The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course. Consider the case of Ferdinand Porsche. His first automotive dabblings were with electric cars and petrol-electric hybrid cars, and more than 120 years later, look where we've all ended up.
He was keen on front-wheel-drive cars, too, which might seem a strange fit for a man who went on to design a number of immensely successful front-engined, rear-wheel-drive racing cars for Mercedes-Benz, and whose name went on - via the KdFWagen and VW Beetle, and through the whole 911 line - to be, for a huge chunk of time, synonymous with rear-engined, rear-wheel-drive cars.
So were we surprised by this front-engined, rear-wheel-drive 928 bearing his name when it hit the streets in 1978? You bet we were. If it wasn't its voluptuous shape that had us reeling, it was the notion of Porsche finally throwing the towel at the age-old, tail-heavy 911 (as it was then planning to do) and giving us in its place a GT of infinite grace and impeccable manners.
All in, it was a marvellous car. It looked terrific, it was quick, it handled brilliantly and it rode delightfully on what was then the best sticky, wide and low-profile tyre available, the Pirelli P7. It even won the 1978 Car of the Year award, which was quite something for a sporting, aspirationally priced premium car.
Further joy was beholden when we opened the bonnet and found an all-new, all-alloy, liquid-cooled V8. Initially of 4.5 litres, the fuel-injected V8 produced 237bhp, and the drive went via a five-speed manual gearbox or optional Mercedes-sourced three-speed auto. That front engine was set quite a way back, too, and at the other end, balancing it out and linked via a torque tube, was a transaxle.
Esta historia es de la edición August 31, 2022 de Autocar UK.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición August 31, 2022 de Autocar UK.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
Poster car that went from rusty to trusty
One evening, two years ago, George Pappas was being driven down his local high street by a mate and mulling over whether to replace his Mk4 Golf diesel, a recent purchase that was boring him to death, when his girlfriend, also in the car, spotted an old BMW 3 Series at the side of the road with a 'for sale' sign in the window.
THE SEVEN-SEATER THAT VOLVO DARE NOT KILL OFF
The current-gen XC90 has been on sale since 2015 for good reason
GENESIS ELECTRIFIED G80
Where the story begins, in the Hyundai premium marque’s luxury saloon
LEXUSLBX
Can you shrink premium quality to fit an SUV this small? We now know
Rolls boss ready to 'define the next chapter'
Nine months into the job, Rolls-Royce CEO and car guy Chris Brownridge tells STEVE CROPLEY what he's learned and where the firm's heading
Once more, with feeling
AC Cars' recreation of the classic MkII Cobra is at first glance a faithful facsimile of a 1960s performance benchmark. SIMON HUCKNALL drives it
MERCEDES-BENZ CLE
Does a PHEV set-up work in a coupé that exudes such old-school vibes?
ANALOGUE SUPERSPORT
Lotus Elise specialist uprates 1990s icon with an eye on track days
ALPINE A290
The hot hatch is alive and well, and living in France. On both road and track, there's much to savour`
UK HANGS ON TO OLD CARS
Average car age climbs as high prices dampen demand for new models