A 1957 Porsche 356 A Carrera GT/GT Coupe – one of the rarest and most authentic competition Porsches of its era – will go under the hammer in August in Monterey, California, through Broad Arrow Auctions, a Michigan-headquartered premier auction house specialising in classic and collector cars.
One of only 26 Carrera GT/GT Coupes to come out of the Porsche factory in 1957, the exceptional car, with the chassis number reading 100913, was built specifically for competition with the legendary Fuhrmann four-cam engine and lightweight components. Its authenticity is confirmed by original factory correspondence, comprehensive correspondence, and an award-winning restoration to the highest standards.
Chassis 100913 left the factory with distinctive competition features including a lightweight interior, no undercoating, Plexiglas door, side, and rear windows instead of glass, Speedster bucket seats, no backrest on rear seats, no heater system, and lightweight bumper mountings. Additional competition components included a sport exhaust system which increased the type 547/1 engine’s output to 110 horsepower, and an 80-litre (21.1-gallon) fuel tank ideally suited for endurance racing. The car was also equipped with sealed-beam headlamps, original transaxle number 15148, and a factory-fitted limited slip differential.
The competitive career of 100913 began almost immediately after its arrival in the United States where it was delivered new to U.S. Porsche importer Hoffman Motors of New York. Its debut came at the inaugural Virginia International Raceway (VIR) event in August 1957 with Dr. Dick Thompson at the wheel. Thompson, a Washington D.C. dentist known as The Flying Dentist, campaigned the car for Hoffman Motors, finishing seventh in its class in front of a crowd of 5,000.
From August through December 1957, Dr. Thompson drove 100913 at multiple events including SCCA National Virginia, where he finished in third place; Montgomery Preliminary, finishing third; SCCA National Montgomery, finishing eighth; Nassau Tourist Trophy, finishing 16th; Nassau Memorial GT on the same day, achieving fourth place; Governor’s Trophy, placing 13th; and Nassau Memorial Trophy, where he finished 10th.
In 1958, chassis 100913 was sold to its first private owner, Michael Cappiello. Under Cappiello’s ownership, the car continued to race successfully in SCCA events from April through November of 1958, with documented competition at venues including Marlboro, Lime Rock, Montgomery, and VIR, consistently finishing on the podium.
After its glittering racing career, chassis 100913 passed through eight further documented private owners from 1958 to 1988, with comprehensive correspondence on file documenting each owner’s endeavours to uncover the history of the rare lightweight. By the early 1980s, the car was in the hands of Glenn Herman, a PCA Manhattan Trophy winner and former head concours judge who corresponded with the factory in 1988, confirming its original build details.
Mike Curnow purchased the car from Glenn Herman in 1988. Curnow recalled in a 2022 Porsche Panorama magazine feature article (Issue 780) that the car was “in pretty nice shape,” and enjoyed driving it for a number of years before it “developed a starting issue.” Thereafter, the car remained largely dormant in Curnow’s ownership for the next 30 years, stored under a car cover in his garage.
The current Texas-based owner entered the picture in early 2014 and spent three years pursuing the car. After numerous visits and persistent negotiation, he finally acquired the car from Curnow in February 2018 and it emerged from storage for the first time in nearly three decades.
He immediately commissioned a comprehensive restoration to the highest standards while prioritising preservation of the car’s remarkable originality. The car was transported to Speedsport Tuning in Danbury, Connecticut, where four-cam expert Jeff Adams removed the original, matching-numbers engine and conducted a complete rebuild. Through this process, Adams verified that all of the internal engine numbers matched factory records.
Specialists from across the country had a hand in the comprehensive restoration. Roy Smalley of Euroworks undertook the meticulous restoration of the original Reutter coachwork, still bearing the body number 913 on the front trunk lid, engine compartment lid, both doors, and door hinge covers. Palo Alto Speedometer renewed the instruments to factory specification. Christensen Plating Works in Vernon, California, executed the chrome work and plating.
Meanwhile, the transaxle was expertly rebuilt by Vic Skirmants of 356 Enterprises in North Branch, Michigan. The special lightweight interior was carefully trimmed by Autos International, Inc. of Escondido, California, while Mike Doyle supplied the proper interior materials.
The entire restoration process took nearly three years, faithfully returning 100913 to its factory livery with Silver Metallic paintwork and black lightweight interior. All of the original stampings also remain intact and verified, including chassis number 100913, engine number 90816, transaxle number 15148, as well as its special lightweight factory equipment.
The car made its post-restoration debut at the 26th Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance in 2021, taking first in the Sports and GT Cars class. It subsequently won the Porsche Four-Cam Class at the Radnor Hunt Concours d’Elegance in September, followed by Best in Class at the Hilton Head Concours in November of that year.
Most recently, the Porsche’s originality and impeccable restoration were recognised at the 2024 Greenwich Concours d’Elegance where it won a Porsche Carrera class award, followed by a class win in The Art of Driving Collection at ModaMiami 2025.
For more information, please visit www.porsche.com or www.broadarrowauctions.com.