A family of Porsche enthusiasts

Exactly 60 years ago, the first Porsche 356 was shipped to Hong Kong. Starting with five Porsche cars in 1955, this dynamic and sophisticated Asian city has since become one of the most successful hubs for Porsche in China, thanks in no small way to the Jebsen Group.

So what is it about Porsche that inspires such fascination and loyalty from the people of Hong Kong? We caught up with two members of a family of Porsche enthusiasts to find out: Mr. Fritz Wong, the Founding Chairman of Porsche Club Hong Kong and his nephew, Mr. Eric Wong.

Both of you are Porsche enthusiasts and Porsche classic car collectors. Can you tell me about your early days as Porsche owners?
Fritz: My brother Kevin and I always liked cars, anything with four wheels! As a child I used to get round-shaped objects and use them as a steering wheel, while using a stick as a gear lever to pretend I was driving. Kevin was the first member of our family to buy a Porsche. It was a late 1970s 928. I quickly caught up, buying my very first Porsche, a 911 2.7 RS, in the early 1980s which cost me HK$95,000. There is no question the 911 2.7 RS was my favourite, but unfortunately I sold it after about four years. At the time I wanted to look for a better one, but it was a crazy dream, which never came true!

Eric, having grown up around Porsche cars, was it a natural step for you to be a Porsche owner?
Eric: My memories of sports cars have always been Porsche, so that planted the seed for later on in my life and I have been lucky enough to own a couple of Porsche cars over the years. In terms of simplicity and timeless elegance, I do think the pre-impact bumper era Porsche models from the mid-1960s to 1973 are really nice. These original Jebsen imported models remain quite rare in Hong Kong, but with a growing interest in classic cars, their number is slowly increasing.

Can you describe what it is about Porsche that has inspired your loyalty for so long?
Eric: I think Porsche has been able to continuously refine and push the envelope of performance, generation after generation. To me, that is amazing. Porsche has always been a car with a 6-cylinder boxer engine sitting behind the rear axle, which has been refined over five decades. Somehow Porsche engineers have been stubborn enough to keep this layout but managed to make it better, generation after generation. For example, the 996 GT3 was a car ahead of its time back in the early 2000s and I wondered whether they could still improve this model with such a small compartment in the back and a naturally aspirated 6-cylinder engine. They made it possible with the 997 GT3. When this car came out I wondered again whether they could do better. Then they came out with the 991, which, even in non-GT guise, a normal Carrera S with all the luxuries and creature comforts on-board, is already as capable as the previous track orientated GT3. That is definitely no small engineering feat.

Similarly, Porsche handling, balance and performance have become a benchmark by which all other sports cars are measured. So when another manufacturer comes up with a new sports car, reviews in magazines invariably compare it by asking, “Is it better than a 911?”

Fritz: Because of the engine layout in previous generations of the 911, it can be a challenge to drive older models to the limit. To drive a 911 fast, you have to have a working knowledge of how to use the throttle and brakes to manipulate the balance of the car and find traction to make the car go where you want it to go. For me, I feel there is always room for improvement corner after corner, and I never get bored of driving this iconic car.

Fritz, you have been an active racing driver since the 1970s, can you explain how you got into racing?
Fritz: My brother Kevin participated in quite a number of events in Hong Kong, Macau and South East Asia. He was one of the top drivers in Hong Kong back in the 1970s and 1980s. My first taste of motor racing was in 1984 in Macau, which has one of the most challenging circuits, known as the Monte Carlo of the Far East. My last race was in 1992 in a 964 RS.

You must have seen a great deal of change in Porsche over the years. In terms of technology, what are the most notable changes from past to present?
Eric: I think it is the change from air-cooled to water-cooled engines. Back in the mid-1990s, to improve noise and emission control, Porsche changed from an air-cooled to water-cooled engine design. I think the 996 was a transition period for Porsche, which allowed it to be where and what it is today. It was a very steep learning curve from the 996 to the 991, but it was the change that made Porsche such a profitable and enviable company that it is today. With the change of engine, they also expanded their product line-up.

What drove you to establish the Porsche Club in Hong Kong during the 1980s?
Fritz: We started out as a group of car enthusiasts engaged in a “Sunday Morning Drive”. We gradually realised that within this group most were Porsche owners, and we thought, “Why don’t we start a club?” Subsequently, with the help and support of Jebsen, we got approval from Porsche AG to be registered and recognised as the official Porsche Club in Hong Kong. We started with just 18 founding members in March 1990. Since then, there have been about 1,000 members in total. As the founding chairman, my membership number is 0001!

Can you tell us about the early days of the club?
Fritz: Because Hong Kong is a small congested city with limited roads to drive on, aside from our Sunday morning gatherings, all our events had to be held overseas. For our inaugural event, we shipped our cars to Thailand to conduct a driving workshop and mini race. We enlisted the help of local drivers such as my brother Kevin, Hong Kong’s most successful racing driver, Charles Kwan, and fellow racer, Winston Mak. Porsche AG was kind enough to send two instructors to teach and assist in the event.

We had our driving workshop in Malaysia for the next few years. We also organised quite a few driving tours from Singapore to Malaysia and Thailand. These driving events and tours were joint ventures between Porsche Club Hong Kong and the respective local Porsche Clubs, and they were great opportunities for us to socialise and get to know members of Porsche Clubs in other parts of South East Asia. In 2005 we were the first motoring club to drive from Hong Kong to Shanghai. That year we had 60 cars, and the convoy took up several miles on the road. In recent years, we moved our events to Zhuhai International Circuit and the logistics have become much easier.

Do you think that you will always remain loyal to Porsche?
Eric: Porsche cars are very reliable. I think I will continue to be a Porsche fan. I prefer lighter cars, and I prefer changing gears myself and want a car to handle well. Nowadays, most modern sports cars have a paddle shift and various electronic driving aids. I think Porsche is going forward by taking a step back, by making cars that have the quality and reliability of Porsche, but with less weight, manual transmission and a high-revving, naturally aspirated engine. Porsche is putting fun back into driving. The new Cayman GT4 and Boxster Spyder have been very well received by customers as well as automobile journalists in Hong Kong. I think Porsche is going in the right direction to preserve its heritage and legacy as a driver’s car. I think there is a big difference between a car that can go very fast and a true driver’s car.

Fritz: I personally think Porsche cars are not only fast, but also practical and reliable. Many other sports cars may come close in terms of speed and performance, but to me, Porsche is still the only sports car that you can truly utilise and enjoy on a daily basis.

How about the future? Fritz, is there another new Porsche on the horizon?
Fritz: I think in the future, if I have the financial resources and luck, I would love to own an A Series 356.

Text: Rosheen Rodwell
Photography: Chris Lusher