The first number was Type 7, chosen so that Wanderer-Werke AG did not realize they were the company's first customer.
[2] The first entries in the list are designs by Ferdinand Porsche before the company was founded and therefore these do not have a Type number.
The designs up to number 287 are from the period leading into World War II when the company was based in Stuttgart.
In 1950 the company moved back to Stuttgart and makes a new start with Type 500, skipping a large part of the 400 range.
The study requirements were for a four-seat touring car with fuel injection, 1.5- to 2-liter displacement, 4-cylinders producing 60 to 70 hp.