The California Porsches Part II: The Rare 597 Jagdwagen "Hunter"

The Jagdwagen was similar to the four-wheel-drive Volkswagen Kubelwagen. It featured a rear-mounted, air-cooled, four-cylinder opposed engine. Early versions employed a Porsche 1488-cc unit; later, a 1582-cc unit was used, detuned to 60 horsepower with a single carburetor and a 6.5:1 compression ratio. A clutch on the front propeller shaft allowed an advanced feature: The four wheel drive mechanism was shift-on-the-fly via a lever on the floor.

From 1954 to 1958, Porsche built the 597 Jagdwagen, or Hunter. The 597 was designed primarily for military use, with hopes of spinning off a civilian version. But the project never gained momentum, and only 71 Hunters were made. Porsche fans will enjoy knowing that the Hunter was built in the factory race shop, assembled alongside 550 Spyders.