Luis de Prat

The prototype in your pic was Harm Lagaay's original design before Rudolf Leiding, head of VW-Audi suggested a number of changes, which included the tail lights, making them "very tidy, with neatly integrated lamps and a complete absence of superfluous ornament," according to Porsche connoisseur, Michael Cotton.

We're still talking 1974! I can't find another contemporary car with similar tail lights, and definitely not Volvo. BTW, the tail lights were Hella, not Bosch.

tifosiman

Okie Dokie, sorry about the Bosch misnomer. That was hella of a mistake there.

Techno Duck

alex

Sorry Voith, the 968 back end is one of the best looking ever. EVER!

centerpunch

Voith

hehe we shure don't agree here.. I think its one of the uglyest ever..

that polyester crap is terrible.. but ok, its the matter of taste.

I see it like someone would glue some ugly peace of plastic to some girl's fantastic shaped ***.

V2Rocket

the 944 back end is just too squarish looking. the lines of the car are great from the nose all the way to the rear corner, and then things get kind of blehhh

i second the motion of the 968 rear end on a 944/951 body. it would blend well together imo.

as for modernizing the rear end i think the best thing you can do would be to put a euro-looking rear bumper and get rid of the US-spec impact shelf.

Nicole

You have to remember that at the time these cars were designed, nobody could make these large tail light assemblies as we saw them later on the 968 or 928 S4.

There are early drawings of the 928 with the S4 tail lights, but Wolfgang Möbius, the lead designer of the 928, explained to the German 928 club that it was impossible to get those made at the time. Why? I don't know...

Also, few ideas you'll see will ever be entirely new. Usually they are based on some other idea - either improved or combined with something else. This applies very much to automotive design, which is rather evolving than revolutionizing (no matter how hard the advertisements want us to believe that).

So, enjoy the 944 and its tail lights for what they are - and if you don't like them, you can always replace the amber segment with a clear piece. I've sold a few of those in the meantime...

Or you can change cars. But that would be blasphemy for most rennlist users, wouldn't it?

Nicole

You make a good point here! But you have to consider the financial abilities of Porsche at the time versus the tooling cost. They had lots of great ideas in the late 80ies, which they just could not afford to put into production. They'd rather put their money into engineering than cosmetics. In fact, it's always been that way at Porsche.

It's only since WW took over that they have enough money for regular face and butt lifts every three years...

alex

Yeah, like our awesome 70s rear suspension!

gstein

Simply put, I'm a designer. However, I have a deep interest in in the engineering aspects considered in design. This is my attempt at balancing the formalist approach to evaluating design while considering the functional attributes within the 944 tail light dilemma....

I'm not sure if we're arguing the logistics or the aesthetics here. It is impossible for me to say whether or not the tail lights were inspired by any specific approach to tail light design. What is of much more importance and interest to me is whether or not they were designed well. This is my evaluation.

I am certain the 944 tail lights function very well at performing the simple task of illuminating a surface and controlling electronics to convey braking and turning. (I know this is difficult for the racing guru's to understand, but laws govern that we acknowledge the people behind us.)

So, now that functionality is quickly swept to the side, I will consider the more difficult element of form....
In terms of design the tail lights do not stand alone as a finished work and are a small piece of a much larger piece of art, the 944. If the small pieces fit intricately into the design and become essential components of the finished product than both the small piece, and the entire work are successful. The 944, has distinguishing characteristics, but as a whole, it is brutish with a touch of elegance (makes me think of James Bond). It has heavy stance and strong lines carrying its entire length. The curves are all contained within sharp edges which further its muscular appearance. The tail lights sit easily within the creases of the sturdy body and further the appearance of strength with a bit of refinement. My opinion is that the design was successful, whether or not it was inspired by anything. Your opinion of your lights also reflect on your opinion of your car so consider the whole while you make judgments on its pieces.

Best Regards Good Night,
Benjamin Goldstein

MyBlackCar

I would not be surprised with similarites. Lotus is esentially a rolling parts bin for accessories from other manufacturers (Stevens version Lotus Esprit had Toyota Corolla rear lights).

judd944

I sold this for a friend about 6 months ago. neat car. Like the 944 much more!

This car is a 1977.

nh7cy

Further that fact, I was sitting in Wendy's eating my lunch one day when some kid and his friends were looking at my car. The loudest one in the group (apparently thinking he was a car genius) stated very matter of factly to his friends, "yeah thats a lotus, my friends dad has one and it looks just like that".

Needless to say I nearly choked on my Dr. Pepper.

I too love the 951/front end 968 rear end combination but I'd rather the 968 rear had 928 tail lights..

The 951 front end makes the car look like it just came off the track IMO.

rickb20

I may be wrong, but isn't there a cover over the tail lights on the red car? They look to be exactly the same tail lights. Look at the outline where the tail light cover is and you'll see that it's the same shape as the lens on the white car. It's almost as if they intended to make the car ugly.

In fact, the whole car looks like a heavily clad/disguised test mule. Looks to me as if everything from the door back is covered with pieces that were tacked on to disguise the true appearance. The roof line of both cars is identical, as is the line of the top edge of the door windows. This sort of thing is commonly done to throw off the competition and to preserve the surprise element when a new car is introduced.

Here's an example of this same concept on a modern day Porsche:
http://www.worldcarfans.com/6061027....anamera-latest

I'm not certain of my theories above and welcome other opinions.