Carrera book comments and questions

[Type550]

The car was then sold to Chico Landi at the end of the '57 season who also raced it. It is unknown of the whereabouts of this car today.

[Steve Heinrichs]

re 28172

Guys, I was away forthree days and am notfeeling well.

Again, respectively, the complete rejection of the Stuck correspondence, rejection of Fascinello (we haveother documents) and the "flat assertion" that 05 went back to Europe when it is documented to be in Brazil through maybe August at least.

No documentation has surfaced at all that 05 went back to Europe.

I will answer the others but believe we have it correct.

Steve Heinrichs

[vhelmle]

Hello Everyone,

Steve Heinrichs has asked me to respond to some of the comments and questions arising from the 550-05 and 550-07 discussions.

Thank you Andrew for the photos with details identified. I'll try to use the same terminology.

For this post, we want to provide the information we have on the fuel caps for 550-05 and 550-07.

Earliest photo we have positively identified for 550-05. Please note that the filler cap is above the line of the hood.



Earliest photo we have seen that is positively identified for 550-07. Please note that the top of the filler cap is recessed. A copy of this photo is available at Andrew's Typ 550 website, so we could be sure that we agree.

[vhelmle]

Hello Everyone,

Steve Heinrichs has asked me to respond further to the discussion of 550-05 and 550-07.

Starting with 550-05, here are photos that show the raised filler cap that we associate with 550-05.

From the Paris Auto Show and available on Andrew's website:



From the Bird Clemente Collection and available at the Ruy Amaral Website:



Photo of Jorge Lettry in late 1955 or early 1956. The filler cap still appears to be raised. This photo is also available at the Pandini website. The filler cap is not perfectly clear but, we believe it is raised above the level of the front hood.

[vhelmle]

Hello Everyone,

Steve Heinrichs has asked me to continue with the 550-05 and 550-07 discussion.

Now for 550-07, which we note has the recessed filler cap.

At the March 1954 Solitude (during the time that 550-05 was in Brazil according to the letters). Herbert Linge's identification of this photo in 550-07.



Now, in France with Veuillet. This is Olivier driving for Veuillet's dealership at Coupe de Printemps, April 1954 (also during the time that Kern and Stuck are corresponding about 550-05.



In May 1954, Veuillet at Sable-Solesmes (available at this forum)



In September 1954 at Coupe d'Automne, with Bousquet. This is after the series of letters between Stuck and Kern, but due to the recessed filler cap, we believe this is still 550-07.



In each of these cases the filler cap is recessed. However, there are problems. In at least one of these photos (Veuillet at May 1954 Sable-Solesmes) the car has the recessed filler cap, but it also has the raised channel on the rear hood (Andrew correctly refers to this as the fan shroud bulge.) At the same time, we are certain that 550-05 is still in Brazil and the subject of payment in the Kern-Stuck letters.

[vhelmle]

Other notes on 550-05 and 550-07.

The Stuck car 550-05, eventually appears in Brazil with the new front end that looks like a 550A. However, we don't have any photos or other documentation that show this new modification until January 1957 at GP Sao Paulo and 1957 1000 km Buenos Aires.

1957 GP Sao Paulo, start nr. 7 Bino Heins.



1957 Buenos Aires, start nr. 66 Bino Heins.


Other considerations:

• There are several Brazilian websites and most comment that Bino Heins bought the car from Stuck (not Fasanello). While some may be repeating the common wisdom, there may be some basis for this believe. However, Heins did not enter the scene until late 1955, early 1956. So if Heins returned the car to Germany, it seems likely it would have been later in 1956 after the Jorge Lettry photo, not during early 1954.
• If Heins did return 550-05 to the factory in 1956 for the new front end, then it already had the modified exhaust system which we believe was built in Brazil??. At that point the raised filler cap cannot be used as an indicator.
• Another less often cited theory from the Brazilian websites is that Heins' car was sabotaged at an unknown race in Uruguay with water in the gas tank. I think this would have wrecked his motor?
• Jorge Lettry, Emerson Fittipaldi and other noted Brazilian racing pros were associated with Bino Heins. They certainly could have handled the modifications on their own.
• Finally, the dual exhaust system that appears on 550-05 in the "Gavea" book, by Paulo Scali (page 110) also shows the Factory plate (AW 24 5223) and Jorge Lettry which places the photo sometime in 1955-1956. This is before the front end modification.

[Type550]

Since Steve identified 550-06 as the show car Buckelwagen I have accepted it as it fits within the timelines and physical characteristics. Two things that jump out at me with the latest posts are the rubber strip on the nose and the use of the Porsche crest and badging.

My understanding of the cars' identity based on this is:
550-05 - PORSCHE script, no strip
550-06 - PORSCHE script and crest, rubber strip
550-07 - no script, crest or rubber strip (not necessary to brand the car if it was only used for testing)

If you look at every photo posted on this forum, these characteristics and consistent throughout. In regards to the filler cap, it is a simple pipe which screws into the top of the fuel tank and could have been adjusted at any time to be more flush with the front hood.

I have not updated the general page on my website regarding the identity of these buckelwagens until the identification is conclusive (or as close as it will get)

[Steve Heinrichs]

Andrew,

Given the multiple configurations I do not think the characteristics stayed the same.


We ate going around the same stuff. No evidence exists of 05 in Europe from January through August of 1954. Yet specific written, logical evidence shows it in Brazil and Heins' race history comports.

Let's stay focused. ALL of the 07 stuff that may look like 05 is understandable given Annie's accidents, etc. 07 did much testing but to deny it raced is way wrong.


Steve Heinrichs

[Type550]

I think the photo that Vietta posted of 550-07 outside the factory is 550-06, not 550-07.










We are going backwards fast...

[vhelmle]

I think the photo that Vietta posted of 550-07 outside the factory is 550-06, not 550-07.



Hello Everyone,

Steve Heinrichs has asked me to reply to Andrew's correction to the attached photo.

Using Andrew's analysis of the features on the front end, we agree that the photo of the 550 outside the factory is probably 550-06, not 550-07.

That photo is probably taken just before the series of auto shows from January 1954 to February 1955 where 550-06 was exhibited.

This means that remaining photos are 550-07 with the first photo we have of 550-07 at the 14 March 1954 Solitude race (again using Andrew's front end feature analysis). The next test is March 1954 Munich-Nuremburg. A month earlier (February 1954) the Kern-Stuck correspondence begins and continues through June, 1954. During this period we believe 550-07, the former test car, was racing for the Veuillet company in France.

Additional note for Andrew's consideration. Do you think the Stuck-Kern letters do not refer to 550-05? If not, which Spyder do you believe they are discussing?

Andrew's argument that the filler caps can be adjusted makes sense, of course--but the photos we have identified as 550-05 (especially in Brazil photos) consistently have the raised cap over a period of two years from 1954-early 1956. The 550-07 filler cap we believe are consistently recessed. So, in order for the timeline to make sense, we still need to reasonably explain the Kern-Stuck letters and the races in France that take place at about the same time.

We appreciate your thoughtful analysis of these issues.

Vietta

[Type550]

[Steve Heinrichs]

So....the Stuck letters from the Archive are all fake.

Andrew, do you really believe your theory with no documents?


Steve

[Type550]

Well, when I asked Jens at the Porsche Archives for copies of the letters, he said he didn't know anything about them - how weird is that!

[Steve Heinrichs]

The Archive is huge and I found them, not Jens. Andrew, you are all over various aspects of this stuff. Ate you suggesting I made this up?

We are now truely at the end. If you think this stuff is faked because Jens did not find.

I am now only going to respond to facts and only when answers like not 05 but a specific car. So, if 05 not mentioned in letters even given 05 was in Brazil in 2-54.



Bye

[Jack Staggs]

Thank you all for a lively discussion. It's very interesting to those of us that have limited knowledge in your field of expertise. A couple questions come to mind. Is it possible that purpose made fuel tanks of larger or smaller capacity were fitted for specific races, perhaps from other cars/spares, explaining the filler cap height differences on the cars in question? Were all factory fit fuel tanks the same size? If so, were they exchangeable? Could sabotaged/defective tanks be switched out?Authenticated differences could help to resolve some of debate.
Thank you for your consideration.