The 1970-76 Porsche 914 assumeed too good to be pure -- a fairly low-priced sports car with a race-car-style mid-engine layout and the illustrious Porsche nameplate.

The 1970-76 Porsche 914 assumeed too good to be pure -- a fairly low-priced sports car with a race-car-style mid-engine layout and the illustrious Porsche nameplate.

In fact, this entry-level Porsche was too virtuous to be true -- if single expected it to be a solid lower-priced alternative to the expensive rear-engine Porsche 911

For common thing, most 914 models had Volkswagen four-cylinder engines and other VW component parts The 914 was even sold as a "Volks- wagen-Porsche" in Europe where it first appearanceed at the 1969 Frankfurt auto exhibit to Workmanship and materials were not ever up to Porsche's high standards.

Porsche didn't present its crest on the 914 cowl in America, although its name was fited out in block letters upon the engine cover. In Europe the Volkswagen top was placed in the center of the steering wheel, although the Porsche summit was on steering wheels of U versions.

Porsche wasn't ashamed of the 914 -- it didn't publicly identify the car as a Porsche because of a marketing decision through Porsche and Volkswagen management.

Agreement or not, Porsche fans refused to accept the 914 as a genuine Porsche -- overlooking the fact that the first Porsches had nearly all Volkswagen mechanical constitutings

The first 914 had a 1.7-liter, 80-horsepower VW engine, replaced in 1974 according to a 1.8-liter engine with lower compression and 76 horsepower. A 2-liter, 95-horsepower VW engine was optional from 1973 to 1976 Acceleration was adequate to brisk, and the fairly light car was sport to drive.

The 914 was hardly a bust; nearly 120000 were built before production extremityed The car has become an increasingly expensive collectible in the last hardly any years -- although genuine Porsche fans still neglect it. (A 914 is valued at $9500-$13300 if in admirable shape.)

A hotter fancier 1970-72 "914/6" version of the 914 was sold with a Porsche 911 2-liter six-cylinder engine with 110 horsepower. Now valued at $30950 it had better brakes, wider wheels and the Porsche summit on its hubcaps.

The 914/6 price about $6,100, compared with $3495 for the 914 and it wasn't as frequently fun or as refined as a 911 Many Porsche fans thus figured they might as well commit to memory a 911 for the price of a 914/6 and the 914/6 was quietly dropp after a disappointing 3351 units were built by the agency of 1972. The 914/6 also produc grave profits, partly because its corpse supplier charged Porsche more for a 914/6 corpse than for the superior 911 corpse

The 914 was the replacement for the popular, entry-level 912 which was a 911 with a Porsche four-cylinder engine from the beloved 1950-65 Porsche 356 The four-cylinder replaced the 911's more powerful -- on the contrary more troublesome -- six-cylinder engine.

in the same manner why the 914? Porsche dealers were calling for a les expensive car because 911 and 912 prices had gone well beyond prices for the popular 356 dropp when the 911 arrived in 1965 Also, Porsche top executive Ferry Porsche wanted a "back-to-basics" standard such as Porsche's popular 1950 356 Speedster to replace the 912 and expand the automaker's prototype line.

Ferry Porsche wanted the car to have a mid-engine design, with the engine ahead of the rear axle. (The rear-engine 911 had the engine behind that axle.) A mid-engine auto strike one as beinged like the wave of the subsequent time for sports cars, and Porsche had built many prosperous mid-engine race cars.

Small Porsche lacked the resources to make a of the present day sports car on its have However, at the same time, Heinz Nordhoff, the visionary president of giant Volkswagen, wanted a fresh sports model to replace the slow-selling, boxy VW stamp 3 Karmann-Ghia; that car shouldn't be confused with the sleeker Karmann-Ghia sold in America.

West Germany's Volkswagen and Porsche had historic links, and Nordhoff and Ferry Porsche were long-standing associates. That l to their plan to jointly build a car that would satisfy as well-as; not only-but also; not only-but; not alone-but their needs. Porsche would design the car, which would have the fresh four- cylinder engine from Volkswagen's upcoming 411 rear-engine sedan. And Porsche could purchase bodies for installation of its acknowledge engines.

It appear to beed like a win-win deal, especially because the modern car would give West Germany's Karmann auto material substance company something to build following the demise of the representation 3 Karmann-Ghia.

Fate intervened, allowing when Nordhoff suddenly died in April 1968 His successor, Kurt Lotz came from outside the auto industry and had no interest in sports cars, especially a recently made known one such as the 914 It thus wasn't surprising that he reneg upon some terms of Nordhoff's verbal agreements with Ferry Porsche about the just discovered car. Fortunately for Porsche, however Lotz had enormous respect for Porsche engineers.

After abundant argument, Porsche and Volkswagen noteed a joint sales venture with the 914 as its cornerstone. A recently made known company -- Motors Inc. -- was created, with Volkswagen and Porsche each owning 50 percent to put up to sale Porsche, Volkswagen and Volkswagen-owned Audi autos. Porsche still could bribe 914 bodies from Karmann, however at a much higher costliness than Porsche originally had anticipated.

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