A modern equivalent?

[sawood12]

I'm not disputing that Jap cars drive well, even though I've never owned one and driven very few I realise that they are very accomplished and focussed cars. The reason why i've got a 944 and not an RX8 or anything else Jap is because of the more touchy feely aspect that i've been alluding to. For me Jap cars are just consumer goods, like a kettle. They work perfectly fine, but leave me cold - I can't get excited about a kettle. Though a TT has vastly inferior driving dynamics to an RX8 it does have somehing the RX8 hasn't got, they sort of make you feel special, and because of that I'd have one over an RX8 any day. The only possible exception from the Jap stable is an MX5. Just my personal preference, that's all. I'm not trying to slate Jap cars, but for me any true successor to the 944 has to have these softer, subjective aspects. Anything too clinical just doesn't fit.

 

[Neil Haughey]

Well even some newer Jap cars have the odd aging effect on some plastic bits, they go shiny quickly but then don't seem to wear anymore for the next 20 years, very odd. Our MX-5 has some very cheap feeling components, having said that they don't seem to have a single mark on them or squeak after a year of use.

The single biggest difference between the 968 and the MX-5 is the feeling of weight and solidity in the Porsche. The modern MX-5 probably has a stiffer shell then any of our cars but it still somehow feels a lot less weighty and naturally noisier (it is actually a good 250 Kg lighter then 968 tiptronic) and I guess this could be interpreted in different ways. Underneath you can really see some big differences, they really went to town on that car to keep the weight down whereas the Porsche's have huge amounts of thick steel everywhere and very thick heavy underseal etc. None of that over-engineering is really needed for performance but I guess it does impact on the overall feel of the car and IMHO is a very clear difference with the Japanese cars, it does also of course go to some extent to explain the cost. I don't know what the modern Porsche's are like but I suspect they are much more like the modern Jap cars in all but name, these days you could save a huge amount of weight by using lots of plastic panels in place of steel and thick underseal everywhere.

 

[George Elliott]

Gents, I went through all this reasoning, yep Japaneese sports cars are excellent and it is a fact they have engineered a better 4WD layout than Porsche with what seems like a phenomenal Engine / transaxle / "pdk" gearbox unit. The Japaneese also taught Porsche how to manufacture efficiently - think about it the "efficient" Germans. Like Scott said, despite that logic - I still prefer the Porsche - for now.

My solution, - I opted for a new 944t with the Porsche marketing restrictive measures removed.
I havent read a better solution on this thread, I am frequently wrong, but I dont think so this time.

I say the answer to the true modern day equivalent is - a rebuilt 944t on a Perfectbore block. It has to be good for 200k miles and will hold its own on track.
Paul, Simon, thanks for Posting the pictures a few days back
I just need to find time to go and get it......

George

944t

 

[TTM]

ORIGINAL: George Elliott
The Japaneese also taught Porsche how to manufacture efficiently - think about it the "efficient" Germans.

I would think Porsche is an exception. It's not until the Boxster was introduced that they really started to shine in mass production - our cars were mass-produced by VAG who along with Mercedes were already building pretty bulletproof cars by the beginning of the 80s. I don't have figures but I'd struggle to believe Porsche were already producing as many cars as the other two by then.
So yes the finished product was already pretty "efficient" to begin with but by then it certainly did cost them a bit more to put it together right.