PORSCHE

968

The Porsche 968 was the final and finest evolution of the front-engined, water-cooled transaxle line that began with the 924 in 1976. Introduced in late 1991 for the 1992 model year, the Porsche 968 was claimed by Porsche to be around 80 percent new compared with the outgoing 944 S2, and notably moved production home to Zuffenhausen. Under the long hood sat a 3.0-litre 16-valve four-cylinder, at the time the largest-capacity production four-cylinder engine fitted to a modern car, producing 240 hp thanks to the debut of VarioCam variable valve timing, a technology that would spread across the entire Porsche range. Styled under Harm Lagaay with 928-inspired exposed headlamps, the 968 came as a coupe or cabriolet, with a six-speed manual or the Tiptronic automatic. The 1993 Club Sport stripped weight, lowered the suspension and became a modern classic in its own right, praised as one of the best-handling Porsches of its era, while the Turbo S, built in tiny numbers for homologation, is today a collector unicorn worth several hundred thousand dollars. Just 12,776 units of the 968 were built in Germany between 1992 and 1995, when slow sales ended the transaxle era; Porsche would not sell another front-engined four-cylinder sports car until the 718 arrived in 2016. Long undervalued next to the 911, the Porsche 968 is now firmly appreciating, with good cars averaging around US$30,000 and exceptional Club Sports and Turbos far beyond.