A somewhat unusual German symphony: Porsche - Wanderer - Reutter
 
At the end of 1930, Dr.-Ing. h.c. Ferdinand Porsche has his own design office in Stuttgart. This was entered in the commercial register on April 25, 1931. The entries in the directory of Porsche construction orders show that the first six items (Type 1 - Type 6) have been left blank. This was deliberately done so that the client did not get the impression that his orders were the first to be received by Porsche. The entries type 7: chassis 1.86 liters; Type 8: chassis 3.25 liters; and Type 9: 3.25 liter chassis with compressor show Wanderer as the first Porsche customer. Smart marketing or a bit of cheating? Everyone can judge this for themselves.

Erwin Komenda was responsible for the body design of the Type 8 at Porsche. Overall, there were two slightly different prototypes of the Type 8: the streamlined body, which was later driven by Professor Porsche himself, and a sedan with a somewhat conventionally designed body. Both bodies were completed by Reutter in Stuttgart in 1932.

The Stuttgarter Karosseriewerk Reutter & Co. GmbH was based in Stuttgart and was founded in 1906. On December 1, 1963, the body shop in Zuffenhausen was sold to Porsche. After 58 years the company history of the Stuttgart bodyworks Reutter und Co. GmbH ended - and the first chapter of the new company RECARO (derived from REutter CAROsserie) was opened. Today Recaro is a global company for cars and aircraft seats and much more. Porsche is still a RECARO customer today.

In the Reutter directory, the type 8 was listed under number 3374 with the name Wanderer Urach limousine. In the Wanderer Directory, type 8 was only named type 8. He didn't get a common wanderer name. Porsche also developed the eight-cylinder type 8 engine.

In 1932 Auto Union took over the Wanderer works. Within Auto Union AG, Horch was entrusted with the construction and sale of large cars. Wanderer was given the task of building mid-range cars. As a result, a Wanderer automobile with an eight-cylinder engine no longer suited the desired Wanderer model range.

Ferdinand Porsche had completed his development task. Wanderer, however, still owed him money. It was agreed that the streamlined car would be offset as payment. Porsche also received further development contracts from Auto Union. Ferdinand Porsche drove the Type 8 streamlined car as a private car for several years. Unfortunately, nothing is known about the whereabouts of this wonderful unique piece.

The Type 8 was therefore the first order for Porsche after the establishment of its design office and the first and at the same time the last eight-cylinder engine from Wanderer.

The book from Delius Klasing Verlag is very well worth reading: Stuttgarter Karosseriewerk Reutter - From the Reform Body to the Porsche 356 (ISBN No. 978-3-7688-1829-2).