8 cylinder front engine iconic vehicle
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By worf
#37922
One of my clients sent me this link this morning:

Car and Driver: Tested: 1992 German Sports Coupe Comparo.
https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/a3 ... e-numbers/

I have this article in its original glossy dead-tree form on a shelf but it’s been awhile since I’ve read it.

TLDR: The 928 wins. The 850 is *slow*

But, I will admit that the thread title is fake news. Writing that the “850 drools” in this context is like complaining about Bridget Bardot snoring a bit.
By JMW928
#38015
I still have this issue, too, along with their July 1990 issue containing their Road Test Review of a Guards Red 928GT.
By worf
#38025
JMW928 wrote: Sat Nov 28, 2020 9:10 pm... along with their July 1990 issue containing their Road Test Review of a Guards Red 928GT.
Years ago I went through my C&Ds looking for that issue. Wouldn't ya know it? THAT single issue was missing from ~84 to 2000+. No idea why. I think maybe I let my subscription lapse accidentally (had a lot going on in the first half of 1990.)
:banghead: :soapbox:
By Geza-aka-Zombo
#38975
Massive 12.7" rotors. Boy, times have indeed changed.
By Sazerac
#39041
Well, we are kind of preaching to the choir here, but the negatives about the 928 "ascetic cockpit and conspicuos roadsounds" are not negatives to me. As I recall, the 850 was one of those cars that started the over abundance of buttons on the dashboard.

I road in an 850 a number of times and never quite "got the concept." Maybe it's the 911 owners felt a similar way when the 928 came out? The M3 and the M5, I got. My father had a 528e in the middle of Illinois in the 80's and that qualified as an exotic and was rock solid. Would love to have the chance to drive some of those late 80s Ms.

Also, I have to say, it seems to me the 928 has aged much better than the 850 despite the fact that C/D reported back then that the 850 attracted more attention because of styling. Maybe it's just me?

PS: the 1990 June review of the 928 GT was well-written and spot on.
By worf
#39149
Sazerac wrote: Thu Dec 03, 2020 3:40 am... it seems to me the 928 has aged much better than the 850 despite the fact that C/D reported back then that the 850 attracted more attention because of styling. Maybe it's just me?
I agree and am reminded of:
Francis Bacon wrote: There is no excellent beauty that hath not some strangeness in the proportion.
I think it is the “strangeness” of the 928 that washes its beauty with timelessness.

Even today, nothing else looks like it and it took no cues from other Porsches of the day.

Whereas the 850 is clearly a BWM with “period” BWM cues. Since nothing came after the 928 there is no context in which a ‘new’ one can be compared to an ‘old’ one. And while as of a decade ago modern Porsches have quite a bit of 928 in their faces and asses, the evolution took long enough that most people have forgotten the 928.

PS: the 1990 June review of the 928 GT was well-written and spot on.
I didn’t find it on the C&D site. Or are you saying that you snuck over to my basement bookshelf in 2009 and that’s why I can’t find my copy? :soapbox:
Last edited by worf on Thu Dec 03, 2020 7:16 pm, edited 1 time in total.
By Sazerac
#39281
Ha, ha, the quote from Francis Bacon was super. I will use that some time!

I sent you a PM with an attachment that you may be interested in. :-)
By linderpat
#39334
I've never been a Beemer fan. Of course they are great cars, I just don't care for them. Or Mercedes Benz either. Porsche Audi for me.
By worf
#39369
linderpat wrote: Thu Dec 03, 2020 10:17 pm I've never been a Beemer fan. Of course they are great cars, I just don't care for them. Or Mercedes Benz either. Porsche Audi for me.
I really enjoyed the E34 5-series. The E39 was good too but was starting to get 'cushy.' I have similar opinions of the 3-series generations of that time.

But, by the mid-90s it was apparent that the BMW marketing / product management teams were listening to focus groups consisting of status conscious soccer moms rather than "drivers." Today's BMWs have more in common with today's GM/Lexus sedans than they do with their original roots.

The C&D review of the 928GT (thanks @Sazerac) reminds me that today's cars are all smart phones on a couch for the most part.

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