No it's Not a 356, The Dannenhauer and Strauss Cabriolet is the Replica That's Rarer Than The Original

Look closely, the doorhandles, the rear quarter panels, this isn’t really a replica as much as it is a heavily inspired design. Meet the Dannenhauer and Stauss cabriolet. Like many boutique car makers of the time, the cabriolet was built on the Beetle chassis, with the bodies being hand hammered over wood frames by the Stuttgart based coachbuilder Dannenhauer and Stauss. The design was heavily inspired by the 356 but certain details remained such as the Beetle-like rear fender arches and suicide doors taken from early Volkswagen prototypes.

The Cabriolets were built between 1951 and 1957. Due to the labor involved building these it’s estimated that only 80-135 of these were ever built, with only 18 known to have survived, making this a rarer car than the Porsche 356 it took after. Most of the Cabriolets built were in fact cabriolets but a few hard tops were known to be made, only one of which is known to have survived.

From the top you can spot one of the biggest differences between this and the 356. Unlike the 2 seater Porsche 356, the Dannenhauer and Stauss Cabriolet did in fact feature rear seats. Also, since the car was sat much lower than the Beetle it was based on, custom seats had to be made to fit the car, with leather upholstery being an option. Admittedly the Cabriolet borrowed liberally from the Volkswagen parts bin for the interior, actually updating the interior with new features such as a driver focused speedometer, chrome radio and covered glovebox as they became available in other Volkswagen production models.

To the untrained eye it does look like an authentic Porsche 356, although a veteran car enthusiast would quickly call foul play. The other giveaway lies in its speed. Being based on the Beetle platform the car shared the Beetle’s less than quick rear mounted “eggbeater” flat four. With a 0-60 of around 35 seconds this won’t be winning any races against an actual Porsche 356, or any car at all for that matter. Many owners have actually swapped in actual Porsche power plants, as is the case with the blue car in the pictures. The Cabriolet definitely does excel in looking great though, and the suicide doors are a fun party trick, that is if you can even find one of these.

So what do you guys think? How does this compare to the real deal? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.