New Porsche 357 Vision Speedster Pays Homage to The Original 356

2023 Porsche 357 Vision Speedster

Porsche is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its first-ever model, the iconic Porsche 356 No. 1 Roadster this year. To mark this momentous milestone, the Stuttgart-based marque took the centre stage at the 2023 Goodwood Festival of Speed to unveil the modern-day iteration of the 356, cordially known as the Porsche 357 Vision Speedster.

Porsche 357 Vision coupe (left) & 357 Vision Speedster(right)

Similar to its coupe twin, the Porsche 357 Vision, the 357 Vision Speedster is also based on the 718 series model, more accurately the 718 GT4 e-Performance. The Speedster underpins the same chassis from the 718 GT4 Clubsport, while it gets the all-electric motor setup including the battery system from the Porsche Mission R concept.

While Porsche did not disclose the exact powertrain spec of the 357 Vision Speedster, we can expect them to be somewhat similar to the Mission R’s dual-motor setup rated at over 1,073 HP.

As its name suggests, the 357 Vision Speedster is a topless twin of the coupe 357 Vision. Unlike the Coupe mode, however, the Speedster only got one seat, as the other seat has been enclosed by the tonneau cover. Aside from that, the Speedster is draped with a special livery featuring a combination of Marble Grey and Grivelo Grey Metallic hues, with the 75 numberings – a nod to the original 356’s 75th birthday – coloured in Miami Blue.

Being a mere concept model, the Speedster houses no actual headlights or taillights, with the exception of the third brake light, which has been integrated into the vertical rear vents. Elsewhere, the Speedster rides on sizable 20-inch magnesium centre-locked wheels with carbon fibre hubcaps, while the side mirrors are replaced with front fender-mounted side-view cameras, just like what we saw on the Audi Q8 e-tron.

On board, the 357 Vision Speedster is primed with a low-mounted seat with six-point harness seat belt. Said seat features a carbon fibre plastic shell that is mounted directly to the car’s monocoque chassis. Sticking with the carbon fibre theme is the car’s carbon front dash with a transparent driver’s instrument cluster.

To further shave extra weight, the 357 Vision Speedster replaces the conventional door handles for racing-style fabric straps. The Miami Blue accents we saw on its exterior is also present inside the cabin, painted over several parts including the suede-wrapped steering wheel, the racing seat, as well as other control buttons.

Following its global debut at 2023 Goodwood Festival of Speed, the Porsche 357 Vision Speedster will also be showcased at the upcoming Porsche Rennsport Reunion event, taking place later in September this year at the iconic Laguna Seca raceway in the US. 

With the 357 Vision Speedster being a full-blown EV, could this concept model preview how the future 718 Boxster/Spyder might look like? We guess the only way to be sure is to wait for their official debut some time in the future…