When Porsche was weird, cheap and mid-engined: The Porsche 914

Birth

The car was developed jointly by Porsche and Volkswagen in the 1960s. At that time, Volkswagen and Porsche were facing a similar problem: They both needed a new entry-level model. Namely, they wanted to replace the Ghia and the 912 with a new one. At that time, according to the contract between Volkswagen and Porsche, Porsche was responsible for Volkswagen's development work. In order for Volkswagen to fulfill the agreement, they had to deliver one last car to Porsche. This eventually became the 914. It was planned to be sold with four- and six-cylinder engines. The four-cylinder versions would have carried the Volkswagen logo and the six-cylinder ones would have been launched with the Porsche logo. However, Porsche convinced Volkswagen to sell all versions as Porsches, because it would have caused Porsche a loss of prestige, especially in the American market. In Europe, however, it was sold as Volkswagen-Porsche.

During the development, the head of Volkswagen died. However, the next head, Kurt Lotz, had no intention of maintaining the current agreement with Porsche. He believed that if Porsche did not contribute to the development costs of the car, then Volkswagen should have the model. Thanks to this decision, the 914/6, the six-cylinder version, was doomed before it was even born. Simply because it cost almost as much as the cheapest 911 version, the 911T. A total of 3172 914/6s were built.

The interior, like much else on this car, is driver-centric. The engineers tried to make the car as affordable and enjoyable as possible. This is evident in the lack of two rear seats, the seats are low and the engine is in the middle. If that wasn't enough to make you smile, it's worth mentioning the suspension, which, together with the mid-mounted engine, further enhances the car's cornering ability.

Driving experience, or what made the 914 five-star

After turning the key and pressing the accelerator firmly, the boxer engine comes to life and settles down to idle after a confident growl. With each acceleration after a corner, it would be difficult to suppress a smile as the rpm rises. 3000, 4000, the clock continues to rise, already at 5000. Here we are close to the peak of the power curve, the engine becomes louder and louder and reaches the end of the rev counter. Here we grab the manual gear lever and after shifting into the next gear, we repeat this lifting process in this relatively small car. At such times, you can think that you have truly become one with the car, testing its limits, but also respecting them.

Successes and successor

The four-cylinder had a better fate. Porsche's most popular model at the time was the 914. More of it was sold than the 911. A total of 118.000 units. This number is not surprising, as it was very advanced for its time: 4 disc brakes were standard, and electric fuel injection was also available as an option.

We can confidently say that the Porsche 914 was a great success as an entry-level experience car. Even if the six-cylinder version did not perform well.

After 10 years of production, by 1976, sales of this model were nowhere near as high as when it was launched. This was largely due to the car being outdated. Customers often complained about the lack of equipment, so in 76, due to lack of sales, Volkswagen discontinued the car and introduced a new model, the 924.

Gedei Zalan