8 Impact bumpers continue the 911 legend (1974)
The US influence on the 911’s history is so rich, one could almost compose a top 10 dedicated solely to Stateside matters involving Porsche’s premier sports car. While the Targa was created partly in response to that aforementioned Unsafe At Any Speed tome, further legislation passed in Congress in the early 1970s brought about another 911 evolution.
The Senate mandated that cars sold in the States needed impact bumpers that would withstand impacts at up to 5mph. This caused Porsche to rethink the styling of its 911 for the G-model cars of MY1974, and so the cars gained plastic impact bumpers at the front and rear, which resulted in a shortening of the front bonnet. The move was decried by purists at the time, who said the new additions brought a clunkiness to the 911’s otherwise flowing shape, characterised by black rubber bellows at the corners of each bumper, which some criticised as looking cheap.
However, the impact-bumper era would run for a staggering 15 years, from 1974 to the start of 964 production in 1989, and to this day is the era of 911 with the greatest longevity. The period saw quiet evolution rather than outright revolution of the 911’s story, and yet so much happened in the period, from the introduction of the mighty Turbo (more on that later), to the widebody 911, to the Cabriolet, all while the flat six grew in capacity from 2.7 to 3.2 litres, and became quicker, faster and more economical.
These days the impact bumper cars are revered by enthusiasts as the quintessential yet eminently useable classic, their star shining just as brightly today as when in production more than three decades ago. If Porsche hadn’t got this right when bringing the impact bumper to market in 1974, then the appeal of the 911 would have waned long before Porsche was thinking about 911 Cabriolets in 1982, or those sweet G50 gearboxes from 1986 to further enhance the 911’s performance repertoire.