8 Of The Coolest Porsches Jerry Seinfeld Has (Or Had) In His Collection
Funnyman Jerry Seinfeld is one of the most recognizable comedians on the planet, whose eponymous hit show about nothing in the '90s shot him to the pinnacle of success. Since the show's end, he has continued to elicit laughs from audiences at his stand-up shows, often to audience members who have paid a thousand dollars or more for a ticket. Having a hit show and a successful career usually results in fame and fortune, with Jerry being very fortunate in his career. Some estimates place his net worth near a billion dollars, although they should be taken with a grain of salt.
Besides being a comedian with a unique brand of observational humor, Seinfeld is a well-known Porschephile. He can often be spotted around his hometown of New York City in one of his many German sports cars and has featured a couple of them in his other show, Comedian in Cars Getting Coffee on Netflix. Some of his cars have popped up in automotive media, but in 2016, the public got a rare glimpse of the extent of his collection as many of them went under the hammer at a well-publicized auction conducted by Sotheby's at Florida's Amelia Island. The selection of cars owned by Seinfeld can be a thing of envy, but these 8 Porsches prove his great taste in German motoring.
1958 Porsche 597 Jagdwagen
While Porsche is highly regarded for manufacturing ultra-fast cars with superb handling, the company is known to offer its services beyond consumer transportation. Porsche Design offers Porsche-branded merchandise including a selection of high-end bicycles designed by the car company. That same company at one time was contracted to build the excellent 500E for Mercedes-Benz. With a capable and diverse engineering team, it should come as no surprise the German company would come to the aid of its military, such as in the case of the Porsche 597 Jagdwagen.
According to the manufacturer, starting in 1953 what would become the German army sent out a call for bids on new equipment. Engineers at Porsche had experience designing the Schwimmwagen and Kubelwagen used in WWII and entered into the bidding (via Silodrome). While the contract was eventually awarded to Auto Union, the predecessor of Audi, Porsche built 71 test copies of its 597 Jagdwagen, featuring the same overhead cam flat-4 engine found in the Porsche 356. 50 still survive and Seinfeld put one up for sale in the 2016 auction. Fansided reported that this extremely rare Porsche sold at Amelia Island for $330,000.
2000 Porsche Carrera GT Prototype
For fans of modern Porsche vehicles, owning a copy of the Carrera GT supercar would be the ultimate prize. The Carrera GT is one of Porsche's most ambitious projects of the new millennium and surpassed many benchmarks when it was first delivered back in 2004. This car is still impressive by modern standards as its all-aluminum V-10 engine produces 603 horsepower, sending it to the rear wheels from its mid-mounted engine through a six-speed manual gearbox, per Car and Driver. Many, such as YouTuber and former Porsche employee Doug Demuro, praise this car as being the "last analog supercar" since most everything built afterward uses digital controls and dual-clutch or F1-style transmissions. It is a must-have acquisition for any Porsche collection.
Since Jerry Seinfeld is not the average Porsche collector, the Carrera GT in his collection is a rare prototype from 2000. It is, according to Gooding and Co., one of two prototypes built by Porsche. This car is about as bespoke and hand-built as it gets but it does have all the same bits that make the production car great. Seinfeld also included this rare prototype in the 2016 auction.
2016 Porsche 911 GT3 RS
The 911 GT3 RS is a phenomenal car that performs at the top margins of all sports cars. With its 500 horsepower sending the car to 60 mph in just 3 seconds, it is a track monster that one can drive home on the street, according to Car and Driver. That someone like Jerry Seinfeld owns one is not something surprising as its retail price near $200,000 is easily affordable for someone in his position. But Jerry's GT3 RS is not ordinary.
Robb Report reported on Jerry's 2016 Porsche recently and highlighted some of what makes it different. Seinfeld availed himself of Porsche's "Special Wishes" program, which offers bespoke auto customization to those willing to pay a premium for the service. While ordinary folk might buy new cars with options worth a few thousand dollars, Jerry more than doubled the price of the car, adding $250,000 worth of extras to his Porsche. Among the upgrades are LED lighting, an axle lift system, carbon-ceramic brakes, and an enlarged fuel tank. While he will surely never be able to get a return on his nearly half-million-dollar Porsche, he likely does not care.
1955 Porsche RS 550 Spyder
Jerry Seinfeld may not be as suave and cool as James Dean, but he does have a car like the one in which Dean met his demise, a 1955 Porsche 550 Spyder. Porsche's production of the 550 was just 90 units, making Seinfeld's another car in a rare class among rare classes of cars. Hemmings states that about 80% of the original cars remain – Dean's is one of those lost that are accounted for. The RS 550 is powered by a four-cam flat-4 engine and it is surrounded by hand-crafted beauty.
While the 1955-1956 550 Spyder came with only a 1.5-liter engine and only produced 110 horsepower, it was still a tour de force as it won several races in its class, according to Top Speed. Furthermore, of the 90 cars made, 43 of them were built to be driven off the track, and that includes the one Seinfeld owned until selling it in the big 2016 auction. It also stole the show as the final bidding ended at $5.35 million.
1959 Porsche 718 RSK
Another fabulous Porsche from the late fifties in Seinfeld's collection is one that was purpose-built for use on the track, a 1959 Porsche 718 RSK. According to Revs Institute, this car boasts twin overhead camshafts on a 1.5-liter flat-4 engine and makes 150 horsepower at 7200 rpm. By today's standards, the power is quite low, but when considering it has a curb weight of just 1,240 pounds, this car is a little screamer. The engine is mounted in front of the rear axle and contributes to excellent handling. Inside, things are a bit spartan, but it is made for the track where creature comforts such as interior door panels, a roof, or even a windshield are unnecessary – it has a half windshield that wraps around the cockpit.
Jerry's 718 RSK is not one of the cars included in his auction, but it can be viewed by anyone on demand. He drove this model in an episode of Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee with Kevin Hart tagging along for the ride. In the show, the little car makes a fantastic roar as the two comedians hit the streets of Los Angeles. However, only when this car is enmeshed in typical city traffic does it become apparent just how small it is. Modern cars tower over it and it would probably be terrifying to drive such a rare and valuable car in traffic without the comfort of larger camera vehicles as escorts.
1949 Porsche 356/2 Gmünd
Ferry Porsche produced the first car to bear his name shortly after the end of WWII, the Porsche 356/1. It still exists today, and while Seinfeld would probably love to own it, it remains a part of the official collection of the Porsche museum. Unable to get his hands on the original, Seinfeld has acquired the next best thing, Porsche's first serial production car, a 1949 Porsche 356/2 Gmünd.
While the 356/1 was built on a tube frame with a mid-engine layout, it was decided that would be too costly to build. Therefore, the next car used the Volkswagen engine setup already in use and created a new unitary body that served as the chassis and integrated floor pan, per Supercar Nostalgia. With Porsche's original facilities still destroyed from the war, Ferry set up his operation in a disused sawmill in Gmünd, Austria. The new car turned out great and impressed a Swiss car dealer enough to place an order for five cars, paid in advance, breathing life into the new auto manufacturer.
Jerry's car is number 40, highlighted in the Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee episode with fellow comedian and noted car guy Jay Leno. This is an unrestored and all-original condition car that appears to be in excellent condition but shows its wear with a pleasant patina throughout. This is a hand-built car made, according to Seinfeld, of primarily VW parts and covered in a hand-hammered aluminum body. Its bodywork shows clear evidence of its hand-built nature and is unrefined and somewhat crude while being sporty and beautiful. Perhaps the most remarkable thing about this car is that Jerry and Leno both agree it feels much more like a modern Porsche than its age would suggest.
1964 Porsche 911
1964 is the year Porsche began its run of one of the longest production nameplates in the auto industry, the 911. Through the years, much has changed and much has been improved on Porsche's flagship sports car, but it has also remained true to its roots. Even in 2022, the same basic silhouette of the body remains as well as the small displacement engine hanging out behind the rear wheels churning out a significant amount of power, propelling 911 cars to incredible speeds and across finish lines all over the world. The Porsche 911 has become an icon.
Of course, Seinfeld owns a 911. He has many. But one of his more interesting models is not the fastest or most capable. It is among the first ever made. He owns a 1964 model with an interesting backstory. According to GQ, he acquired the car in 1996 and had it sent to the Porsche factory for a full restoration at a cost of $250,000. It is now in mint condition just as it was when it was built for Ferry Porsche, who ordered it with leather seats, metallic paint, and a sunroof. It is also said by GQ that this was the first 911 ever imported to the United States, but corroborating that information is difficult as other sources point back to GQ. Regardless, it is a pristine example of a beautiful car that started the tale of one of the finest machines to ever leave Germany.
1986 Porsche 959
Sometimes a manufacturer creates a product that is so good, it can be hard to match. But to do something like this, especially in the automotive industry, everyone creating it has to go way above and beyond to come up with the most clever engineering imaginable. Porsche accomplished this in the mid-'80s with the 959.
The Porsche 959 included a lot of cutting-edge technology installed on a car for the first time. It has a traditional Porsche air-cooled flat-6, but the heads are water-cooled, due to the heat from having twin turbos. The power output is 444 horsepower, which was an outstanding feat for 1986. Its all-wheel-drive system and variable dampers are electronically controlled, a first for a production car. This made the car not only blisteringly fast but well controlled and able to put down the power and get to 60 mph in just 3.6 seconds, according to Motor Trend.
The 959 is the king of supercars of the '80s, even if others are more flashy and loud. The 959 does what Porsches do well, drive fast with little fuss. That is exactly what Seinfeld loves about cars. Details on his exact car are not easily discerned, however, Porsche does list him as one of the owners. As a fabulously wealthy lover of Porsche vehicles, who would expect otherwise?