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Erwin Komenda
The designer of the VW, Auto Union racing car, Porsche 356, 550, Cisitalia, 911
and the 904, who has been forgotten by Porsche after his great achievements.
The official picture of Porsche sr. and jr. And 3 generations Porsche, at right a young Butzi.
Father and son Porsche, proudly posing with the first 356 in 1948. Anyone will know this
official 'Werks' picture. But who is that man on the left, that was cut away from this picture?
Most people assume that it was the old Ferdinand Porsche, who designed the 356 and who has also created the Volkswagen Beetle (in the background). But it was Erwin Komenda, the man at the left, who constructed the most successful car of the past century. If you click on his name, you will be connected to the website, that is a tribute to this modest man. It disturbs me that Harm Lagaay has been continuously praised by the Porsche company, but that a superior man like Komenda seems to be forgotten. He was the person who gave Porsche its charasteristic and timeless design.
The appraisal of Harm Lagaay is in a a strong contrast with the way that
Porsche has treated Komenda, after his achievements for the company.
Erwin Komenda was a very modest person, that attached more value to his work than to his personal PR. What a difference with Butzi, the ambitious son of the boss. On Butzi's CV glitters the 'Hochschule für Gestaltung' in Ulm, but the truth is that he had to quit this education quickly, because he failed for the examinations. In 1958, Ferdinand Alexander - 22 years of age – was employed in his father’s company, where Ober-Ingenieur and Chief Design Erwin Komenda got the assignment to take care of the boy. In 1962 Ferry appointed his son as the new head of the design department. And as a reward for his splendid career (he joined Ferdinand Porsche in 1931), Komenda was to continue as Butzi’s deputy.
Alexander proudly showing ‘his’ 904.
Who takes the effort to investigate the Porsche patents can see that the revolutionary construction of the 904 has been filed by Erwin Komenda. Actually, Komenda filed most of the Porsche patents till 1965, including the Targa roll bar. Butzi may have been a talented moulder, he did not have the technical skills to construct the 911 and certainly not the revolutionary 904. Komenda had plenty of these skills, along with his superb design talents. But his fundamental character towards the Porsche clan would become fatal. In 1965 Komenda vanished from the Porsche scene and one year later he died, in the age of 62. After Komenda had become invisible, the Porsche PR machine started to highlight Butzi as the designer of the 911. But if Butzi really is the mastermind of the legendary 911 and 904, it is odd that he has only produced these designs. Ferdinand Alexander was head of the design department from 1962 to 1972 and what did this period bring to the world? Mind, that the first 911 prototype (nickname 'Sturmvogel', VIN 13321 with a 4 cilinder engine) already existed in 1962! Butzi Porsche, the most celebrated car designer of the 20th century has only poduced design sunglasses, kitchen equipment and wristwatches after the departure of his mentor.
The prototype 'Sturmvogel' rolled out in 1962.
Butzi gets all the credits for 'his' 911 and for 'his' Targa bar... but where is Erwin Komenda?
When Komanda passed away, Porsche tried to smuggle an extra year to
Komenda’ s age, in an attempt to mask the tragedy of this great designer,
who has been treated by them so cruelly
The final years of Komenda’s life were marked by conflicts with the members
of the Porsche family within the company over the development of the Porsche
904 and 911, says the biography of Komenda. With the conflicts between Butzi
and Komenda, Ferry Porsche had to come in between frequently.
A beautiful heritage
It was virtually impossible to improve Komenda’s designs, simply because they are perfect. The 356 is the best example. By intuition Komenda designed this beautiful car, that is the standard in terms of shape and function. And streamline. Everybody with a critical mind can understand that Butzi did not create the 911 on his own. The mother of all sports cars clearly carries the signature of Komenda. If Porsche wants to erase the shame of Komenda’s faith, there is one option: his statue in bronze, in front of the factory gate. Looking severely in the direction of the board room.
A Cw of 0.296, right from the drawing table and without the use of a wind tunnel in 1950
In a time frame of 14 years Komenda – from a simple drawing table - designed the 356,
the 911 and the 904. In that era between '50 en '64 exciting things were happening! What
a great performance, compared to Harm Lagaay. Because in the same time frame Lagaay
did not perform much more than the conversion of the perfect 911 to the standards of spoilt
buyers. Having the support of modern computers.
Wirtschafswunderzeit and a perfectly relaxed Komenda. The last part of his life was dominated
by the conflicts with the Porsche clan. His career would last to 1965 and in 1966 the talented
designer passed away, at the age of 62. If Komenda would have lived another 20 years, he could
have created many more beautiful cars. His children have dedicated a nice website to his life.
www.komenda.at
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