The earliest 356s were built at the Porsche’s facility in Gmünd, Austria, but by 1950 the firm had outgrown the one-time sawmill and production was transferred to Zuffenhausen.

Coachwork was entrusted to Reutter and formed from steel rather than aluminium.

The 356 Cabriolet joined the line-up that same year, and while relatively spartan, the model underwent steady mechanical and cosmetic improvement.

By 1953, the 356 boasted mounted bumpers, a one-piece “bent” windscreen (to replace the previous split-window arrangement), a synchromesh gearbox, and the option of a larger capacity 1,500-cc air-cooled flat-four engine that offered a marked increase in performance.

These early Porsche 356s were retrospectively dubbed ‘Pre-A’ upon the arrival of the 356 A in 1955.

This interesting example of a 356 Pre-A “bent-window” Cabriolet was completed on 29 June 1953, and was one of 394 Reutter-bodied Cabriolets built that year.

Cars built for the 1953 model year were the first to feature the a...