Late last year, a Porsche appeared on our site that even Google didn’t know about: the Porsche 911 HLS, complete with retractable roof. The wedge-shaped sports car was the result of a design contract for a racing coupé based on a rolling 911 chassis. While the miniature model of the retractable-roofed one-off was built in the University of Aachen’s Porsche Design Center, the life-size prototype was the work of Wuerselen-based coachbuilder, Hans-Leo Senden – which explains the rather odd ‘HLS’ model name.

The lost brother

Just a few days ago, photos of a very similar Porsche reached us, albeit with one key difference: the coupé shown here does away with the retractable roof design, featuring conventional doors. Has someone tried to copy the retractable-roofed Porsche and failed to incorporate the cockpit canopy? It’s unlikely… as, in the mid-1960s, two miniature models left the University of Aachen – from which two similar prototypes undoubtedly emerged. The car shown here is also heavily based on a 1965 Porsche 911 and was probably sold shortly after its completion in Switzerland. But where is this rare specimen now? Perhaps the design study was transformed back into an ordinary Porsche 911, and the special body scrapped? Or does this unique Porsche currently live in Switzerland, hidden in a garage? If you have information on its whereabouts, please contact us via  [email protected]. We'd be delighted to hear from you.