Description
Porsche 550 Spyder, with original Porsche 356 air-cooled motor.
Built and registered in 2015 and only has done just over 1500km since new.
The car is really fantastic. It has a purpose built chassis, with rose joint suspension, disc brakes up front. This car has many proper Porsche parts on it and it is very unique, as there are only a handful of these 550 Spyders in SA.
This particular car has the exact James Dean livery, even down to the California number plate.
Company & Background:
Universal Products was founded in 1999 in Johannesburg, South Africa. Initially a composite engineering and fibreglass producer, they expanded into replica car manufacturing under the brand DAW Racing since around 2007, and later as Universal Products offering Porsche replica models starting around 2008¹ .
Their 550 Spyder replica is part of a broader family of classic car replicas including models like the Porsche 356 Speedster, 356 Coupe, and the Lola‑inspired T‑70 MkIII² .
Build Details and Components:
Chassis: A tubular steel chassis (similar concept to the original design) but designed for modern donor setups and ease of fabrication.
Bodywork:
Made from ISO‑standard fiberglass panels, molded to replicate the classic Spyder shape, taken from panels on an original car.
Running Gear:
Uses a mid‑mounted Porsche 356 air-cooled motor, with a twin IDF carburetor setup, also using the high rise inlet manifolds from a Porsche 912. The gearbox is a VW unit with a longer ratio, same as the legendary VW Beetle SP1600 (South African special only). The gearbox shift is via cable shift and is very precise and short.
Suspension and brakes:
Front suspension is VW sorced, very similar to period original.
Rear suspension is a rose jointed custom unit fully independent.
Brakes in front are drum brakes and rear are disc brakes.
Wheels and tyres:
Wheels are original Porsche design and covered with 185/ 60/ 15 tyres.
Electrical and lights:
Original Porsche design lights are used throughout the car, front, back and turn signals.
Seats and interior:
Seats are a custom classic bucket seats, very similar to the original period design and covered in leather and red in colour. The carpeting is a standard pile carpet fully covering the floor sections and red in colour.
The interior fittings are mostly Porsche reproduction parts and fully period in design and as true as possible to the original car.
Build Heritage & Source Inspiration:
The design intentionally follows a "keep it simple" ethos while staying true to the original Porsche 550's look and mid-engine layout. As stated, the replica took years in development before production began.
The 550 model from Universal Products draws styling and layout inspiration from the original Porsche 550 Spyder, itself introduced in 1953 and raced extensively through the 1960s.
