The history of Molly Porsche 356A

The history of Molly Porsche 356A

PEKING TO PARIS 356A "MOLLY Porsche''
Written by Gantspeed Engineering.

 

It all started back in the Autumn of 2004, when the planned 2007 Peking to Paris Rally caught the imagination of Gerald, one of our long-term customers and a true Porsche enthusiast. Following a number of discussions with Robert Gant, (during which the enormity of the undertaking was well and truly aired!), he decided that this was something that he just had to do, and the car for the job had to be a 356A.We needed to source a "donor" car.

 

The event was planned for the early Summer of 2007. Some 100 years earlier, the "original" Peking to Paris event took place - an almost unbelievable adventure in those very early days of motoring.

 

Whilst the 2007 event was not following the exact original route, the organisers had decided that it should still pose a real challenge to crews. A route was planned that would take competotors from Beijing through the Gobi Desert to Ulan Batar in Mongolia, then Westwards through the extremely hostile terrain of Mongolia through to the Russian border. From there the route would pass through Western Siberia through to Yekaterinburg, thence on through the Ural Mountains towards Moscow and on to St Petersburg. From there the route was to continue down through the Baltic States and on to Paris.

 

It was clear that we would need to build an extremely strong and reliable vehicle, which could not only cope with rough terrain, very poor fuel and high altitudes, but could also keep up with a tight time schedule.

 

As it happened, another customer had, some years beforehand, brought in an ex- South African 1958 356A which was in need of total restoration. A deal was done and the car changed hands. The task was set to begin.

 

The car was fully dismantled and carefully media-blasted to remove all paint and to expose all corroded and previously repaired/altered areas. As so often is the case with these cars, the result wasn't a pretty sight! The bodyshell was mounted on our Celette jig to check for alignment and dimensioning, and panels and replacement sections were duly sourced from the USA, Germany and the UK.

 

Old panels and sections were removed and the careful process of reconstruction was underway. As one stage, whilst getting everything properly positioned and aligned, the shell was literally held together with a large number of clamps and "Molegrips". The car was duly christened "Molly Molegrips", and from that day until the present, has been affectionately known to us all as "Molly".

 

When the structural restoration was complete, the process of preparation for painting began, using the traditional "lead loading" process, refining contours and panel gaps.  Finally, the bodyshell was painted and the reassembly process began.

 

 

 

 

 

All the component parts of the car were either fully restored or replaced, a bespoke 12 volt wiring loom was designed and installed, motorsport safety equipment such as fire extinguishers and safety fuel cell installed, together with traditional navigational equipment and the mandatory Satellite Navigation system and Satellite Phone.

 

 

 

A special low-compression engine was built, suitable for the poor fuel quality expected on the route, and the transmission was fully rebuilt. With the engine and transmission  and all running gear installed, engine and transmission underguards and front guard were constructed and fitted. Finally, a strong roof rack was fitted.

 

The car was now complete and ready for running in and testing. The crew took the car for a shakedown session in the Welsh mountains, a few minor adjustments were made, spares and equipment lists were finalised and everything stowed on board. "Molly" was declared to be ready for the adventure of her life.

 

  

 

The event itself proved to be every bit as tough and demanding as forecast, with crews battling through dust and sand storms, fording fast flowing rivers, and dealing with some extremely rough terrain.

 

With some "fettling" along the way, Molly made it to the finish - the only Porsche in the event.

 

To China and back 

Throughout the whole process documented above, the owner was fully involved, providing input where needed. Gantspeed staff brought all their vast experience into play for the project, covering every aspect, from engineering, motorsport knowledge and  research standpoints.

 

If you would like to discuss any of your own project plans with us, please don't hesitate to get in contact via telephone +44 (0)1507 568474 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting +44 (0)1507 568474 FREE  end_of_the_skype_highlighting, by email info@gantspeed.co.uk  , by letter or in person.