1964. I took my first Porsche test drive in a used 1960 356 B Normal coupe. It was in amazing condition…Condor Yellow with rare coupe seats that were black with yellow inserts and decorative aluminum side trim along the body. The odometer read 38,269 miles. The sale price was $1,350.00.
I was an 18-year-old freshman in college…home for the winter Holiday break. The salesperson asked if I could drive a manual shift car. I replied, ‘Yes.’ He explained the four-speed shift pattern and asked if I knew what a tachometer was. I replied, ‘No.’ He said that’s OK…he’d show me the ‘dead center’ gauge and how it worked. I was a little nervous, but very excited to actually be driving a Porsche.
As we drove off the used car lot into traffic, he told me there were three things to ALWAYS remember:
- “A PORSCHE is a two-syllable word…it’s a family name. Not a Porch…Not a Porshee…It’s a Por-sha.”
- “Always glance at your tachometer when upshifting and downshifting. If the needle was at “20”…you need to shift into a lower gear to get the engine revs higher where there would be more torque and power. ‘Keep your revs up’…he said in a meaningful voice.”
He then instructed me to accelerate in 3rd gear as we approached a winding down hill curve to feel the grip of the Porsche through the turns. “This is what a 356 is all about! “ As we entered a flat stretch of road --he said, ”now get on the gas…take the rpms up to 4,500 and shift quickly into 4th gear.” I was now very nervous …already doing about 60 mph when the speed limit was 40! I went to shift into 4th and accidentally grabbed his left knee which was next to the shifter! Boy, was I embarrassed! I managed to recoup from my ‘faux pas’ and made the shift …then accelerated up to 80 mph. What a blast! We turned around and drove the exact route back …while I tried to keep my ‘rev’s up’ through the gears.
- About a mile from the dealership, he looked over at me, as if to say….you’re doing great! He then laughed and said, “While you’re driving and you see another ‘Por-sha’ approaching on the road…pull straight back on the turn-signal stalk for several seconds--and the high beam head lights will come on. That’s called: ‘die Scheinwerfer aufblinken.’ It’s a tradition among Porsche owners—as your Porsche is saying “Hello” to another Porsche. A hand-wave of the driver is optional. There aren’t that many Porsches on the road, but when you see one …you’ll know what to do.”
We arrived back at the dealership. I told the salesman I wanted to buy this Porsche. I gave the dealership $25.00 in cash to “hold the 356.” My father lent me $1,400 for the purchase. One week later, I was driving my Porsche 356 B coupe down Route 11 toward Tuscaloosa, Alabama…looking for oncoming Porsches to ‘blinken lassen’ while I was concentrating on keeping my revs up! I never saw another Porsche during the entire trip back to school.
Spring 1964. I was home from college for the summer…and driving my 356 on the brand-new Interstate 95 North through Maryland heading to New York…and a fantastic summer job at the New York World Fair in Flushing Meadows. I happened to glance across the grassy median filled with hundreds of sprouting daffodils -- and saw a red 356 cabriolet heading south on the Interstate-- ‘die Scheinwerfer aufblinken’--at my Porsche. I was so excited, I blinked twice! The driver and passenger in the cabriolet waved as we passed each other…I was able to get a wave back--It was my first Aufblinken!
Some things have changed over the years. I suspect today, many new Porsche owners don’t know about the multiple use of the signal stalk when they take delivery from the Porsche dealer. Owners might think that flashing the headlights might be a signal that danger exists on the roadway or perhaps the ‘cops’ are using radar ahead…Slow Down!
Out of curiosity, I did some online research to see if anyone was mentioning ‘blinking.’ To my surprise…”blinking “and “flashing” has generated a lot of comments. Here’s a sample of what some Porsche owners have noted:
- “Use the ‘flasher’…pull back on the stalk to trigger the high beams...it’s a way of saying ‘Hi’ to another Porsche.”
- “ Whatever happened to the ‘flashing or blinking’ of headlights at other Porsches to say hello? Back in the 60s, 70s, and 80s all Porsches as a courtesy ‘blinked’ at each other and waved. Now, nobody acknowledges each other.“
- “The 911 drivers that I’ve seen almost always flash or wave. The other model Porsche owners –not so much.”
- “Let’s bring back the blinking of the headlights…Let’s educate the new Porsche owners!”
- “Most Porsche owners don’t know about this flashing tradition….it’s a great sign of comradery.”
- “I always flash and wave but the newer Porsches…don’t flash or wave back.”
- “Porsche SUV’s almost never respond to my flash and wave.”
- “I would blink and wave --if another Porsche greeted me first.”
- “There needs to be more blinking and thumbs up in general amongst fellow Porsche owners.”
- “If you have never tried it --go ahead --it’s fun to let your Porsche, say “Hi” to another Porsche.”
October 2025. I was driving north on Interstate 95 in my 1999 986 Boxster heading for the Sixth Annual PCA Ocean City, New Jersey Boardwalk Reunion…and at the exact location 61 years later—I glanced across the grassy median dotted with pansies--looking for that red 356 Cabriolet.
Blink…Blink