Background
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In 1978 the Porsche 928 looked so futuristic that it could well have driven straight off the set of 2001: A Space Odyssey. Engineering aficionados and automotive journalists applauded Porsche’s efforts to design a replacement for the rear-engined, air cooled 911. Then, the 928 looked like nothing we’d seen before. Now it looks like nothing we’ve seen since.
But it is also practical, usable and so well engineered, even by Porsche’s lofty standards, that it’s as comfortable thundering down an Autobahn as it is going to the local shops.
As for replacing the 911 – well, we all know that it didn’t. As early as the late 1960s the Porsche board was starting to worry that the mighty 911 was past its prime. Sales were dropping and, in the wake of an international oil crisis, the Porsche suits were busy convincing themselves that their future was in Grand Touring luxury cars with more conventional mechanical specifications than the quirky Beetle-inspired sports car.
With this context looming large, the then Porsche Managing Director, Ernst Fuhrmann, was bringing pressure to bear on Ferry Porsche to approve the development of a new model. Porsche capitulated and Fuhrmann was able to initiate a production-feasible design study in 1971. As is often the way, the design process navigated a number of twists and turns, including rear engine and mid-engine configurations, before a relatively traditional front engine, rear wheel drive layout was agreed. This configuration promised the most passenger space and the least technical and legislative issues.
The ultimately sleek and modern design was overseen by Tony Lapine and incorporated some innovative features for those simpler times, including a large opening rear hatch, integrated polyurethane elastic bumpers covered in body coloured plastic and, of course, the signature reverse pop-up headlamps which were very Lamborghini Miura-esque. The interior had also gone all Space 1999 with deeply padded and curvaceous seats front and rear, the latter folding down for more luggage space, rear sun visors and an instrument binnacle that moved with the adjustable steering wheel.
Porsche went their own way with the engine, too. At launch this was a 16 valve, 4.5 litre V8 M28 unit fitted with Bosch K-Jetronic fuel injection. The big V8 delivered 245bhp in European trim and prompted many to mutter ‘Oil crisis? What oil crisis?’
All this innovative and futuristic work was not lost on the automotive world at large, either, with the car picking up the 1978 European Car of the Year accolade. This was an award almost exclusively reserved for mainstream family cars, making this win all the more remarkable.
