LIFE BEGINS AT 40
PORSCHE 928 GTS
They say life begins at 40. For the Porsche 928, it could be argued that its current life, as a genuinely treasured modern classic, really started about five years ago.
Until then the 928, like all front-engined Porsche, had been seen as niche-interest machines by enthusiasts; after all, the 911 is no longer just a car – it’s a religion.
Perhaps in part because of that – and the rampaging growth in value for even the shabbiest of air-cooled 993s – that focus turned to the 928. Time was when you could buy a relatively roadworthy 928 S4 for £5000. Now that’ll just get you a basket case, and that’s if
you’re lucky.
Other than the super-rare ClubSport, of which 24 were made, the top of the 928 value tree is taken by the last-of-the-line manual GTS. Just 45 of these made it to the UK, and as a result you’re looking at £63,000 for this 110,000-mile example, which is up for sale with Tech9 (tech9.ms) in Hale, Liverpool. You can pick up a similar-miles automatic GTS for £15k less. ( Ed: It is believed only two manuals made it to Oz.)
That’s a lot of money, and a big price differential. But can the 928, equipped with a manual gearbox, finally deliver the hardcore supercar driving experience those timeless looks always promised?
A heavy clutch. A very warm cabin. Heavy steering. The 928 GTS certainly feels like a
supercar from where I’m sitting, which is in one of Liverpool’s clogged arteries.
There are other things that scream supercar – the low, wide stance, and the wonderful pop-up headlamps. There’s a five-speed gearshift to my left and a long-travel accelerator pedal connected to a 350bhp 5.4-litre V8. Supercar numbers spring to mind, too – 171mph all out and 60mph a memory after 5.4 seconds.
Despite all that, I have plenty of space, even if I’m someway north of 6ft 5in. The interior is an early-1990s mixture of soft-touch, restrained grey leather, far removed from the bonkers colour schemes in older 928s. I love the chunky teutonic switchgear, and the swooping dashboard.
As we move gently through traffic, it doesn’t sound aggressive. There’s a light whine from the engine and the transmission as the car follows orders through rush-hour traffic, smoothly. For the GTS, Porsche fitted eight balance weights rather than the normal six to enhance smoothness.
This isn’t accidental. Despite experimenting with the stripped-out ClubSport (only left-hand drive) and the mildly more sporty SE for the UK, the 928 was all about luxury – and without that motorsport credibility it’s easy to see how the 911 legend grew while the 928 faltered. The fact most 928s are automatics is probably another key factor.
Beneath my feet are three pedals, and to my left, a gear lever with five forward ratios to play with, arranged in racey dogleg formation. Reverse is directly in front of first, which makes city driving a focusing experience. And for all the crying and moaning about automatic cars being inferior, it turns out the gearchange is a bit notchy and vague. Well, to begin with…
As speeds start to rise there are other issues to note – for a luxury GT there’s plenty of road noise, despite the extra soundproofing. The suspension is firm, though my back doesn’t protest too much. And though this is a big, heav y car, there’s little body roll. When the car does begin to tip, it’s controlled and taut. My mind starts to wander – just what is the GTS trying to be? Hardcore supercar or refined GT?
We have to put it into wider Porsche context. The 928 was always an outsider, right from the beginning, but as the years progressed the price kept growing. By the end of the line, the 928 GTS was the most expensive Porsche you could buy,
and launched into a crippling global recession and a growing worldwide appreciation of all things green.
All big-engined, expensive luxury cars struggled. Ferrari was offering keen discounts on the Testarossa, BMW canned the M8 and a Mercedes-Benz supercar, which had been in the offing for so long, disappeared. Porsche itself was in crisis – CEO Peter Schutz, the saviour of the 911, had bet the farm on the US market.
The financial heart attack of the late ‘80s tore through the sales charts and by the end of 1987 Schutz was gone. For the 928, which had become the most expensive mainstream production Porsche, this was a disaster.
From a production high of 24 cars a day in ‘88, just two or three 928s rolled out into the Stuttgart air each shift just a couple of years later. Aggressive price increases didn’t help – the cost of a 928 S4 grew £5000 in the space of a year – and the first Gulf War further dented sales.
Upon ref lection, it’s a surprise that the model actually survived past the GT of 1990. But it is a credit to Porsche that its engineers persisted with the concept.
For 1991’s GTS, there was now 5397cc to play with, and new, lightweight pistons with forged conrods and a brand-new Bosch ECU. The clutch, now with its own oil cooler, was beefed up to deal with the extra horsepower and 369lb-ft of torque. The electrically controlled limited-slip differential continued from the GT, but there was a new power-steering system, ABS, 332mm vented disc brakes and Brembo four-pot calipers.
On the outside, wider rear wheelarches add 55mm to the car’s width, to accommodate
255/40 ZR17 tyres, that are tightly wrapped ped around five-spoke Cup alloys. s.
As I catch sight of the car in the last few windows before I finally ally get out of the urban sprawl, all this s looks great. Porsche had always intended d for the 928 to be timeless, which is why it didn’t follow any 1970s trends.
But freshly promoted Porsche chief designer Harm Lagaay’s additions do not detract from the original shape. Unlike some other long-lived cars, which suffer almost Donatella Versace-levels of iff y nips and tucks, the 928 looks resolved, taut, aggressive and yet at the same time restrained.
So while the 928 could only exist at the luxury end of the Porsche spectrum, you get the sense the engineers wanted the 928 to go out with a bang. Porsche itself called it polishing a diamond. But for me it hasn’t sparkled so far, but then…
The national speed limit sign appears like a lightning-bolt prompt from a higher power. I plant the throttle in second and with a mighty, angry bellow, the 5.4-litre instantly rips off its cloak of civility. Those 369lb-ft course through the car from as low as 2800rpm and they don’t give up until 6600rpm, the engine roaring away like a pitched-down wasp. There are no cliffs in that surge – it’s a pure, linear pull towards the horizon, a tractor beam from the imminent future tightly ensconcing the elegantly curved nose.
Up across the gate into third, which seems so much easier now that we’ve turned the volume up to 11, and it
begins again. We’re really travelling now, the exhaust delivering a salvo of bass-heav y baritone fury as the revs rise sharply in tandem with the speedometer. For all its luxury, the interior tingles with theatre as the engine wills you on to the red line. At the top of third you’ll be worrying about cameras, and by the time you get to the top of fourth you’ll need a good law yer.
But there’s more to the GTS than simply straight-line thump. The steering, though still very heav y (a 928 trait), gives you enough feedback to trust what’s rushing beneath the 225/45 R17 rubber up front.
It’s no Lotus, but it’s a big improvement on the slightly numb-feeling S4. And if you put your faith in the GTS, it rewards with fantastic grip – you’ll find yourself reeling off bends at eye-popping speed, the GTS shrugging off apices with nonchalance.
That’s mainly down to the Weissach rear axle, which was pioneered with the 928. It’s a variation on the semi-trailing arm suspension theme, but instead of a front pivot bushing there is a short link, which pulls back the wheel when the car slows, keeping everything stable.
You’re also blessed with perfect 50/50 weight distribution, and the rear LSD sticks you to the road so well the GTS could almost be four-wheel drive. While you can feel the rear becoming light in extremis, this really isn’t the car for tail happy slides. The 928 was always great at long, sweeping A-roads but tighter turns are breezed through with precision; even smoother B-roads hold no fear. Well, nearly – that harsh ride can rob confidence over lumpier terrain, but this is all about lightning point-to-point speed. And if it all becomes a bit too much, those big stoppers up front will have you head butting the screen if you’re not careful.
As we head back to Tech9’s base, the adrenalin draining from my system in time to the hot oil ticking off even warmer metal, it’s time to take stock. The day started with a confused car, a surly one at that. Just a few hours later and I’m in love.
Sure, it’s not perfect and at low speeds it’s a bit of an unwieldy brute. But push those revs higher, get that epic power plant singing and show it some bends and it’s clear that this isn’t just a 928 in fancy lingerie. It really is a supercar.
MODERN CLASSICS VIEW
Some of you may not see the sense of a £60,000-plus 928, especially if your first love is a 911. After all, a similarly priced 996 Turbo offers more autobahn annihilation and a 996 GT3 delivers more hardcore cornering action. But compare its contemporary 911 Turbos (the 964 and 993), which can cost up to twice the price in this current market, and the 928 GTS approaches something of a bargain.
That’s the wrong comparison to make, frankly. While forced induction has its own pleasures, the 911s are different beasts altogether. You don’t get the same sense of luxury, and nor do you get the heart-thumping glow that comes from hitting the peaks of a naturally aspirated 5.4-litre V8. Most importantly, the 928 appeals because it’s simply not a 911.
Does the manual gearbox really warrant the exceptional price premium over the automatic? On rarity terms, yes – you have just 45 UK cars to choose from. But it also stacks up as an experience.
As good as an automatic 928 is, human-shifting transforms the car into something approaching what it should have been from the start. It should have been the icon, the rallying call for a new era of Porsche. The 928 GTS is a fascinating glimpse of what could have been.
“I PLANT THE THROTTLE AND THE 5.4 RIPS OFF ITS CLOAK OF CIVILITY”