For Sale: 1986 Porsche 944 in Bradenton, Florida

1986 Porsche 944 Turbo �€" Guards Red, 5-Speed, Factory Turbo with 116,161 Miles Why This Car Is Special The 1986 Porsche 944 Turbo is not the same car as a standard 944. Porsche introduced the turbocharged version of the 944 for the 1986 model year, and it arrived as one of the fastest production cars available in America at the time. While the base 944 made 143 horsepower from its naturally aspirated 2.5-liter inline-four, the 944 Turbo pushed that same engine block to 220 horsepower using a KKK turbocharger and a front-mounted air-to-air intercooler �€" an intercooler you can still see mounted beneath this car's nose. The result was a 0-60 time in the mid-five-second range, which put the 944 Turbo squarely in supercar territory for its era and well ahead of many cars with twice the cylinders. What made the 944 Turbo's engineering genuinely interesting was its layout. The engine sits in the front, but the transmission and final drive are mounted at the rear in a transaxle configuration. That placement gives the car a nearly perfect 50/50 front-to-rear weight balance �€" a figure that matters enormously when you are driving quickly through corners. The 944 platform was developed with input from Porsche's racing division, and the Turbo variant received upgraded brakes, wider fender flares, and suspension tuning specifically suited to the increased power. The 944 Turbo was produced from 1986 through 1991. The first-year cars like this one �€" model year 1986 �€" are sometimes called the '951' by enthusiasts, referencing the internal Porsche project designation. They are increasingly sought after as the 944 Turbo market has strengthened steadily over the past decade, with well-documented, original examples becoming noticeably harder to find. This particular car shows 116,161 miles on its VDO instrument cluster, wears Guards Red over a black leather interior, and retains its factory 5-speed manual gearbox. The 'GN' sequence in the VIN places this car in the 1986 model year production run, confirming it as a first-year 944 Turbo. It presents as a used, honest driver �€" not a trailer queen �€" with the mechanicals, interior, and bodywork consistent with a car that has been used as Porsche intended. Features List - 2.5-liter turbocharged inline-four engine with KKK turbocharger - Front-mounted air-to-air intercooler, visible from underside - 5-speed manual transaxle - Factory 944 Turbo badging - Telephone dial alloy wheels - Black leather bucket seats with rear jump seats - Leather-wrapped steering wheel with Porsche-embossed hub - Center console with leather shifter boot - Power steering and power brakes - Power windows - Electric sunroof - Front fog lights - Retractable pop-up headlights - Rear spoiler - Rear window wiper and heated rear window defroster - Tachometer and boost gauge (bar-scale, VDO instrumentation) - Blaupunkt stereo with separate graphic equalizer - Door panel speakers - Continental tires - Color-keyed side mirrors - Four-wheel disc brakes Mechanical Under the hood of this 1986 Porsche 944 Turbo is the turbocharged 2.5-liter inline-four that defined the model. The engine uses a single KKK turbocharger feeding compressed air through a front-mounted intercooler before it enters the intake manifold. That intercooler �€" mounted in the nose behind a louvered lower fascia and clearly visible in the underside photos �€" is one of the more recognizable engineering details of the 944 Turbo and a meaningful distinction from the base car. Cooler, denser air entering the combustion chamber means more consistent power and better detonation resistance, which is part of why these engines respond well to basic maintenance and hold up over time when properly cared for. The transaxle arrangement is worth understanding if you have not driven one of these before. The engine output travels through a torque tube running the length of the car to a rear-mounted 5-speed manual gearbox. This setup keeps mass centralized and low, and it