“It found its way to us through a friend and longtime Porsche mechanic Richard Dick,” Aidan explains, “something like 20 or so years ago. It’s a lovely matching numbers example, although personally - I could care less about that. It’s been bored out to give a little pinch of extra power. It will always reside in the sunny state of California so long as I’m still above the ground. I will simply never let it go.
As with all the things I take care of now, I will always still consider them to be my dad’s. I’ve mentioned this before but I am just the living entity that will cherish and look after them until the next person is tasked to do so after I’m dead. When I say “we” throughout this story, I use it to refer to him and me as that’s how it’s always been and nothing has changed nor will it ever.”
Naturally, the lifetime of memories in this car have leaked far beyond the metal itself. Aidan’s time in LA, and his emotional connection to it, is just as informed by the roads. “I do recall going up to Pebble Beach car week almost every year in it with my dad stretching that 6 hour drive out in the little thing,” he continues.

An Heirloom Like No Other
Author: Nat Twiss
Photographer: Jonathan Harper
How Aidan de Cadenet keeps the memory of his father alive in the Porsche they shared together
For Aidan de Cadenet, there was simply no choice but to love cars; he’s the son of the late, great racing driver and presenter Alain de Cadenet, perhaps one of the greatest ever evangelists for automobiles in all of their speed and elegance, his high-octane pursuits on-track and off helping to inspire a generation of enthusiasts.
Naturally, the collection that surrounded Aidan has left a lasting imprint on him, and they remain on the road today. We joined him in Los Angeles with one of those cars, a 1965 356 SC.





