WCSTA -22- 1959 T2 Coupe 104998, The Pumpkin!

[Andreas Rauer]

Well, I figure it’s time we toss our hat into the ring! My Dad, Andy, has been a 356 Registry member for as long as I can remember. I’m logged in right now under his account. And this is “The Pumpkin”, a 1959 T2 356A Reutter Coupe, originally Auratium Green (and now an endearing, rusty orange.) My Dad bought her in 1981 for $800 from his friend. His friend’s uncle was storing it in a barn. My Dad’s mechanically inclined, having worked on a good handful of cars. He’s got a Miller MIG welder, a decent air compressor, jack, stands, sockets and wrenches in triplicate, a mac, an ipad, a good head on his shoulders and the support of the 356 Registry community! What else does a guy need?!?

My Dad is finally retiring this year, giving him a break from a 60hr work week and a chance to take on this restoration. All we need to get started is just about 5 grand in sheet metal!

[Andreas Rauer]

Now, if you read my Dad’s story you’ll see that his falling in love with the Porsche lineage was a foregone conclusion…

Born after the war in West Germany, my father immigrated with my grandparents to Detroit when he was five. Here he is in 1955 sitting on the first VW beetle they saw in the United States. How impressionable must it have been to be propped up on a stranger’s car for a photo, simply in remembrance of a faraway home.

[Andreas Rauer]

Oma always bought her cars in Germany, drove them, and then had them shipped to the US. But, it was after his attendance at the 24 Heures du Mans in 1970 that my Dad set his sights on owning and driving Porsches. Here is my Dad’s friend, Dale, with Oma’s 1963 beetle, her 1967 beetle with my Mom and Dad, and finally Dad's Vanagons (1984 and 1987). (Note the Klepper, and me at 13 in the background!)

Not pictured are his past Porsche daily drivers, first a Zambezi Green 1974 2.0L 914, then a 1982 924 Turbo in Guards Red and his current car, a Polar Silver Metallic, 2002 Boxster he picked up from the factory in Stuttgart.

[Andreas Rauer]

Here’s the back story as I remember it. The first time I saw "The Pumpkin", I was six and I had just come home from clown camp. I scrambled over the unsplit logs my Dad had delivered to the front lawn to feed the winter woodstove and watched him roll it off a AAA flatbed.

On my own a few days later I wrenched the door open and snuck inside. The pumpkin smelled like varnished gas, rusted metal, oil paint, horse hair and mouse droppings. The floor was jagged. Road signs, fiberglass and bondo seemed to hold it together. So, it sagged and survived under a blue tarp in our driveway for at least two years until we moved to the house my parents live in today. Then, it was rolled into their two car garage, partially disassembled and left, only to be dreamed about for three decades.

Take a look...

[Andreas Rauer]

Pics of the interior

[Andreas Rauer]

Glass stored separately, for safe keeping

Let us know what you guys/gals think! We're happy to show you more!

[Per Schroeder]

Any story that includes "Clown Camp" is a good one. After that, the rust probably wasn't so traumatizing? This one will be #22...

[Andreas Rauer]

Any story that includes "Clown Camp" is a good one. After that, the rust probably wasn't so traumatizing?

Pat, you can't even imagine the thrill of seeing this gal roll into our lives. So it seems, that day my Dad and I both put a little Red Skelton in the closet (er, garage)!

[Andreas Rauer]

Posting a few pics of the basketcase engine. We don't know if this one is original to the car, but it came out another barn on the same friend's uncle's farm.... enjoy!

[Mark Cohn]

Great story and great entry! I think the upholstery on the engine parts storage chair matches my '54 coupe interior!

[Andreas Rauer]

I think the upholstery on the engine parts storage chair matches my '54 coupe interior!

You like that, don't you Mark! Ha! Interestingly enough, the original interior of our coupe was/will be black, not the tan many people associate with original Auratium Green paint. Should look nice with some German squareweave and black rubber mat.

So, what do people think about the Porsche COA? Is it worth the $100+? or does it just confirm the obvious/deter flexibility in the restoration?

[Per Schroeder]

On resale, the COA can help answer questions--but if you're building a keeper, who cares?

That's such a pretty green.

[Andreas Rauer]

That was our thought, Pat. We'll get close to original based on what we find out when she comes apart, but we don't have any plans to sell, so we might make some (tasteful) mods to suit 21st century driving. I may be getting ahead of myself, but I wonder if my girls will ever feel the same way that we do about The Pumpkin... if it ever comes to an inheritance.

Just so you all know, I myself have a '74 VW Thing in Pumpkin Orange My girls always ask why I spend so much time with my Pumpkin. They like to ask, "Do you looooove her?"

[Tom Tate]

There must be an interesting story here as the car is an A (104998) but it has a T5/6 steering wheel which means that the steering column has been changed and a different turn signal/ high beam switch is in place. A clock has been added also. It would be interesting to get the Kardex to see how much, if any, of the changes were done at the Factory or by a Dealer. Gotta love that chrome horn ring (inside joke). KTF

[Mark Cohn]

In addition to enjoying the exquisite patina, I noticed the shot above showing the area above the rear side window. Is this lug or mount normal on A coupes? It looks like an interior light mount that I thought showed up with the T5s. The pumpkin is muy especial!