The Porsche revolution 40 years ago
08/12/2015
The editors of Road & Track have always had their nose in the wind. So when, around 40 years ago in January 1975, they orated about the upcoming Porsche 928 with drawings by Mark Stehrenberger, it was to be expected that there would be something to the story. However, more than three years passed after this article until the new Porsche could be presented at the Geneva Motor Show. And the engine in the front was not from Mercedes-Benz, as Road & Track had assumed, but from Porsche itself, although of course a V8 with the appropriate displacement would have been available in Sindelfingen. The 928 with its transaxle layout, which reminded the RT makers of the Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona, was expected for 1976.
Although Stehrenberger's drawings were pretty accurate, there were still some noticeable differences to the later "real" 928, such as the much more conventional lights at the front and rear and the much bulkier and more contemporary bumpers. The telephone styling of the rims could not be predicted either.
However, Road & Track was completely wrong with one prediction: "But surely it will survive the 911". As we know today, the bold design did not succeed. With the subordinate clause "there is no good reason to believe that the 911 doesn't have a few years ahead of it yet", the point was hit much better, but would anyone have guessed back in 1975 that the actually outdated "911" concept would survive to this day, while the modern 928 design was already laid to rest in 1995?
Of course, we already published a comprehensive report on the Porsche 928 years ago.
