Captain_Slow

They call the 928 "hard on the eyes"...then it gets better.

http://www.automobilemag.com/news/19...anamera-turbo/

GT6ixer

I was not quite old enough to remember it's debut and when I did start noticing cars, Pittsburgh in the early '80s wasn't exactly flush with soon-to-be-out-of-work steel workers cruising the streets in foreign exotics. But I can't imagine the the majority of those that saw a 928 in those earlier years thought it was hard on the eyes. Unlike the Panamera which was universally panned as an ugly duck

I​​​​​​ found this article trying a little too hard to make a connection between the two where beyond the front engined WCV8 there really is none. Two different cars targeted to different markets for their respective times. That being said if I had to only drive a Panamera Turbo for the rest of my days, I wouldn't complain...too much.

linderpat

Cool article Jon, and yes Nate, not too many exotics around then, although I remember going into Ted McWilliams VW/Porsche (Monroeville) at the time and just slobbering on the 928s. Thinking how wonderful it would be to have one someday. Beautiful then, even more so now.

Wisconsin Joe

. Yup. I don't recall any seriously negative comments on the appearance of the 928, while just about everyone thought the Panamera was "not all that appealing" in appearance.

Far more of a "see, they made ugly cars before" piece than an actual comparison. The Panamera is NOT the successor to the 928. In any way, shape or form.

Pretty poor article overall, IMO.

Ghosteh

You know what's hard on the eyes? The $183K price tag on the car that they just compared to a 40-year-old 928!

exc911ence

Jeremy Clarkson called the Panamera "The Elephant Man" in an episode of Top Gear... no one has ever called a 928 "The Elephant Man".

hwyrnr

I personally like the looks of the panamera. Yes I can see the comparison to our beloved 928 the way it is configured. Front engine V8 rear wheel drive and 4 seats. But to me the panamera looks more like a 4 door 911.

Captain_Slow

NO...but they have called it a "used bar of soap"

It isn't unusual for quality creative innovations (cars, food, music, etc. etc.) to not receive immediate appreciation, being somewhat of a challenge to comprehend in the beginning. The quality grows on you the more you experience it (e.g. the song you didn't like until you heard it for the 10th time and you still listen to it) and these become classics long after what was immediately fashionable has become dated or discarded completely. The 928 just gets better with age because we can now appreciate how amazing it was for its time. Few current "better" cars will be classic milestones of design and innovation (Tesla Model S comes to mind). Both the 928 and the Model S were/are controversial...but ultimately was/will be more influential on what would/will come after.

Last Saturday I volunteered to help install some fencing on community farm that provides employment for autistic and intellectually disabled adults. The owner of the farm is a BMW motorcycle guy, but he was curious about my 928. He said "Isn't that the one that looks so futuristic?.. even today, really...like a space ship?". I said "Yes...that's it."

SwayBar

I agree with the article - the 928 is hard on the eyes, and not too many people like them. At least that has been my experience of 15 years of ownership of a sweet black/can-can 5-speed S4.

The rear side windows are WAAAY too big making it look like a station wagon from the 3/4 rear view. The designers did such a good job with the front of the car, and then got lazy and utterly failed with its slab-sided, green-house rear.

'Futuristic' styling does not necessarily equate to looking good, at least it doesn't in this case. And this coming from someone who owns two of them - I like them for how they drive, not how they look.