Porsche celebrates its 75th birthday with commemorative display in Italy

COMO, Italy — The annual Villa d’Este Concours d’Elegance is turning into a Villa d’Este car week, Pebble Beach-style. While the concours remains the main attraction, several smaller parallel events have popped up in recent years to feed enthusiasts hungry for more car-spotting.

In 2023, one of the shows taking place at the same time as Villa d’Este was a display dedicated to Porsche’s 75th birthday. It was part of the FuoriConcorso series of events and held at the picturesque Villa Olmo mansion. This wasn’t a cars and coffee-style, show-up-with-whatever-you’ve-got event; Porsche hand-selected the participants and shipped several rare classics from its collection to Italy for the occasion.

The display scratched every Porsche itch imaginable. The emblematic 911 stands proud as the centerpiece of the brand’s history and was shown in nearly all of its forms, from the original air-cooled model to the current, 992-generation car. Some of the highlights included an early 911 Targa, a 911 Carrera RS 2.7, a 1980s 911 Turbo with a so-called “Slant Nose” body kit, and a 964-generation 911 Carrera RS.

However, there’s more to Porsche than the 911. I was pleased to notice that the organizers didn’t forget about some of the more attainable models, like the 928. Race cars also got their chance to bask in what little sunlight was available that weekend: Porsche brought out the 550 Spyder that participated in the grueling Carrera Panamericana race and the modern-day, 991-generation 911-based 935, among others.

One of the prototypes built during the 959’s development process made a rare public appearance, and part of the display showcased some of the Speedster models that Porsche has built over the past couple of decades, starting with the 356 and ending with the 997-based car launched in 2010. The latest Speedster, the limited-edition 991-based model from 2019, must not have received its invitation in time.

All of these cars — and more! — are pictured in our gallery. Check it out, and let us know which one is your favorite in the comments.