Huschke von Hanstein: the “Racing Baron”

Today, if he was still alive, Fritz Huschke von Hanstein would celebrate his 100th birthday. As one of the greatest personalities in the history of Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, Huschke von Hanstein, who was Press Director, racing manager and racing driver, between 1952 and 1974, help to create the unique image of the Porshe brand.

Throughout his career he also became Sports President of the AvD, the German Automobile Club, President of the Supreme National Sports Commission (ONS) and also represented German motor sport and the Porsche name to the entire world as Vice-President of the International Automobile Sport Association (FISA).

Fritz von Hanstein was born in Halle and was the son of a nobleman and major entrepreneur. Huschke von Hanstein became one of the most successful racing drivers of the pre-war period after he passed the Abitur, the final school examination.

In 1929, while he was still studying business studies in Hamburg, he entered his first motorcycle event, the ADAC Time Trials Event. Over the next few years he continued to focus on motorcycle endurance events, riding bikes from FN, Ardie, BSA, and Norton, but he would soon switch to four wheels. This would be a successful change as he scored several wins in endurance events, hill events, and circuit competitions all across Europe as a works driver with Hanomag, Adler, and BMW.

In 1936 he became a regular competitor in the legendary Le Mans 24-hour race and in 1938 became German hill events champion with a BMW. In 1940 the German national team was lead by von Hanstein to overall victory with a BMW 328 in the substitute Mille Miglia event.

After the war, von Hanstein continued to race with own-build VW sports cars and in 1950 he came in contact with Porsche, with former Auto-Union Racing Manager Dr. Feuereisen as mediator. In September 1951 he became a member of the Porsche drivers’ team, which set 17 world records at Montlhéry.

In 1952 Huschke von Hanstein took another step up, being given a dual role at Porsche as Racing Manager and PR Director at Porsche. Von Hanstein would, during the fifties and the sixties, have an important role creating the foundations of the sports style of Porsche.

As a manager and driver he not only entered European events such as Le Mans, Targa Florio, Giro di Sicilia, and the classic Lüttich-Rome-Lüttich endurance contest, but also made racing appearances in the USA, Mexico, Venezuela, and in the Bahamas, which also helped to improve the image of the young company of Porsche.

Thanks to his personality, self-assured elegance, gift for rhetoric and mastery of many languages, Huschke von Hanstein’s reputation also increased in the automobile world. His house in Stuttgart’s Kräherwald district was famous for the soirées, and together with his wife Ursula, he was said to be a perfect host. Besides representing Porsche to the international media Von Hansteins was also honoured guest at countless international Porsche Club gatherings.

Huschke von Hanstein kept his link to Porsche very close even after leaving the company. This connection was kept until his death on the 5th of March 1966. His prestige inside the company is remembered by the Porsche Museum with one of Huschke von Hanstein’s service vehicles on permanent display: a dark green Porsche 356 A 1600 S Coupé.