By Dean Larson

Photos: Seller, BringaTrailer.com

Replicas are constructed with all sorts of uses in mind, be it display, cruising, racing or just the thrill of the build. But on the subject of historical accuracy, FIA approval is the top echelon, plainly stating that your re-creation is as near as possible to the real thing, and is worthy to compete in the same events as the genuine article. As the values of original cars continues to swell beyond the point where it makes sense to campaign them on race tracks, FIA approved cars like this 502 Motorworks Spyder will be increasingly sought after for historic racing competitions.

The car was constructed by Louisville, Kentucky-based 502 Motorworks, which specializes in a small selection of bespoke hand-built re-creations that includes Bentley, Alfa Romeo, Jaguar and Cobra models. 502’s Spyder re-creation was built specifically with FIA approval in mind since day one, and as such it was constructed with the most accurate components available. The car started with authentic chassis blueprints and a dimensionally accurate body, manufactured from 1 mm-thick aluminum. Suspension consists of torsion bar systems front and rear, with a anti-sway bar up front and Koni Classic shocks on all-four corners. 40 mm drum brakes are used with proper vented backing plates — all Porsche components — and a Type 519 four-speed transaxle sends power to the rear wheels.

Original 550 Spyders were powered by the legendary Type 547 Fuhrmann engine, a notoriously complex and innovative four-cam 1,498 cc engine. The air-cooled, aluminum four-cylinder featured dual overhead camshafts driven by vertical shafts, and breathed through a pair of downdraft Solex carburetors. Unfortunately the Type 547 engine is super rare on its own, and worth a small fortune. These are usually filed under “price available on request,” but suffice it to say that one was bid up to $220,000 on BringaTrailer.com last year and failed to meet its reserve.

That immense figure would prove prohibitive in most instances, so the FIA-approved 502 cars are powered by period Porsche 356 engines, this one sourced from a 1500 Super model. For the FIA’s standards, the engine is fit with correct Solex carburetors, and the seller notes that a Type 547 Fuhrmann engine could be easily installed for the nth degree of correctness.

The Spyder featured here on BaT is one of at least two FIA-approved exampled built by 502 Motorworks, the other covered at length here in our Summer 2017 feature titled Arachnophilia. The body is finished in Ivory white, a period Porsche shade, with blue fender spears and Lemmerz wide-five wheels. New, this 550 would have cost in the neighborhood of $275,000, so it should be interesting to see what the car brings now with 250 miles on the odometer.

Find it here on BringaTrailer.com, where the current high bid is $50,000 with eight days remaining in the auction.