Why Was One Of Porsche's Best Cars A Flop? Porsche 928 S4

Porsche designed a brilliant car, then watched as everyone bought their old, outdated 911 instead.. The 928 was supposed to take Porsche into the future, it handled, it was luxurious and comfortable but it totally failed to sell in the numbers needed by Porsche. IS there a hidden reason that this car failed as a commercial project for Porsche?
This Amazing Porsche Was Killed By Its Flawed Older Brother - Why? Porsche 928 S4

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[Number]

Thank you to Bidding Classics! Go and check out the website to see what’s listed right now!

[pooroldnostradamus]

The chicken was still warm and my dad was still alive...

[SkysaxonDragonslayer]

A friend of mine owned an S4 which I was allowed to drive quite often and he described the 928 this way:
The speed of a Ferrari - the comfort of a Bentley and the reliability of a Mercedes Diesel.
I think he nailed the character of the 928

[tomlanigan]

As an ex-928 owner of 11 years, who has become tired of 928 reviews for their lazy, hackneyed "911 replacement failure" retoric, I was so pleased to hear something balanced, fresh, and meaningful.
Of course, I should have known better. The Number 27 channel has evolved into a genuinely interesting and thoughtful place to hear about great cars from the 70s/80s and beyond.
Oh, and I sure do miss that starter sound before the V8 fires into life.
Thanks again, Jack.

[superseven]

I always remember what Jeremy Clarkson said about the 928 getting him from London to the Midlands to see his father in hospital before he passed away and that a 928 would always have a special place is his heart because of that.

[BertramSFegg]

As a 928 S4 owner, I think that was a very fair and balanced review.

It was a much more complex history than just replacing the 911. Everytime someones tells that story, God kills an IMS bearing.

It was also because Porsche corporately needed to have a GT to sit alongside the 911. It needed to broaden it's model base to compete with Mercedes, Jaguar and Aston.

They are superbly reliable but they punish a neglectful owner.

Remember, it is a digital car from an analogue age.

How many 80's supercars can you do a tip run in?

[MOCT]

It may be difficult to imagine now, but I clearly recall seeing a 928 for the first time in 1981. And seriously, it looked like it had arrived from another planet, such was its visual impact and presence.
A few years later and I drove one - I loved it.

[freerkderuiter]

As much as I like 911's, the 928 has a special place in my heart. I was lucky enough to have met Tony Lapine on a number of occasions. He had a dark blue 928 at the time which was replaced by one in Riviera Blue. To my eyes the 928 is one of the most beautiful cars ever built, with road manners to match.

[TheNoisyNinja]

The 928, especially the S4, was one of my favourite cars as a young kid. Such a beautifully designed car, and still looks good today.

[fishbert]

I’ve always liked how the 928 looks, and I think it has aged very well

[mdgz]

I grew up when the 928 was brand new, so to me it always represented peak Porsche, and the 911 looked like some old anachronism. They also did a brilliant job of matching the styling across the 924/944/968 with the 928 so it looked like a well thought out family of cars. I think a point you missed about relative success of these cars was the price point - they were a *lot* more expensive than the 911 I seem to recall, and at the end of production, the GTS models were seriously expensive.

[ScottOmatic]

I own an 5-speed S4 but that's mostly irrelevant to my following comment:

You really hit the nail on the head with what it meant to be a GT car 40 years ago and comparing that description to now. Back then a GT was something different and mostly separate from a sportscar. If a car company built a grand tourer, it was expected to have a smooth ride, have a quiet cabin, be comfortable, have appointed amenities, and while still having high performance but with some of it's sporting ability expected to be sacrificed in order to meet those GT requirements.

Now days, most GT cars are often called sportscars with the terminology between the two often overlapping. Where if you went by the old standards, only a few modern cars like the Mazda Miata MX-5 Alfa 4C, Lotus Elise, and some other smaller and less practical vehicles really still fit that original sportscar category, yet hardly anyone talks about the "sportscar" nearly becoming extinct in the modern age. Indeed, the modern 911 has become more of a Grand Tourer than the 928 ever was, and comparably, the 928 is more of a sportscar than what most modern "sportscars" are. Cheers.

[markplain]

My uncle had one. He commented that it felt nothing like a "super car" - it felt BETTER. This was a relaxing car to drive on a daily basis. It was everything comfortable, quite and yet ferociously powerful when it needed to be. For me in the 1980s this was a mind blowing design. Today I see why - they simply incorporated the bumper into the design which was space age concept at the time.

[keepyourbilsteins]

Thanks for sharing. The secondary market here in the States really demolished the 928's reputation. Indy Porsche mechanics didn't want to service them, the dealer network was prohibitively expensive, so many of the cars ended up in the hands of those willing, but sadly incapable of servicing them correctly. I work at a garage that services and repairs them and many are suffering from acute cases of PMS (previous mechanic syndrome). When allocated an adequate budget and resources to bring them back to spec, they are superlative.

[MacsMachines]

My GT has done 250k too and still flies…GT variant had hotter cams, harder suspension and a 959 based electronic diff, it’s a proper drivers car I absolutely love mine (nice video Jack).

[scottdelong]

I remember a 928 (it must've been the S4) commercial of the late 80s that impressed me deeply. It begins with a shot of the cockpit, slightly aft of the driver's perspective. The view through the windshield appears to be a featureless salt lake similar to Bonneville in Utah. A driver enters the car, attaches his seatbelts, and starts the ignition. The car sounds understated but powerful. If I remember correctly, he turns on the radio.

He floors it. The sound increases but you can still hear the radio. The tach and speedometer, along with the pitch of the engine, all increase rapidly. But what is most impressive is the lack of drama. The car hits 176 MPH and you can still hear the radio. The driver backs off, eases the car to a stop, and turns off the radio. Impressive!

[bicyclist]

For me the 928 has always been my dream car since the early 80's. It was love at first sight. I still get excited every time I see one. I still hope to own one some day. Great review. Thank you.

[wolffgramm]

I owned a 928 S and still feel sad that I sold it. What a machine. It felt like being in a plane with the cockpit and mid tunnle lay out. The ever prescence engine murble. I loved it and feel previliged I once owned it and have nothing but good memories about it !

[fairmont___d]

A small point. The comparison photo of the S4 and the S side by side, actually showed the S4 and the original 928. The S had a front and (smaller than the S4's) rear spoiler and the side protection strips as well as the (obviously unseen) bigger 4.7 engine (up from 4.5). Great video though. Cheers.

[TheCatLady]

My dad had one of these! What a lovely car to drive. He wouldn't let my mom or my sister drive his Porsche, but for some reason he was okay with me taking it for a spin :)