Porsche says 1952 356 Cabriolet is oldest one sold in the U.S.

A 1952 Porsche 356 cabriolet owned by Robert Wilson of Oklahoma City, Okla., has been named the winner of a contest to find the oldest Porsche sold in America.

Porsche Cars North America ran the contest, which asked owners to submit documentation showing when their cars were first sold, as part of its celebration of 60 years of selling cars in the United States.

Wilson's car, which he found in a salvage yard, was imported in November 1952 by Max Hoffman, who started bringing Porsches to the United States in 1950. Wilson's 356 cabriolet is powered by a 1.5-liter engine rated at 60 hp and has been fully restored.

This 1950 Porsche 356 Cabriolet is from the first batch of cars built in Stuttgart, Germany.

The program also led Porsche to one of the first 356 cabriolets ever built--a 1950 model owned by Richard Brumme of Annapolis, Md. Brumme's Porsche is from the first batch of cars built in Stuttgart, Germany, after the company moved from Gmund, Austria. But because the car was originally sold outside the United States, Porsche gave the winning honors to Wilson's car.

Brumme's car will be displayed on the Porsche stand at the Los Angeles auto show in November.

Porsche also named the oldest example submitted for each of its models. They are:

-- 911: A 1965 model owned by Barry August of Clarksville, Md.

-- 912: A 1965 model owned by Steve Torkelsen of Wilton, Conn.

-- 914: A 1970 model owned by Ralph Stoesser of Marco Island, Fla.

-- 924: A 1977 model owned by Jay Hoover of New Haven, Ind.

-- 928: A 1977 model owned by Jim Doerr of Richmond, Va.

-- 944: A 1983 model owned by John Denning of Covington, Wash.

-- 968: A 1992 model owned by Jeffrey Coe of Trumball, Conn.

-- Boxster: A 1997 model owned by David Adrian of Worcester, Mass.

-- Cayenne: A 2004 model owned by Adam Reichard of Magnolia, Texas

-- Carrera GT: A 2005 model owned by Robert Ingram of Durham, N.C.

-- Cayman: A 2006 model owned by Eugenie Thomas of Martinez, Calif.

Porsche will give these owners a badge issued by the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart.

By Dale Jewett