The 928 story is a big one, given what a radical departure it was for the brand that was so deeply associated with rear-engined boxers. And although the 928 was a formidable performer, it didn’t represent the future of Porsche, in 1977; the 911 went on to carry the brand’s identity for some decades further. But with the benefit of hindsight, it’s clear that the 928 actually was the future of Porsche, given the Cayenne, Panamera, and a 928-ish coupe to come. Maybe the classic 911 era was just a temporary holding pattern?
The 928 was created under false assumptions: that the 911 had no future, and that its rear-engine configuration might even be outlawed in the safety-paranoia that was so rampant in the late-sixties and early-seventies. So a big, safe, front-engined GT was envisioned as the way forward, especially for America, which used to take a giant share of Porsche production. The question was exactly what that engine should look like.
Ferdinand Piëch wanted the 928 engine to be a V10 version of the Audi five-cylinder (EA827 family) engine. Piëch left Porsche for Audi in 1972, so it’s difficult to say whether that was before or after that move. But did it really make a difference? As a Porsche scion/owner, he always had something to say in what happened at Porsche, and we all know how that worked out in the end. Piëch’s move to Audi was designed to get him out of the family business (for now), and the Porsche directors over-ruled him, and decided to design their own V8 engine from scratch. They were worried about what folks would say to having a “Volkswagen” engine under the hood. What else is new? The EA827-derived V10 did of course find its way into the Lamborghini Gallardo, as well as the Audi R8.
What the Porsche engineers wrought was definitely not in the usual Porsche idiom: a 4.5 liter V8 with wedge-shaped combustion chambers and SOHC heads. Quite the contrast to the 911’s air-cooled hemi-heads. The block used the recently-perfected high-silica content aluminum that allowed pistons to run directly in it’s bores, a concept the Vega pioneered, but stumbled on.
In another nod to GM engineering that was never properly developed, the 928 used a flexible driveshaft in a solid tube connected to the rear-mounted transaxle. But unlike the swing-axles that the innovative 1961-1963 Pontiac Tempest used, Porsche developed an advanced rear suspension that incorporated some passive steering, called the Weissach Axle. But that doesn’t change the fact that this illustration is incorrect; Porsche did not pioneer the “use of a water cooled front engine and rear transaxle drivetrain connected by a rigid tube enclosing the driveshaft”. The Tempest did (CC here)..
The early versions of the 928 engine made 240/217 hp (Europe/USA). A healthy number for 1977, and the 928 achieved its goal of being an effortless high-speed GT. But it was large, heavy and thirsty, and never sold in the number envisioned. Porsche’s next CEO, American-born Peter Schutz, quickly scuttled any talk of killing the 911-golden calf/cash cow, which only further marginalized the 928. The early versions’ “telephone dial” wheels were memorable,
as well its op-art upholstery.
The V8 got a number of minor performance enhancements over the following years, but the major evolution was introduced in 1985, the 5.0 L 928S, now featuring DOHC hemi-heads, and making a then-lofty 310 hp. With some additional tweaks, this engine continued to serve the 928 through its long live that finally ended in 1995, almost twenty years after its birth. The final variants were 5.4 liter, and rated at 350 hp.
I’m not going to kill myself by spending a half hour googling all the variants to figure out what exact this 928 is, but it undoubtedly is a fairly late one. It does keep company with some interesting machines, including a clapped out Fiero back there.
Appropriate to the likely proclivities of this 928 enthusiast, this one is a stick shift. The 928 does have a dedicated following, although one has to hope to avoid a serious mechanical melt-down. Don’t ask what it costs to rebuild one of these motors; cheaper to look for another 928, for sure.
The plastic cover of the obviously-leaking sunroof is a bit disconcerting too. But love demands its sacrifices, maybe a bit more so than average with a 928.
The family resemblance with the current front-engined Porsches is of course all-too obvious, and deliberate. The 928 arrived too soon; the baby-boomers were still young in the eighties and the 911 became an icon of the times, even if folks didn’t know how to drive them properly. But Porsche has proven the irresistible magnetic attraction of its brand name, no matter what it puts it on. The only question left is whether the future coupe will be called 928. Or has that number lost its luster?
I very much like the front-engined Porsches and still remember when they were decried as “not a real Porsche”. I also recall a time when these could be purchased used on the cheap – due to the fact that they were “not a real Porsche”. Perhaps those days are over as we’ve come back to the future.
The difference between the 928 and the 911 is when you see a junked 928, It stays junked or parted out. You never see a junked 911. If it can be rebuilt, it will..
I still remember all the 928s being sold for very cheap in the used car market. A Porsche selling that cheap meant something and it wasn’t good. Hopefully most have passed on.
I had a 1984 928S and, whilst not really fast (still the 240 hp variant), it was astonishingly modern in handling and ride. And it looked wonderful – thank you Herr Moebius and Mr. Tony Lapine!
Mine was a cheapie and I sold it to buy a house and prepare for a child…but that instrument binnacle that moved with the steering wheel reach and height and the Pasha interior cloth and those front fender highlights…..I could go on, but you get the idea.
Whilst a designer at Style Porsche I tried to do a Panamera that reflected the Porsche front engine heritage, but it was rejected… oh well.
The 928 will always have a place in my dream garage – ideally an S or GT with the 4 valve motor.
A sunroof that can both pop up and retract will always leak. The problem isn’t the leakage, the problem is the drain (likely through A-pillar) is blocked, causing the “ditch” area around the opening to be flooded.
A sunroof that can retract will always leak under some conditions even if the drain ISN’T blocked, which is why I now dread the power glass moonroofs offered on a lot of Japanese cars.
I’ve got two Merecedes W126s – a 560SEC and 560SEL – both with sunroofs that can retract or tilt the back up. Despite spending more time outside than I’d like and having no particular maintenance beyond a new seal back when, neither leaks.
To the best of my knowledge I have driven four Porsches in my life, and only one was rear-engined (a 911 of course) though two were air-cooled but none had four doors. The others were a 914 2.0, a 924 and a 928. I enjoyed the 928 the most, followed by the 914.
Gotta love that Pasha interior!
Peter Schutz was an engineer/marketer at Cummins Engine Co. of Indiana. He was a 911 enthusiast while working there and somehow made the move to Porsche. At the time there was a prototype 4 door 928 and he put an end to all that.
The 928 always looked like a pony car take on the AMC Pacer to me. At least Risky Business came along to help drive some extra sales.
Point of order- the Tempest didn’t pioneer the rear transaxle, either. It was the Lancia Aurelia.https://driventowrite.com/2020/03/26/the-aurelian-way/#more-59599
Yes, I should have been more precise and added “with a rigid tube enclosing the driveshaft”.
I won’t say they were my dream car, but I liked the 928s when they came out and later. They, like so many interesting near exotic European cars in the first decade of this century were cheap. Yeah, they probably needed work, but they were new enough parts were still available, I mean I used to see 928s at Pick and Pull every once in a while, but now? They’re expensive if they need work and stupid expensive if they’re in good shape. Not pristine, just good shape. The pristine ones? I don’t even want to know.
I would like to have one, but that ship has passed.
Nice driver ones still going for $25K or less.
Those were known for having inherend thermal spots which would cause their head gaskets to leak, because of their tight engine compartments preventing satisfactory heat dissipation at the engine’s rear side.
When it’s time to replace a timing belt on those, you won’t be able to do the job right, without a special tool for adjusting the belt’s tensioner. If those are interference engines, the last thing you’d want to do is to guess the belt’s tension, without employing that special tool
928 values are coming back, so someone who got into a good one a decade or so ago and kept it up could get rewarded. But unfortunately, they are no cheaper than a 911 to keep up, and hideously expensive if you’re sorting a neglected example, let alone a restoration. The parts costs alone are eye-watering; to have the work professionally done can easily run into six figures. Because of that and the the relatively low demand, the 928 is one of many expensive cars that were probably more economical to run into the ground and replace at the first major breakdown. The cost and difficulty of bringing one back from the brink, and the price point being attainable to the Camaro crowd for so long (nothing personal; substitute whatever typical sports car if you wish), are the reason that on the rare occasion you see one, it’s likely to be in this condition (typically worse).
That’s too bad, because it probably deserved better. I’ve never driven one, but if I’d found a half-decent one at the time I bought my 560SEC, I might have bought it instead. Part of the struggle the 928 faces is that it was seen as a threat to the 911, and that stigma lingers. So a lot of Porscheophiles turned up their nose and bought a second or third 911 where a 928 would have been a welcome change-up. One thing I’d never thought about was the safety question: it seems paranoid now, but I’m getting a growing sense that the Ralph Nader set and the appearance of federal safety regulations did drive a lot of automakers into an over-reactionary mode (on the planning side of things, anyway).
At the end of the day, the 928 is a car I kind of want (gotta have a stick, and the pasha interior would be great while you’re at it), but is too much investment relative to my desire. I’ve got a 924 turbo I’m bringing back – much simpler car – and that’s expensive and challenging enough. If I didn’t have the SEC, a 928 would be much more tempting. I do think it’s in a unique niche if you needed a car to cruise comfortably across Germany on the autobahn, and then still enjoy some twisty roads in the Alps for a weekend away. You’d be begging to get out of a 911 (a classic one anyway) after a few hours on the highway, but a typical personal luxury barge would strangle any fun to be had on twisty roads. And ironically, striking a good balance often doesn’t drive rave reviews, sales, or even appropriate appreciation as a classic. The 928 is like the girl who’s good-looking, but not the prettiest; smart, but not the valedictorian; personable, but not the life of the party – it’s not fair she gets ignored. Then again, life’s not fair.
A car I’ve never been able to appreciate. Neither the exterior nor the interior, nor anything else. Neither when they were new (and I was young) nor today.
Although… a 4.5-liter V8 like this in a Volvo 960 station wagon would be fun.