Picture of the Week: Wanderer Type 7

The 1931 Wanderer Type 7 was the first car developed by Ferdinand Porsche's design and engineering office in Stuttgart. Porsche, having left Daimler-Benz and then spending a short time at Steyr-Werke in Austria, returned to Stuttgart in late 1930 and the following spring set up "Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung, Konstruktion und Beratung für Motoren- und Fahrzeugbau" at Kronenstrasse 24.

Porsche's team initially employed twelve people, and the commission for Wanderer - a Chemnitz-based company founded in 1896, which then became part of Auto Union - involved development of this mid-range saloon (a cabriolet, pictured below, was also made) and a new straight-eight engine. The engineering office went on to create cars including the legendary Auto Union racers - and, at the other end of the automotive scale, the Volkswagen Beetle.

The Porsche Museum - which recently celebrated its millionth visitor, just two and a half years since it opened - is running a special exhibition, 80 Years of Porsche Designs, from 21st June to 11th September 2011. This celebrates the 80th anniversary of the opening of Porsche's office, and the ongoing work of its successor consultancy company, Porsche Engineering. Exhibits will include a 1931 Wanderer and an Auto Union racer, as well as later developments from Porsche Engineering including a Linde fork-lift truck, a Harley-Davidson V-Rod motorbike with Porsche V2 engine, the Audi Sport Quattro S1 with Porsche PDK gearbox and other industrial projects.