs loving attention, there are many fine and looked for attributes that begins with it being a largely original platform. The 356C has a 1,582-cc, 75-hp flat four-cylinder engine that is paired with a four-speed manual transmission and four-wheel disc brakes were a welcomed standard feature. The Karmann-built body and the original color combination was vibrant in its day and is accented by VDO instrumentation, fold-down rear seats, front seatbelts, spare and Sapphire 1 by Bendix AM radio.

Notably the Porsche has its original toolkit case that contains nine of the original utensils, the original keys, the original Retail Installment Contract from the Third National Bank of Hampden County, select certificate of insurance stubs, select registration cards, various Porsche 356C magazine and newspaper articles, various maintenance receipts and the original driver’s (owner’s) manual with some handwritten notes from the prior owner. A March 22, 1975 receipt from Albert’s Auto Body shows that $1,000 was invested in replacing the front section of the floor, the left and right rocker panels and the left and right step boards with it then being undercoated, primed and painted.

Ready to be renewed and enjoyed in the manner of its long term owner, the famous sports car writer Ken Purdy wrote of this era of Porsche: “The Porsche may be the most fun to drive of anything in the world. There will never be very many Porsches, since the factory is small, and they cannot be made quickly in any case. It delivers more sheer sensual pleasure than anything else on wheels. Driving a Porsche, you can, with small effort, believe that the seat of your trousers is part of the automobile.”