Vehicle Description
The 944's immediate predecessor, the 924, began as a Porsche design
and engineering project that Weissach undertook for the
Vertriebsgesellschaft (VG)- a joint sales and marketing company
funded by both Porsche and Volkswagen. VW had made the decision to
change its product direction, abandoning the air-cooled rear-engine
design that had endured since the beginnings of the company to make
way for front-engined vehicles with water cooling. Volkswagen was
on a path to end its reliance on Porsche, but before gave them one
last contract and two years to develop a new two-seat sports car to
replace the 914. The project was code-named EA425, and was
originally intended to be the flagship sports car for Volkswagen
and the entry-level sports car for Porsche. After extensive
deliberation among management at VW, the project was scrapped
entirely and Porsche struck up a deal to buy the design back. In
1976 the 924 began to roll off of the production lines and quickly
became one of Porsche's best-selling models despite criticism for
its performance from the Audi-sourced 2.0-liter engine.
In 1982, Porsche debuted the production version of the 924 GTP as
the 944. The 944 retained much of the styling of the 924 but added
muscular box flared fenders and molded bumpers. The interior
remained largely unchanged from 924 until 1985, where Porsche felt
that there was not enough distinction between the 924 and 944
models, so a new dashboard, door trims, and embedded radio antenna
was implemented. The seats were modified to have a better driving
position, the door panels and console were redesigned to better
match the new interior. The front and rear suspension members were
made from lighter and stiffer aluminum to replace the original
steel versions, and the fuel tank's capacity was increased by more
than 20% to 21.1 gallons.
The most notable change in the 944 was the 2.5-liter
Porsche-developed four-cylinder engine. The 944's new engine was
essentially one-half of the 5.0-liter V8 engine from the 928. The
engine was mounted at a 45-degree angle to the right and utilized
dual overhead camshafts with counter-rotating balance shafts
originally patented by Mitsubishi. The engine was more powerful and
significantly quieter than the previous Audi 2.0-liter engine. The
new powerplant produced 163 horsepower for European market cars and
147 horsepower for US cars. Porsche claimed a top speed of 130
miles per hour but cleared that figure by nearly 30 miles per hour
in a subsequent performance test.
This 944 has been pampered throughout its life and remained with
its original owner for 30 years, and as a result, is one of the
most original examples that we have seen. Factory options include
the power sunroof, sport steering wheel with hub extension, 930
sport seats, sport suspension, and gold Fuchs wheels. With each of
its owners, the 944 was maintained to factory spec and is
documented by a folio of service records included with the car.
Inside and out, this 944 presents in excellent condition- the
paintwork shines with a deep gloss and the black leather upholstery
shows little to no wear. With a near-perfect 48/52 weight
distribution and the sport suspension package, the 944's handling
through the turns is nothing short of superb, and the 2.5-liter
four-cylinder pulls smoothly to the 6,500rpm redline.
For three years in a row, Car & Driver unanimously agreed that the
944 was one of the Ten Best Cars available to American buyers and
today the 944 represents one of the best value '80s-era sports cars
that can be had.
