A Celebration of Life for Denny Aker will be held March 30 at 1 PM at the Nile Golf course in Mountlake Terrace, WA. If you have your 356 Porsche running, please drive it to the celebration. It’s highly possible he would hear all the air cooled music. 
Denny Aker
April 25, 1939 – March 14, 2026
On March 14, 2026, we unfortunately lost a generous and kind man, Denny Aker, that most of us knew as one of the premier Porsche mechanics on the West Coast, if not the entire country. Denny passed away surrounded by his family. He will be fondly remembered by a wide range of automotive enthusiasts that benefitted from and enjoyed his vast knowledge and talents across many marques: Volkswagen, Porsche, Packard, Cord, Auburn, Rolls Royce to name just few. Denny also had skills that kept a lot of two wheelers running including Harley Davidson, Indian, Crocker and Near-a- Car. Frankly, if it was something mechanical, automotive or otherwise, he could fix it. That included vintage juke boxes and a turn of the century factory time clock, and a WW II German Kittenkrad.
Denny was an avid hydroplane racer in his younger days and then later in life focused some of his spare time vintage racing in the SOVREN organization. He owned and raced the famous Porsche Cooper (aka “Pooper”) formerly owned by Pete Lovely. Both he and the “Pooper” were fixtures on the vintage race scene at Laguna Seca, Pacific Raceways and Portland International Raceway. Denny experienced a lot of racing success with that car and was also a class winner at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.
Denny was a member of the Classic Car Club of America, SOVREN racing organization, PCA NW Region, Thursday Night Garage Club, and the Porsche 356 Group NW. I believe he also belonged to the Auburn, Cord, Dusenberg organization. As a member of the 356 Group, Denny and his wife Sue eagerly hosted many a “Bull Session” gatherings at his “hobby shop”, as he loved having others enjoy his collection. Denny was also a member of the LeMay America’s Automotive Museum in Tacoma and was recently honored with their prestigious “Collector of the Year” award. Much of his collection was on display at the museum for over a year. What is unique about that award is that it is not necessarily based on what you may have collected but rather more emphasis is placed on the fact that you are eager and more that willing to share your collection for others. His generosity and enthusiasm to do so was well known among all who met Denny.
Denny started Aker’s Porsche in 1965 on Capitol Hill in Seattle. A very long list of loyal customers continue to bring their cars to Aker’s on Broadway. Denny’s son, Mark, who had worked side by side with him for many years, continues to manage the business after Denny retired 16 years ago.
After retirement, Denny and his wife Sue enjoyed many road trips travelling in one of several 356’s that he kept in his collection. Annual trips to a variety of national parks or Porsche events were enjoyed for many years. His 356’s logged thousands of miles from Seattle to Savannah, GA to Nova Scotia and back to Seattle. Additional trips to national parks included Yosemite, Zion, Arches, Canyonlands, Bryce, Capitol Reef, Yellowstone, Glacier, Jasper, Banff, the Badlands, Mt. Rushmore, Teton, Acadia, and Mesa Verde and Devil’s Tower National Monument. His 356 trips transected more than 40 states and 6 Canadian Provinces, visiting Civil War battlefields and historic landmarks.
Porsche 356 Holidays included road trips to California, New Mexico, North Carolina, and Arizona.
A Celebration of Life for Denny Aker will be held March 30 at 1 PM at the Nile Golf course in Mountlake Terrace, WA. If you have your 356 Porsche running, please drive it to the celebration. It’s highly possible he would hear all the air cooled music.