Sometimes the latter versions of a car just don’t look as good. Sure, a Lamborghini Countach with the front and rear spoilers has a totally rad 1980s look, but it lacks the purity and simplicity of the original model. The same goes for the later C3 Corvettes. But that’s not the case with the Porsche 928, which the company calls its “first Gran Turismo.” Just look at our Pick of the Day, a 1994 Porsche 928 GTS posted on ClassicCars.com by a private seller in San Diego.
If there’s one car that represents Porsche as a whole, it’s the 911. But in the early 1970s, even that iconic model was in trouble, according to the automaker. “The Porsche and Piëch families had just withdrawn from the company. In the United States, Porsche’s biggest market at the time, legislators were discussing new crash-protection regulations. And the Porsche 911 was seen as obsolescent due to the stricter emissions and safety regulations on the horizon.”
Ernst Fuhrmann, the new chairman of the executive board, proposed something completely different: a front-engine car with a transaxle. Development of what would become the 928 started in February 1972. Instead of an air-cooled flat-six, engineers chose a water-cooled, 4.5-liter V8 and put it in the nose of a body made out of steel, aluminum, and plastic, capped at both ends with integrated polyurethane bumpers.
Although the size of the V8 grew over time, the basics of the 928’s formula lasted from its introduction in the 1978 model year to the end of its long run in 1995. Porsche released several versions of the 928 during that span, the last of which was the 1992–95 GTS. Despite the fact that the 928 came out in the late-1970s, the 1994 GTS shown here looks appropriate for its model year. Many earlier 928s have a sort of low-key coolness to them, but this GTS, with its flared haunches, 17-inch Cup wheels, and body-color rear spoiler, adds sports car style to the GT car package. It also comes with more power under the hood, where this four-speed automatic model’s 5.4-liter V8 pumps out 345 horsepower and 369 lb-ft of torque. Here’s another impressive number: 407—that’s how many 928 GTSs were brought to North America between the 1993-95 model years, according to Stuttcars.
The cabin offers Cashmere Beige leather seating for four and comes equipped with power-adjustable front buckets, power windows, power sunroof, and air conditioning. In place of the factory radio is a new Porsche Classic touchscreen infotainment unit with Bluetooth and navigation.
If you buy this 1994 Porsche 928 GTS for $99,500, you can use the navigation to guide you to fun, twisty roads where you can add to the low number (34,546 miles) on the odometer.
Click here to view this Pick of the Day on ClassicCars.com
