Revell Monogram Collectors Edition of the 1954 Porsche Mille Miglia

The Revell Monogram 1954 Porsche Spyder Mille Miglia

The Porsche 550 was a sports car produced by Porsche from 1953-1956. 
Inspired by the Porsche 356 which was created by Ferry Porsche, and some spyder prototypes built and raced by Walter Glöckler starting in 1951, the factory decided to build a car designed for use in auto racing. The model Porsche 550 Spyder was introduced at the 1953 Paris Auto Show. The 550 was very low to the ground, in order to be efficient for racing. In fact, former German Formula One racer Hans Herrmann drove it under closed railroad crossing gates during the 1954 Mille Miglia.
The 550 / 1500RS or Spyder became known as the "Giant Killer". The later 1956 evolution version of the model, the 550A, which had a lighter and more rigid spaceframe chassis, gave Porsche its first overall win in a major sports car racing event, the 1956 Targa Florio.
Its successor from 1957 onwards, the Porsche 718, was even more successful, scoring points in Formula One as late as 1963. A descendant of the Porsche 550 is generally considered to be the Porsche Boxster S 550 Spyder; the Spyder name was effectively resurrected with the RS Spyder Le Mans Prototype.
The Porsche 550 "Little Bastard" is best known for being the car in which James Dean was killed on September 30, 1955

The 550 is among the most frequently reproduced classic automobiles, like the AC Cobra and Lotus Seven. Several companies have sprung up in the last 25 years, some of which build near-exact replicas from the ground up, including spaceframes built to exacting specs from Porsche blueprints. Some of the companies that make replicas are Boulder Speedster, Chuck Beck Motorsports, Automotive Legends, Chamonix do Brasil, Thunder Ranch, Holmes Motor Company, Le Mans 550 Spyder, Vintage Spyders, and Alloycars, which specializes in exact aluminum re-creations from blueprints.
Although 2 units were produced with a modified OHV Volkswagen engine, Porsche’s "Type 547" engine, designed by Dr. Ernst Fuhrmann was standard fare for all other 550s.
The unit was very advanced for its day, as it had four camshafts that were all driven by the crankshaft, helping provide 110 bhp (very strong for a vehicle of such light weight). With the quad-cam engine powering it, the Porsche 550 Spyder was capable of performance very comparable to—and in many cases better than — Ferrari and Jaguar models with larger engines. The particularly rare 356 Carrera model was the only other Porsche vehicle ever to feature this powerplant.
Although Porsche had raced with the 356 for several years already, the 550 was distinct in that it was the company’s first purpose-built racecar. The factory succesfully campaigned the 550 in international auto racing, headed by the vehicle’s premier win at the 1954 24 Hours of Le Mans, where it won its class.

Later that year Porsche began a production run of customer cars, building 90 units in total before replacing the original 550 with the extensively reworked 550A in 1956.
Here is a car that is probably worth millions of dollars today, its the 1953 Porsche 550 Spyder which was first unveiled at the Paris Auto Show that year. It was developed because Porsche needed a race car more powerful than the Porsche 356. It features a lightweight aluminum body and is powered by four-cam Carrera flat four cylinders.
In 1956, Porsche started to produce the 550A, a slightly modified Spyder. It was a hit, shocking the entire world by winning in its first Appearance in Targa Florio, a brutal road race. It also humbled well-known and more powerful rivals such as Ferrari, Maseratti and Jaguar.

As their first dedicated sports racing car, the 550 RS Spyder was raced to Porsche's first major victory at the grueling 1956 Targa Florio. This early success marked the arrival of Porsche's dedicated race car program, one which went on to win more races than any other manufacturer and largely fueled Porsche's ongoing commercial success.
At the 1953 Paris Motor show, everyone got a first glimpse of the production worthy 550. It's simplistic lines, scant interior, tiny windscreen and purposeful engineering left little doubt towards the intended nature of the car. It was a refined, lightweight and agile race car meant to outclass the heavier, less forwarding thinking competition. And it worked.
The 550 was built around a simple tubular ladder chassis covered by a taught aluminum body refined Erwin Komenda from the early prototypes. Sitting near the center of this was a complex engine which Ernst Fuhrmann designed to make the most of the 1.5 liters provided.

Schubladenmotor
Designated the Type 547, Fuhrmann's engine sat at the forefront of Porsche performance for over ten years. Since its inception, the unit has pained every mechanic being somewhat over engineered and overly complex.
The Type 547 uses the same 4-cylinder boxer layout from the 356, but in an entirely different way. To achieve maximum efficiency, the valvetrain uses a complex system of bevel gears and camshafts to offer a true DOHC setup per cylinder bank. This so-called 4-cam setup was exceptionally difficult to setup but allows for domed pistons and a better combustion chamber shape.
Futher adding complexity to the unit is a dual-plug ignition system that uses twin distributors of the intake cam. Both circuits could be controlled by levers from the cockpit.
The engine also introduced a dry-sump lubrication system which was fed by a tank behind one of the rear wheels. This made the aluminum block relatively small and light.
The engine gets it name from the distinctive double-sided cooling fan surrounded by an elegant shroud.

Racing
With it's exceptional power to weight ratio, the 550 easily won its 1500cc class at the top level of motor sport including a signature class win at 1954 Carrera Panamericana. Afterwards, all cars featuring the Fuhrmann flat-4 were named Carrera in honor of this victory. Years later, the 550 would score its most remarkable feat by taking its first overall win at the 1956 Targa Florio, which was also the first major victory for a mid-engine sports car.
Racing accomplishments aside, the 550 was probably best known as the car of choice for cultural icon James Dean. He tragically died in his, at a young age, which piqued general interest for both him and the car. Supposedly, his car was cursed and many people involved with the remaining wreck had misfortune until it vanished into obscurity.
With Dean's mystery, the multiple class victories and the recent relaunch of Porsche's mid-engine roadster (the 1998 Boxster), the 550-era was easily the most defining era for Porsche history. In 1956 the car was updated to the 550A specification with a space frame chassis and better engine, before being replaced entirely by the 718.

Essential Specs
Engineers,  Ernst Fuhrmann
Engine:
Air-Cooled, Type 547 Flat-4 w/Dry Sump Lubrication position Mid,
Longitudinal aspiration Natural valvetrain DOHC, 2 Valves per Cyl
Fuel feed
Twin Solex PJJ Carburetors
Displacement 1498 cc / 91.4 in³ bore 85 mm / 3.35 in stroke 66 mm / 2.6 in
Compression 9.5:1 power 82.0 kw / 110 bhp @ 6200 rpm specific output
73.43
Bhp per litre bhp/weight
200.0 bhp per tonne torque 120 nm / 88.5 ft lbs @ 5000 rpm body /
Frame
Aluminum Body over Steel Ladder-Type Frame driven wheels
Drive RWD
Front brakes Drums, Rear brakes Drums
Steering Worm & Nut
Front Suspension
Twin Paralel Arms w/Transverse Torsion Bars
Rear Suspension
Swing Axles w/Torsion Bars, Telescopic Shock Aborbers
Weight
550 kg / 1213 lbs
Wheelbase
2101 mm / 82.7 in front track 1290 mm /
50.8 in rear track 1250 mm / 49.2 in length 3600 mm /
141.7 in width 1540 mm / 60.6 in height 1050 mm / 41.3 in
Transmission
4-Speed Manual
Top speed ~
220.5 kph / 137 mph
Designers
Erwin Komenda