|
| 
|
 Porsche 356
The body of a 356 also began with sheet steel, which at that time was still supplied in sheets, not as coiled steel strip as it is today. So their size had to be determined by the part to be formed; in the
worst-case scenario, it was even the other way around. Just compare the front hood of the 356 with that of the later 911. Before it was pressed, it had to be roughly cut to size so that it would fit into the
heavy press. It took four hands to place them inside so that everything was just right.
Of course, the number of such expensive presses was more limited back then, but it was still common practice to mold a certain quantity of each part and then retool the machine, a process that is,
however, much faster today. Of course, since the 356 was manufactured with much more manual labor, production numbers were also significantly lower. Electric welding had largely replaced oxy-fuel
welding, but gas shielded welding was still unknown.
Spot welding was possible, but the clamps were heavy and unwieldy, and automated transfer from one workstation to the next was not yet common. Since the pressed steel parts were of a limited
size, the cart was assembled from several of them. However, the problems associated with fixed positioning prior to welding also exist at that time.
The underbody of the 356 differed significantly from that of the Beetle. It was the entire frame, which basically just needed to be sheathed; as a result, it was also significantly more stable than the
center tunnel with floor panel in the Beetle. By the way, it was partially assembled and welded automatically on a carousel. At Porsche, all of this was still done by hand, though, presumably for
safety reasons, with significantly more weld spots.
It wasn't always possible to position the spot-welding pliers in the right places. Sometimes large parts also had to be pulled along the welding machine. Not all parts were designed to be joined
together by spot welding. The more the underbody, and even more so the body with the roof, was nearing completion, the more gas-melt welding was used. Minor touch-ups with a hammer were
also common.
This could also happen if the initial inspection of the finished floor assembly revealed dimensional deviations. They used gauges that could be inserted relatively easily into gaps in a certain way. And
wherever the acetylene burner was used anyway, there was also the option of tinning. Then the smoothing process using rotating discs seemed to go on forever. As a preliminary conclusion, a very sturdy
gauge for inspecting the front axle mount.
The finished part was already gleaming, though presumably not for long during actual operation. Welds, in particular, should attract atmospheric oxygen like moths are drawn to light. That is why they were
specifically treated with a pot full of a substance that looked like a bitumen mixture and a large brush. In the meantime, the outer shell, still without doors or hoods, had also been fully prepared.
Even the rather stiff steering column was already in place. All that was left to do was to insert the sheet-metal dashboard. It almost looked as if the convertible body had also been assembled using the
same sturdy floor assembly, but surely a few reinforcements had been added. By the way, the connection was made by welding and was probably even a bit sturdier than in the Beetle, where the parts
were 'only' bolted together.
Even now, until the wheels are attached, all further transport is powered by arm or leg strength. It felt like being in a paint shop; right up to the last moment, there was sanding, inspecting, and further
touching up. At any rate, the entire underbody coating was sprayed onto the car body, which had been turned upside down for this purpose.
All the components were then assembled together for the first time in the paint booth to prevent any color discrepancies. The pieces were then primed, filled, and varnished by hand, after all, wearing a sort
of gas mask, and dried in the oven in between. When transporting the vehicle further without the rail, you should definitely avoid any risk of collision with other finished car bodies. And so, after polishing,
they proceeded one by one to the end of the pre-assembly stage.
By the way, even back then, the doors were completely disassembled before they were attached to the rest of the body. The same goes for the bumpers, which were painted to match the body and finished
with chrome or rubber. The windows were typically installed by pulling them into place using a cord threaded through the surrounding rubber seal. For final assembly, the car bodies had to be transported
to the Porsche plant itself. However, this was now partly done on an assembly line.
So far, we haven't seen much of the Beetle that was used as a model. That will change once we turn our attention to the engine. It starts with the inner housing made of light metal, which, for example, was
machined simultaneously by numerous drills. The connecting rods were also ground as a set. It's unbelievable how every single one was checked for all kinds of measurement accuracy.
Checking whether all the main crankshaft bearings were aligned was a popular, and probably necessary, procedure. Significant differences from VW were noted in the cylinder heads. There were more and
larger cooling fins present. The angle between the valves was significantly larger than in VW models, particularly because the exhaust valve was installed at a very steep angle. Porsche had also already
introduced the dual-channel system.
And given the number of engines produced each day, where would they have found the time to measure out the volume of the cylinder heads or check them for leaks? And once again, inspiring great
confidence, dial gauges were put to use before the head was allowed to be attached to the in-line engine. Of course, such measuring instruments are also useful for determining whether the camshaft
meets the specified timing and valve lift specifications.
And what made replacing the flywheel later on problematic was that it had been balanced together with the crankshaft. It's also nice to see those old torque wrenches with angle scales for
tightening the connecting rod bolts again. We used to check the smoothness of the connecting rod bearing when assembling a VW engine, but unfortunately we didn't check the lateral play.
Apart from the carburetors corresponding to the exhaust ports and their control systems on each side, there were few differences to be found. Four finished engines were tested simultaneously for performance
and other factors. However, the Super 90's 5,000 rpm would have destroyed a Beetle engine after it had warmed up. This is also where the much-needed carburetor synchronization took place. To keep this
chapter from getting too long, we'll skip over the transmission, drive shaft, and rear axle.
As long as only 30 units of the 356 were being built per day, even the rather cumbersome process of installing the transmission and rear axle, which required three people, some of whom had to lie down
under a car that was only half its final height, was still just about acceptable, though a slight shake of the head was not out of the question. After all, the installation of the engine was no different from what
you'd see at a VW service center. However, the headlight and suspension settings of the car from that time weren't either.
After all, the now-complete powertrain, along with the vehicle, had to be tested once more on the dynamometer. This was followed by a road test, including a drive on the highway, and only then was the leak
test performed, including from below.
|
|
