Porsche celebrates 50 years of Weissach

The birthplace of Porsche vehicles since the 1970s has reached a milestone anniversary

Porsche is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its Weissach Development Centre, which today stretches across 100 hectares and employs 6,700 people. Located just 15 miles from Zuffenhausen, the site in Weissach became home to the Porsche design and development departments when it opened on 1 October 1971, but the area’s history with Porsche can be traced even further back in time.

Porsche first began its search for a dedicated test track and research site in the 1950s, but finding the right location was far from simple as Ferry Porsche placed great importance on the environmental impact of such a facility. Racing driver, Herbert Linge, suggested his home town, Weissach – it was far enough away from densely populated Stuttgart yet convenient for Zuffenhausen. Test engineer, Helmuth Bott, made the first sketches of the ‘Weissach Project’ on 29 January 1960. Ground was broken for construction at the site – which encompasses the Weissach and Flacht districts – the following October, and a skid pad and test track were created where Porsche could test its cars (the 901 amongst them) to the limit and beyond.

By 1974 a hexagonal shaped building – still in situ today – was built. Extensions in 1984 and 1992 were part of various expansions, and in 1986 Porsche opened a cutting-edge wind tunnel. Today the Weissach facility is where vehicles travel from drawing board to prototype via development and testing. Plans are afoot to expand the site by a further 12 hectares by 2025.