From Partners and Supporters:
The Beginnings of Hapke Original Restoration
A Vision Comes True
Beginnings require courage and determination — and the support of people who believe in our ideas. Out of such a situation, our company Hapke Original Restoration was born: Hartmut Abl is one of our very first customers. We visited him and his collection of Porsche 356s in Viborg, Denmark, to talk about the early days.
The Porsche 356 — the first production model of the now-legendary car manufacturer — can still tell stories about the beginnings of a remarkable brand. It’s the car Ferry Porsche dreamed of but couldn’t find when he looked around. A vehicle whose body was crafted with devoted handwork and which laid the foundation for everything that was yet to come. Sometimes it’s fascinating to see the biographical parallels that appear when you take a closer look.
Our restoration workshop was also a long-held dream — one that founder and managing director Marcel Hapke never let go of and always believed in. But conviction and perseverance alone are not enough: we also need to be able to rely on others — on people who share our vision, recognize our potential, and keep their word. Hartmut Abl is one of those people.
But let’s start at the beginning.
A Porsche 356 SC Coupe
Brought New Perspectives
Around 2015, Marcel met Hartmut Abl. Probably no other person has contributed more to the fact that this story can now be read on the Hapke Original Restoration website.
Hartmut Abl spent his youth in Hamburg and was stationed in Denmark with NATO. After his time with NATO, he became an entrepreneur in Denmark and also met the woman he has now been with for nearly 50 years. Alongside his love for his partner and his work, there was something else that deeply moved him: “I’ve always been fascinated by Porsche – ever since I was a young schoolboy,” Abl recalls today. “Interestingly, the 356 models always appealed to me more than the 911s. That shape, that minimalist design, the sound – it’s always captivated me, right from the start.”
That passion led Abl to start collecting cars at an early age. “I had the privilege of driving my first Porsche when I was just 21 years old. It wasn’t a classic Porsche yet, but a 914.”
Abl’s first 356 was a Porsche 356 SC Coupe in Ruby Red. “That was my daily driver, which I bought in the 1970s. I drove that 356 every day – even in winter, through snow, ice, and salt. Naturally, the car eventually developed rust spots, so I started looking for someone who could restore it. The car had become my daily companion, and I was very attached to it – it was practically a member of the family,” the entrepreneur recalls.
Hartmut Abl:
“This is the man who can take on this task.”
Hartmut Abl was familiar with Hackenberg Restorations, a workshop capable of handling such projects. “The work there was always top-notch, but I hadn’t been able to establish a personal connection with Mr. Hackenberg. At that time, I didn’t even know that the workshop had a master bodybuilder named Marcel Hapke. A mutual acquaintance from Leverkusen then arranged a meeting – and after just half an hour of talking, I was convinced: This is my man. This is the man who can take on the task for the car of my heart.”
For Abl, originality and focus on preserving the original substance have always been the most important things, he says today. But he first had to go through a few negative experiences to reach that conviction:
“These restorations – often done with insufficient quality, frequently completely botched, more repaired and filled than actually restored. And you could only really see it once the paint was stripped. Those were experiences after which I thought: Never buy a restored car unless you know exactly who did the restoration.”
Hartmut Abl recognized in Marcel Hapke someone he could trust with this restoration, with the dedication to a special era and its unique automotive craftsmanship. He knew this within just a few minutes of speaking with Marcel, Abl says.
“We then went together to what was at the time, let’s call it, his father’s workshop, somewhere in a small backyard. That didn’t bother me at all – I was focused on Marcel’s personal qualities, on his approach,” Abl recalls. “Above all, it was his honesty. I simply left the car there immediately. I was one hundred percent sure he would do it right. The result was and still is perfect, and the car remains in my garage to this day. I’ve owned it for over 40 years.”
If you had to describe Hapke Original Restoration in three words, which would they be?
Without a doubt: Again and again.
Hartmut Abl has a growing vehicle collection featuring numerous 356 Carrera models as well as several Carrera 904 examples, including one whose first owner was a certain Mr. Robert Redford. He later added another Porsche 356 Speedster to this collection. With this car, his mechanic in Denmark tried to persuade him to have it restored.
“‘I can do this!’ my mechanic said at the time. Only – he ultimately couldn’t. The car was completely disassembled and partly cut apart – the floor was gone,” Hartmut Abl told us during our visit to Viborg.
“I then called Marcel and asked him to come to Denmark and take a look at ‘the condition.’ Marcel came immediately, delivered my ‘Ruby Coupe,’ and took the Speedster back with him to Germany. As research during the restoration later revealed, it’s a very special Speedster with numerous racing appearances. Bruce Jennings, together with Earl Wenger, had achieved many racing successes with this car. In short: Marcel also restored the Jennings Speedster brilliantly – a true masterpiece!”
Abl notes that there are always restoration companies claiming they can handle such historically significant vehicles. “And the more closely you look, the more you realize that they mostly just believe they can do it. Often, there is no real quality behind it.” Marcel’s restorations, compared to many of these firms, are not cheap – “but they don’t have to be,” Abl says. “For that, his restorations are simply excellent. On the other hand, trying to save money in this area is, in my opinion, a mistake. A mistake that, like a boomerang, always comes back.”
How a Chance Encounter
Turned into a Lasting Friendship
The projects that Abl regularly entrusted to Marcel Hapke from that point on gave the young founder the job security needed to launch his own business. In 2015, Marcel established his restoration company, Hapke Original Restoration. To this day, he shares a trusting, long-standing friendship with Hartmut Abl — one that crosses borders.
“Marcel and I are in constant contact. I follow his work more closely than Marcel probably realizes,” Abl reveals. “And I take great pleasure in seeing him continue to pursue his niche for special collector vehicles, and thereby for the brand ambassadors of Porsche, Mercedes, Ferrari, Maserati, Lancia, and so on — that’s what sets him apart. I am convinced that Marcel can restore any bodywork.”
