Original Interior Door Handles
Interior door handles are somewhat interesting because lots of folks use Volkswagen parts and lots of folks are using reproduction handles. Well, here is the whole story for 356 C interior door handles.
The door pull handle, for opening the door, is a VW casting. It has the correct Porsche tulip knob, but the VW part number is clearly visible on the back side. Now, that does not mean that current production VW door handles are the same- because in fact they aren't. But, if you found NOS VW interior door handles with the same part number and made at the time of the 356 production, the casting is the same.
Not so with the window winder. The window winder handle is a Porsche part. Only one digit is visible on the back side (where on the VW handle the whole part number is there. Why is this one a Porsche part and the door pull a VW part? Well, the Porsche window winder part has a "nose" that comes in contact with the plastic bezel This bent nose must have been important to the Porsche engineer, and it is found on the original window winders but not on the interior door pull handles. Sounds strange, but the photos below do a better job of explaining it.
Besides the nose on the window winder (which is NOT on the reproduction parts), there are other differences. The line down the spline of the door handle is different and the end is also slightly different shape.
So, if you want the eagle eye award for an original window winder- look for the "nose" and you'll know.
The door pull handle, for opening the door, is a VW casting. It has the correct Porsche tulip knob, but the VW part number is clearly visible on the back side. Now, that does not mean that current production VW door handles are the same- because in fact they aren't. But, if you found NOS VW interior door handles with the same part number and made at the time of the 356 production, the casting is the same.
Not so with the window winder. The window winder handle is a Porsche part. Only one digit is visible on the back side (where on the VW handle the whole part number is there. Why is this one a Porsche part and the door pull a VW part? Well, the Porsche window winder part has a "nose" that comes in contact with the plastic bezel This bent nose must have been important to the Porsche engineer, and it is found on the original window winders but not on the interior door pull handles. Sounds strange, but the photos below do a better job of explaining it.
Besides the nose on the window winder (which is NOT on the reproduction parts), there are other differences. The line down the spline of the door handle is different and the end is also slightly different shape.
So, if you want the eagle eye award for an original window winder- look for the "nose" and you'll know.