Porsche 928
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My first car was a '61 Triumph TR3, it had the 1991cc converted tractor engine with wet cylinder liners as I recall. I knew next to nothing about mechanicals at the time but the TR was a wonderful teacher. It had twin SU carbs, I got a Unisyn tool and figured them out. There wasn't another English sports car in town that could run away from that TR-3, unless it was a big Healey or a Jag. Canyon roads were it specialty and there were plenty in Utah. I could push a V8 powered Mustang or Camaro dangerously fast but did not have the power on a short straight to overtake one, great center of gravity and Triumph was the first economical British sports car with disc brakes on the front. A friend of mine had a Bug-Eyed Sprite and wanted to trade cars for the day, I no more than got in that bucket of bolts than I wanted my car back. Gutsy little engine with gobs of low end torque, my first gear was previously chipped with reverse completely blown, that was part of how I got such a great car as reasonably as I did. We all know why the English drink warm beer.
Porsche 944 range report
I owned a Porsche 944 for 23 years. It was the "little brother" to the 928. It had a 4-cylinder engine that was essentially one bank of the 928's V-8, and it was laid out like the 928 with a front water-cooled engine, a rear-mounted transmission combined with the differential, and a large glass hatchback opening to commodious trunk. It was also reasonably affordable, listing for about $20,000 new.
Buying was a real adventure. I purchased mine in 1983, in their first year of production, but it wasn't easy. They were selling faster than Porsche/Audi (they were assembled by Audi) could produce them, and buyers had to put in orders and wait up to six months to take delivery. Of course, dealers were taking advantage of the supply-demand situation. The three DFW dealers were all charging 25% over sticker. One salesman actually yelled at me when I responded to their price by saying that I wanted to consider some options. "What options?", he bellowed, "Tell me about your options!". The option I chose was to have nothing more to do with that dealer. I ended up driving 100 miles to Wichita Falls and buying from a Volkswagen dealer that sold me my 944 for list price, and ordered it exactly the way I wanted. After ordering our car, Mrs. swsig and I went to a local steak house to celebrate. We happened to mention to the waitress what we'd done, and she comped us our wine because our salesman was her cousin. I didn't have the heart to tell her that cabernet sauvignon is not supposed to be served ice-cold. Oh well, that's small-town Porsche buying for you.
After 23 years' experience, I can comment on the plusses and minuses of 944 ownership.
Plusses:
Handling, handling, handling! With the engine in front and the transmission in back, the 944 was perfectly balanced. You had to do something extremely stupid to put a wheel wrong. Additionally, 1983 models were manual steering only, so you always had perfect road feel. Later models came with power steering, but in my opinion it wasn't needed.
Comfort. Despite the superb handling, the suspension didn't beat you up. It was excellent on long hauls. I drove as far as 800 miles in a single day without difficulty. Comfort was enhanced by excellent supportive seats and low levels of wind and engine noise.
Air conditioning. Previous Porsches had been notorious for their feeble air conditioners. Mine blew strong cold air the day I took delivery and strong cold air the day I sold it, without requiring one single bit of maintenance over the 23 years I owned it.
Highway fuel economy. While in-town fuel economy was mediocre, 30 mpg on the highway was readily achievable, and it required only regular gas.
Engine. Nikasil cylinder liners or not, it never gave me any problems. At 143 hp, it was far from a drag racer, but its flat torque curve provided instant power when you needed it, unless you were in the wrong gear. Zero to 60 was less than 8 seconds, which was pretty good in those days. It was also extremely smooth, thanks to dual balance shafts.
Transmission. The 5-speed stick shift was smooth and positive. I've read complaints about the shift feel caused by the long linkage needed for the rear-mounted gearbox, but I never understood those gripes. I had no complaints about mine.
Trunk. For a small sports car, you could put a lot of stuff back there, making it a great touring car.
Minuses
Digital Motor Electronics (DME). My 944 had an early version of a computer controlled engine management system, controlling all aspects of fuel supply and ignition. 944 owners were the beta testers. When it worked, it was great, but parts of the DME system were subject to premature aging. As a result of DME failures, I was left stranded three different times, twice in my garage, and once just west of Las Cruces, NM. At the time of the Las Cruces breakdown, Porsche was nearly out of business in the US, and there were no dealers between DFW and Tucson. I had to have my mechanic air ship the part from Dallas to El Paso before we could continue our trip.
Plastic radiator tank. Radiator tanks used to be made of brass. The 944 had a plastic tank which cracked at the filler neck and dumped much of the coolant onto the ground. To be fair, it was 20 years old at the time, but brass wouldn't have cracked.
Paint. While my 944 was generally well-assembled and remained tight and rattle-free during my ownership, the paint job would not have passed inspection on any model at any current car manufacturer. There were dirt lumps in the paint on the hood, and globs of runs on the door pillars. I suspect it was painted on a Friday after the Audi workers returned from an extra long beer break.
Resale value. Compared to other Porsche models, it has always been poor. Porsche's front-engined water pumpers generally get little respect in the marketplace. Most 944s have been stripped, hacked up, and turned into cheap track cars, as there is not much interest in street driveable versions.
I sold it because my knees had deteriorated to the point that I had great difficulty getting in and out of it, and I wasn't driving it. I've since had my knees replaced, but I don't regret selling it. I'd had a lot of fun with it, but it was time to move on. Here it is, just before I sold it:
I owned a Porsche 944 for 23 years. It was the "little brother" to the 928. It had a 4-cylinder engine that was essentially one bank of the 928's V-8, and it was laid out like the 928 with a front water-cooled engine, a rear-mounted transmission combined with the differential, and a large glass hatchback opening to commodious trunk. It was also reasonably affordable, listing for about $20,000 new.
Buying was a real adventure. I purchased mine in 1983, in their first year of production, but it wasn't easy. They were selling faster than Porsche/Audi (they were assembled by Audi) could produce them, and buyers had to put in orders and wait up to six months to take delivery. Of course, dealers were taking advantage of the supply-demand situation. The three DFW dealers were all charging 25% over sticker. One salesman actually yelled at me when I responded to their price by saying that I wanted to consider some options. "What options?", he bellowed, "Tell me about your options!". The option I chose was to have nothing more to do with that dealer. I ended up driving 100 miles to Wichita Falls and buying from a Volkswagen dealer that sold me my 944 for list price, and ordered it exactly the way I wanted. After ordering our car, Mrs. swsig and I went to a local steak house to celebrate. We happened to mention to the waitress what we'd done, and she comped us our wine because our salesman was her cousin. I didn't have the heart to tell her that cabernet sauvignon is not supposed to be served ice-cold. Oh well, that's small-town Porsche buying for you.
After 23 years' experience, I can comment on the plusses and minuses of 944 ownership.
Plusses:
Handling, handling, handling! With the engine in front and the transmission in back, the 944 was perfectly balanced. You had to do something extremely stupid to put a wheel wrong. Additionally, 1983 models were manual steering only, so you always had perfect road feel. Later models came with power steering, but in my opinion it wasn't needed.
Comfort. Despite the superb handling, the suspension didn't beat you up. It was excellent on long hauls. I drove as far as 800 miles in a single day without difficulty. Comfort was enhanced by excellent supportive seats and low levels of wind and engine noise.
Air conditioning. Previous Porsches had been notorious for their feeble air conditioners. Mine blew strong cold air the day I took delivery and strong cold air the day I sold it, without requiring one single bit of maintenance over the 23 years I owned it.
Highway fuel economy. While in-town fuel economy was mediocre, 30 mpg on the highway was readily achievable, and it required only regular gas.
Engine. Nikasil cylinder liners or not, it never gave me any problems. At 143 hp, it was far from a drag racer, but its flat torque curve provided instant power when you needed it, unless you were in the wrong gear. Zero to 60 was less than 8 seconds, which was pretty good in those days. It was also extremely smooth, thanks to dual balance shafts.
Transmission. The 5-speed stick shift was smooth and positive. I've read complaints about the shift feel caused by the long linkage needed for the rear-mounted gearbox, but I never understood those gripes. I had no complaints about mine.
Trunk. For a small sports car, you could put a lot of stuff back there, making it a great touring car.
Minuses
Digital Motor Electronics (DME). My 944 had an early version of a computer controlled engine management system, controlling all aspects of fuel supply and ignition. 944 owners were the beta testers. When it worked, it was great, but parts of the DME system were subject to premature aging. As a result of DME failures, I was left stranded three different times, twice in my garage, and once just west of Las Cruces, NM. At the time of the Las Cruces breakdown, Porsche was nearly out of business in the US, and there were no dealers between DFW and Tucson. I had to have my mechanic air ship the part from Dallas to El Paso before we could continue our trip.
Plastic radiator tank. Radiator tanks used to be made of brass. The 944 had a plastic tank which cracked at the filler neck and dumped much of the coolant onto the ground. To be fair, it was 20 years old at the time, but brass wouldn't have cracked.
Paint. While my 944 was generally well-assembled and remained tight and rattle-free during my ownership, the paint job would not have passed inspection on any model at any current car manufacturer. There were dirt lumps in the paint on the hood, and globs of runs on the door pillars. I suspect it was painted on a Friday after the Audi workers returned from an extra long beer break.
Resale value. Compared to other Porsche models, it has always been poor. Porsche's front-engined water pumpers generally get little respect in the marketplace. Most 944s have been stripped, hacked up, and turned into cheap track cars, as there is not much interest in street driveable versions.
I sold it because my knees had deteriorated to the point that I had great difficulty getting in and out of it, and I wasn't driving it. I've since had my knees replaced, but I don't regret selling it. I'd had a lot of fun with it, but it was time to move on. Here it is, just before I sold it:
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LVSteve
Member
Oh my! I knew the emissions regs here choked cars badly back in the day, but that's a 20 bhp drop on the European cars.
Yup. In those days, there were US spec cars and ROW (rest of the world) spec cars. US spec cars were always down on power compared to ROW spec cars.
Some years back there was an EPA emissions exemption for a single car per person. DOT safety specs had to be complied with. I imported a 1978 3.3 Liter 930 Turbo. I wish I had kept it. I still remember the VIN 9308700211.
