Sold: Porsche 944 Cabrio

The 944 was Porsche´s first step into real volume, based around its late 1970’s concept of a range of front-engined, water-cooled GT cars, 924, 944 and 928. It seems strange to contemplate now, but the rear-engine air-cooled 911 was regarded at the time as anachronistic, expensive to produce and limited in its appeal, so the front-engined route was a logical avenue to pursue.

Introduced in 1982, the Porsche 944 took the basic architecture of the 924, a well-executed and modern 3 door coupe, with gearbox mounted in a rear transaxle for perfect weight distribution and mated it with an engine which was pure Porsche. The 2.5 litre 4 cylinder 944 engine was unusually configured for its time but brilliantly executed, soon winning a volume following which the 911 could not achieve. As all Porsches, the 944 also acquired an enviable reputation for quality and reliability, which took Porsche into a volume market without scarificing its reputation for engineering excellence.

The cabriolet version was introduced only with the S2 version from 1989-1991, so produced in relatively small numbers (5.656 in total all markets). As such, the car benefitted from the later 3.0 litre 16 valve engine of the S2. This combined with a speedster look and revised gearing provided a car with excellent sports car performance which is sought after by modern afficionados.