Today, Porsche can boast SUV models such as the Cayenne or the latest Macan, but did you know that the history of off-road cars from this manufacturer begins long before 2002, when the first Cayenne was presented.
In fact, the story begins 50 years earlier, when Porsche began developing an all-terrain vehicle for the German army. The government was looking for a vehicle that was supposed to be fast, light and agile, and that's precisely what Porsche's specialties were.
However, the authorities also required that the car be reliable, easy to maintain and suitable for off-road driving.
Porsche didn't have much experience in these matters, but its engineers and designers got to work and created a new vehicle that became known as the 597 jagdwagen (Jagdwagen). The car, which looked a bit like Volkswagen's Kibelwagen, was simple, without luxury equipment and weighed only 870 kg.
For the drive, a modified version of the four-cylinder unit that powered the Porsche 356 was used. It produced around 50 hp, and allowed the Jagdwagen to reach a top speed of 100 km/h.
The engine was connected to a four-speed transmission to which an off-road gear was added. However, the Jagdvagen bo's main feature is the adaptive drive system. Namely, the driver could use a switch to choose between front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive. When the 4x4 drive was active, the Jagdvagen could climb a grade of as much as 65 percent.
If that wasn't impressive enough, pay attention to this. Jagdvagen could sail, so the vehicle was ideal for crossing rivers and smaller bodies of water. The first versions did not have doors for this very reason.
The Jagdvagen was presented to the German Government in 1955, and was then shown to the British and French armies. Porsche continued to develop the model, preparing it for production, but the Government suddenly made a U-turn and entrusted the work to Auto Union, today's Audi, so Porsche stopped working on this project.
Despite never seeing serial production, 71 examples of the Jagdvagen were built. About 50 of them still exist. Two years ago, a Jagdvagen from 1957 was sold for close to 200 thousand euros.
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