When Porsche Built a Jeep: The Type 597 Jagdwagen

Story by Kurt Ernst, photos by Mathieu Heurtault, courtesy Gooding & Company.

In 1954, the newly expanded German military had a need for a domestically sourced, four-wheel drive, quarter-ton transport vehicle. Bids were solicited from Auto Union, Borgward, and a most unlikely third German supplier – Porsche. While Porsche’s 597 exceeded the expectations of testers, its complexity and cost relegated it to also-ran status, forcing the manufacturer to recoup its investment by selling the “Jagdwagen,” or “Hunter’s Car,” to affluent civilian buyers. Just 71 were built, and of those, 15 are thought to remain; on March 11, a 1958 Porsche Jagdwagen currently owned by Jerry Seinfeld will cross the auction stage in Amelia Island as part of the Jerry Seinfeld collection.

Related: Could Seinfeld’s Porsche 550 Spyder set a record at Amelia Island?

As explained by Jeroen Booij in issue 183 of Excellence, the Porsche magazine, the Porsche 597 can trace its roots back to a pair of earlier Ferdinand Porsche-designed military vehicles, the rear-drive Kübelwagen (which would later go on to inspire the Volkswagen Thing) and the amphibious, four-wheel drive Schwimmwagen. During the Second World War, an estimated 55,000 Kübelwagens were built, along with 15,000 Schwimmwagens; given the NATO military buildup during the Cold War era, Ferry Porsche, Ferdinand’s son, quite possibly envisioned a similar production run for the 597.

– Photo: http://blog.hemmings.com/wp-content/uploads//2016/02/1958_Porsche_597_Jagdwagen-15_MH.jpg

Like the Kübelwagen, the 597 was slab-sided and boxy in appearance, and initially, it shared the Schwimmwagen’s amphibious capabilities (at least for the first four prototypes). When this was deemed excessive, a folding rear propeller was dropped from the design, but the 597 retained its four-wheel drive per the German military’s design specifications. Even without a propeller, the 597’s steel monocoque chassis was very likely water-tight, and its short front overhang allowed the nimble off-roader to climb grades as steep as 65-percent.

Odd vehicles of the Third Reich

Power for the 597 came from a version of the proven air-cooled flat four used in the Porsche 356. Built for durability over performance, the 1.5-liter engine used low compression pistons and a single carburetor to produce a reported 50 horsepower. Mated to a five-speed transmission (with a low first gear for crawling), the 597 was said to have a top speed of 60 MPH, and boasted shift-on-the-fly engagement of its four-wheel drive system.

– Photo: http://blog.hemmings.com/wp-content/uploads//2016/02/1958_Porsche_597_Jagdwagen-45_MH.jpg

The 597 handled everything that the German military threw its way, but the Porsche was deemed too complex and too costly for the contract, which was awarded to Auto Union’s two-stroke DKW Munga. Looking for a way to recover development costs, Ferry Porsche made the decision to produce the model for wealthy outdoorsmen, and the Jagdwagen was born.

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The example seen here was delivered new to Wendell Fletcher, Porsche’s North American distributor for industrial engines. Used as a demonstrator, the Jagdwagen was presented to military and commercial customers without success, but Fletcher apparently had a fondness for the quirky German dune buggy. After nearly 30 years of ownership, Fletcher, then age 92, sold the off-road Porsche to Prescott Kelley in 1987, and it would remain in Kelley’s collection (the first time) until 1998. Its next owner was Cal Turner III, who kept the Jagdwagen until 2005, at which time it was re-sold to Prescott Kelley. In 2010, Jerry Seinfeld became the Porsche’s fourth unique owner.

– Photo: http://blog.hemmings.com/wp-content/uploads//2016/02/1958_Porsche_597_Jagdwagen-36_MH.jpg

Porsche assembled the Jagdwagen in its Werk 1 facility, alongside racing cars like the 550 Spyder, and production lasted from 1954 into 1958. Of the 71 units built, 22 were sent to the military for testing, while the remaining 49, including Seinfeld’s, went to civilian buyers.

Described as the “most original example known to exist” in the auction catalog, the Porsche is said to include the same vinyl seats, cloth top and side curtains it left the factory with, and just 24,000 kilometers (14,880 miles) have rolled beneath its wheels. Given the Porsche’s rarity and celebrity provenance, Gooding & Company anticipates a selling price between $350,000 and $425,000.

For more information on the Amelia Island sale, visit GoodingCo.com.

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