1988 Porsche 928 S4

Details

The Porsche story is a fascinating one and its roots go back to the 1930’s when Professor Ferdinand Porsche was instrumental in the design of the first Volkswagen and also Auto Union race cars. By 1939 he had built three Porsche cars to compete in the 800 mile race from Berlin to Rome. Unfortunately the race was cancelled due to the war and Porsche was forced to focus on supporting the German war effort, however, he had always wanted to build his own cars. In 1944 Porsche was forced to leave Stuttgart and he set up a small operation in Gmünd, Austria. Soon after the Porsche family and many of their engineers were captured and sent to jail. Ferdinand Porsche’s son. Ferdinand junior, or ‘Ferry’ as he was known, was released six months later and he returned to Gmünd to rebuild the family company. Things moved quickly and Porsche was involved with cars again and in mid-1948 the first Porsche 356 was built. It is understood Porsche built some 50 hand made aluminium bodied cars in their small factory at Gmünd before relocating back to Stuttgart, Germany. The rest they say is history as the 356 evolved into one of the most successful sports cars ever built. A hard act to follow indeed . . . but its replacement, the Porsche 911 went on to become a legend!

The evolution of the Porsche 911 is probably the greatest sports car story of all time. First introduced in 1963 at the Frankfurt Motor Show, and then designated as a 901, the successor to the 356 took the world by storm. To avoid conflict with Peugeot, who claimed exclusive rights to car names with three digits having a ‘zero’ in the middle, the car was renamed as 911. The first production 911 was built in 1964 and it was powered by an air cooled 1991cc 6 cylinder engine. The car evolved with increases in engine capacity to 2.2 litres, 2.4 litres, 2.7 litres, 3.0 litres and 3.3 litres. There were styling changes also, but one always recognised the car as a 911. Some 58 years later Porsche are still building the iconic 911 which is quite incredible!

Back in the early 1970’s Porsche were looking at options to replace the 911 (which obviously did not happen!). Sales were in decline and it was viewed that the 911 was nearing the end of its development. Porsche were thinking their new car should be a grand tourer, combining the creature comforts of a luxury saloon car with those of a true sports car. What ultimately evolved was the radical Porsche 928. Development was slow and the 928 was finally shown to the world at the 1977 Geneva Motor Show where it was an absolute sensation. The cars’ space age design was totally unique and the car was just fabulous to drive. In 1978 the Porsche 928 was awarded the coveted European Car of the Year Award which further proved to the world that Porsche’s new formula was a resounding success.

In 1980 Porsche introduced the 928S which featured a revised 4.7 litre V8 engine (the original car had a 4.5 litre V8 engine). Cosmetically the 928S wore a front and rear spoiler supported with wider wheels and tyres. The subsequent evolution of the 928 was the 928S2 (1982-1987), the 928S4 (1987-1993) and 928 GTS (1993-1994). It is widely understood that in total just over 61,000 Porsche 928’s were built from 1978 through until 1995.

A new arrival to Oldtimer Australia is this lovely 1988 Porsche 928 S4.

This is an Australian delivered, factory right hand drive example with automatic transmission. The car is finished in ‘grand prix white’ (colour code L902) with a ‘marine blue’ interior (code SX). It was delivered new with the following options: Australian delivery, RHD (option code C23), automatic transmission (option code 249), anti theft device (option code 533), air conditioner with improved efficiency & rear A/C (option code 570) and electric sliding roof (option code 650). The car’s build plate is dated December 87 and the Australian compliance plate is dated 02/88.

The service book confirms this car was delivered new on the 19^th February 1988 to its first owner, Mr David Weeks in Adelaide, South Australia. The car came to Brisbane, Queensland and its second owner in late 1992 / early 1993 with circa 35,000 km on the odometer. This 928 then found its way to Melbourne and passed through a few owners before finding its way back to Brisbane in early 2020. The car’s current owner is a multi Porsche owner and is incredibly fastidious with his cars. He purchased a fabulous car and immediately sent it to respected Porsche specialists DMH to ‘go though’. The car was treated to a major service, including: the cam belt was changed, new Michelin tyres were fitted, the bonnet struts were replaced, the air conditioning system was checked , the cigarette lighter was fixed (the car belongs to a non smoker), a new dip stick was fitted, the head light was adjusted and other electrical issues were rectified. In total $8,500 was spent on the car.

This car is incredibly original with only 131,412 km on the odometer. It presents and drives brilliantly.  The paintwork on this 928 looks to be original and is therefore exceptional for a 33 year old car. It carries a high gloss (it has been ceramic coated) and if you look really hard you will find the odd small stone chip, nick and scrape here and there. The external trim on a 928 is minimalistic to say the least, however, all of the glass, lenses, the rear spoiler and the wheels are in excellent condition. The panel gaps are perfect, confirming this to be a clean, straight car.

Inside the cabin this car is beautifully preserved and also exceptionally well presented. The dark blue upholstery is in excellent condition all round with no rips, tears or splits in the seats. The door cards are also in excellent condition, as is the steering wheel, centre console and the dash, which is often a weak point on these cars. The carpets and the ‘928 liveried’ door kick panels show minimal wear. All of the instruments and controls are crisp, clean and in working order. This car is fitted with a desirable electric sun roof, which works perfectly. The air conditioning also works well and blows cold air. Under the bonnet the engine bay is neat, clean and tidy.

This car looks great, but it drives even better. The thumping 5.0 litre V8 engine with four valves per cylinder starts with the first turn of the key. The engine has a terrific exhaust note that gives away that this car ‘means business’, but it does so in quite a refined way. On a cooler Brisbane morning we quickly had this 928S4 out on the open road where the car performed brilliantly. Make no mistake this is a beast. Porsche quoted the 928S4 has having a top speed of 270 km/hr and reaching 0-100 km/hr in less than 6 seconds. For now, we’ll just accept that as true, but what we do know is that the performance of this car is quite breathtaking. You get supercar performance in what is really a luxuriously appointed grand tourer! The driving position is excellent and you could really time warp back to 1988 and be doing an early morning high speed jaunt from Stuttgart to Hamburg for a lunch time meeting!

As with any car, the devil is in the detail, and this car retains all of its original tags and stickers. This car has an impeccable and fully documented service history, confirming it has been meticulously cared for throughout its life. There is an excellent history file, books, tools, space saver spare wheel and an air compressor that will accompany the car.

A picture says a thousand words and whilst this car looks fabulous in the photos we think it looks even better in the flesh. And, it is even better to drive!

Highlights:

• An Australia delivered, factory right hand drive, matching numbers example.
• Finished in the subtle but perfect colour combination of ‘grand prix white’ (colour code L902) with a ‘marine blue’ interior (code SX).
• A highly optioned car with the desirable electric sunroof.
• Full books and an excellent service history.
• This car is fully sorted and ready for its next keeper to use and enjoy.

Porsche 928’s offer a huge amount of car for the money and they are now sought after by enthusiasts and collectors. Good cars are hard to find and this example has to be one of the very best around.

 

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