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User:Kumboloi/sandbox/Porsche 914

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History

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Antecedents

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Porsche 914 at right and the car it replaced at the top of VW's line, the Type 34 Karmann Ghia, at left

In 1966 Volkswagen (VW) built almost 1.5 million automobiles and reported net profits of DM300,000,000.[1]: 238  By 1967 however domestic sales had fallen to 370,000 units. 1967 Germany was in a recession, and the inventory of Beetles was not selling. Political pressure was building on VW's Managing Director Heinrich Nordhoff to make changes at the company. Finance Minister Franz-Josef Strauss accused VW of producing "too many cars and too few ideas", and, more pointedly, "the wrong models"."[2] Under Norfhoff VW had launched the VW Type 3 in 1964, and would introduce a revised Type 2 in 1967 and the Volkswagen 411 in 1968. Next would be a replacement for the range-topping but slow-selling Type 34 Karmann Ghia coupé.[3][4]

The mid- to late-1960s was also when several moderately-priced mid-engined sports cars were launched, including the Lotus Europa in 1966, the Matra 530 in 1967, and the Ferrari Dino 206GT in 1968. While Porsche had a long history of mid-engined cars, production of their expensive, race-bred 904 model stopped in 1965. Ferry Porsche was considering an expansion of Porsche's product line with a less costly model, as the recently launched 911 had pushed Porsche's cars into a much pricier stratum, and the entry-level four-cylinder 912 was not significantly less expensive to either build or buy.

Volkswagen and Porsche had a long-standing corporate relationship. Ferdinand Porsche designed the original Kdf-wagen. After World War II, in an agreement negotiated between Ferdinand Porsche and Nordhoff in the late 1940s, Porsche agreed to forego developing complete cars similar to the Volkswagen for any customer other than VW in exchange for a royalty on every Beetle built and distribution rights to Volkswagen cars to Austria. Porsche also became Volkswagen's principal development office, executing 60 projects for the larger company until the mid-nineteen-sixties. That post-war agreement had been negotiated by Heinz Nordhoff and Ferry Porsche, so the two men's business relationship likewise stretched back many years. There was also a familial relationship between the two, as Nordhoff's youngest daughter Elisabeth had married Ernst Piëch, the eldest son of Anton Piëch, who's wife Louise Piëch|Louise]] was Ferdinand Porsche's daughter.

1948. 60 commissions. VW-Porsche Vertriebsgesellshaft.[5]Long, Brian (2 May 2004). Porsche 911 1971-1977. Veloce Publishing. p. 27. ISBN 978-1903706329.</ref>

5 Deutschmark royalty. 1949. Ferry Porsche and Heinz Nordhoff.[6]

17 September 1948. Ferry Porsche and Heinz Nordhoff. 5 Deutschmarks and parts. Mid-60s mid-engine cars, mentions Miura, 530, Europa, Dino. Two models, four-cylinder VW, six-cylinder Porsche. Pages 30, 31 January 1969, two companies. VG and Porsche+Audi.[7]Smith, Roy (1 December 2016). Porsche - The Racing 914s. Veloce Publishing. p. 36, 37. ISBN 978-1845848590.</ref>

Porsche continued to do development work for VW. Negotiated 1% royalty on first 500,000 Deutschmarks of sales, 1 Deutschmark per car after that.[8]

By 1968 the 912 was within 12 percent of the 911. Needed entry level model. Porsche had neither the financial nor production resources. Page 25. Gentleman's agreement - page 29. VW had rights to car. Page 32.[9]

A handshake agreement

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Originally intending to sell the vehicle with a flat four-cylinder engine as a Volkswagen and with a flat six-cylinder engine as a Porsche, Porsche decided during development that having Volkswagen and Porsche models sharing the same body would be risky for business in the American market, and convinced Volkswagen to allow them to sell both versions as Porsches in North America.[10]

Ferdinand Piëch, who was in charge of research and development at Porsche, was put in charge of the 914 project. https://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/04/automobiles/collectibles/04PORSCHE.html

A revised agreement

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On March 1, 1968, the first 914 prototype was presented. However, development became complicated after the death of Volkswagen's chairman, Heinz Nordhoff, on April 12, 1968. His successor, Kurt Lotz, was not connected with the Porsche dynasty and the verbal agreement between Volkswagen and Porsche fell apart.[11]

In Lotz's opinion, Volkswagen had all rights to the model, and no incentive to share it with Porsche if they would not share in tooling expenses. With this decision, the price and marketing concept for the 914 had failed before series production had begun. As a result, the price of the chassis went up considerably, and the 914/6 ended up costing only a bit less than the 911T, Porsche's next lowest priced car.

"Part of the new agreement with Volkswagen stipulated that the 914 range would be badged as a VW-Porsche, naturally adding kudos to the four-cylinder model. The only exception to this rule was in America, where all models would be given the Porsche moniker regardless of power unit. Of course, the United States was going to be the most important market, and this ploy tied in perfectly with the newly formed Porsche+Audi sales organization, headed by John Reilly, and based in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey." [9]

VW-Porsche Vertriebsgesellschaft mbH (VG) Porsche+Audi in the US.

The 914 debuted at the 1969 Frankfurt Motor show in September.

The 914 was Motor Trend's Import Car of the Year for 1970.[12]

Slow sales and rising costs prompted Porsche to discontinue the 914/6 variant in 1972 after producing 3,351 units.

Production of the 914 ended in 1976. The 2.0 L flat-4 engine continued to be used in the 912E, introduced that year as an entry-level model until the front-engined four-cylinder 924 was introduced the following model year.

The 914/4 became Porsche's top seller during its model run, outselling the Porsche 911 by a wide margin with over 118,000 units sold worldwide.

Features

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1974 Porsche 914 1.8

Body and chassis

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In 1966 and 1967, German company Gugelot Design GmbH began showing a proposed design for a sports coupe built with technology developed in partnership with Bayer to several major car builders, including Volkswagen and Porsche. Some sources have suggested that the Gugelot proposal, suitably adapted, was the origin of the design of the 914.[13]: 555–557  The rationale is that an outside design would be able to please both Volkswagen and Porsche without appearing too similar to either of the partners' existing products. Later sources have rejected this idea. While acknowledging that Porsche was aware of the Gugelot design, they assert that the 914 design was done in-house at Porsche, and is primarily the work of body engineer Heinrich Klie.[14]: 95–98 [15]

The 914 body had black paint on the rocker panels and below the front and rear bumpers.[16]: 557  The bumpers were body-coloured on the standard models, while chrome plated bumpers were standard on the 914/6 and optional on the four-cylinder cars. The car had a targa roof, with a large fiberglass panel stiffened by foam inserts attached by latches at the leading edge and by rubber mounts at the rear. The rear luggage compartment was large enough to accomodate the panel when it was removed from the roof of the car.

Karmann manufactured the rolling chassis at their plant, completing Volkswagen production in-house or delivering versions to Porsche for their final assembly.[17]

Unitary construction. aka Unibody. Deep sills on each side and a low tunnel down the centre of the floor pan.

Although nominally a two-seat car, there was space between the bucket seats that could accommodate a third small seat cushion, which allowed Porsche to qualify the car as a three-seat vehicle under German classifications.[13]: 563  The driver's seat could be moved fore and aft, and the angle of the seat and back could be adjusted as one piece. The passenger's seat was fixed in place and was provided with a tethered U-shaped footrest. Instrumentation was courtesy of VDO with a central tachometer. The handbrake lever was to the right of the driver's seat.

No right-hand drive 914s were built by the factory. In the UK, Crayford Auto Development Ltd. engineered an after-market conversion.[13]: 579, 580 

Suspension and brakes

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Porsche hubs used on 914/6 cars. Five wheel studs.{{ref name="ludvigsenbook"/>: 559 

Engines and transmissions

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All 914s were powered by air-cooled boxer engines that were mounted amidships in a rear mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout. Both four- and six-cylinder engines were offered.

Volkswagen versions originally featured the fuel-injected 1.7 L VW Type 4 flat-four engine producing 80 bhp (60 kW; 81 PS).

Porsche's 914/6 variant featured the 2.0 L air-cooled Type 901/3 flat-six engine from the 1967–1969 911T model. This was the least powerful flat-six in Porsche's lineup. This engine had revised pistons that reduced the compression ratio to 8.6:1.[13]: 448–449  The cylinder barrels were entirely made of iron, in contrast to the iron and aluminum "Biral" barrels in the engines in the 911S and 911L. New camshafts had less lift, and relaxed timing characteristics. The venturis in the Weber 40IDT3C carburetors were 27 mm (1.1 in), smaller than the other 911 engines, and the exhaust pipe diameter was also reduced in size. Power output was 110 bhp (82 kW; 112 PS). When the 911T got a 2.2 L engine in 1970, the engine in the 914/6 remained at 2.0 L.[13]: 561 

The 914/6 models came with lower gear ratios and larger brakes to compensate for the greater weight and higher power output of the six-cylinder model. They also featured five lug wheels and an ignition on the left side of the steering wheel.[18] Suspension and handling were otherwise mostly the same. A Volkswagen-Porsche joint venture, Volkswagen of America, handled export to the U.S., where both versions were badged and sold as Porsches. The four-cylinder cars were sold as Volkswagen-Porsches at European Volkswagen dealerships.

For 1973 the discontinued 914/6 was replaced in the lineup by a variant powered by a new 100 bhp (75 kW; 101 PS) 2.0 L, fuel-injected version of Volkswagen's Type 4 engine.

For 1974, the 1.7 L engine was replaced by a 85 bhp (63 kW; 86 PS) 1.8 L, and the new Bosch L-Jetronic fuel injection system was added to American units to help with emissions control.[19]

Almost all 914s were equipped with 5-speed manual transmissions that were descendants of the 901/0 transmission originally developed for the 911, but re-configured for a mid-engined sports car.[18] Early four-cylinder models received series 914/11 units, also called "tail-shift". Complaints about vague and sloppy shift gates with these transmissions are common. Later four-cylinder cars received the 914/12 "side-shift" units. The 914/6 models got the 914/01 manual. Also listed as an option for the 914/6 was the four-speed semi-automatic Sportomatic transmission. These are rare, with only between five and twenty-one cars having received this transmission.

https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/archive/article/march-1970/44/vw-porsche-914-prices - 914/S in UK. Sportomatic. Page 44, March 1970 VW-Porsche 914 prices

Transaxle ratios

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Gear 914 914/6
First 3.091:1 3.091:1
Second 1.889:1 1.1758:1
Third 1.261:1 1.218:1
Fourth 0.926:1 0.926:1
Fifth 0.710:1 0.759:1
Reverse 3.13:1
Final 4.428:1 4.428:1

Model year changes

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The distinctive rear of the Porsche 914

Over the seven model years, Porsche made a number of changes to the 914. Some of these changes were cosmetic and others were in response to changing crash protection standards. From 1970 to 1974, the 914 was offered with chrome or painted bumpers. In early 1970, rear bumpers were produced with a straight crease on either side of the license plate indent. Between 1970 and 1972, both front and rear bumpers were smooth without bumper guards. In 1973, bumper guards were added to the front of the car. In 1974, guards were also added to the rear bumper. In 1975 and 1976, the chrome or painted bumpers were replaced with heavy, rubber-covered units which actually made the cars more stable at high speeds.

The headlight surrounds were white from the first 914s to mid-production of 73 and subsequently black. Cars produced up to early 1972 had a fixed passenger seat and a removable passenger footrest. Later cars featured a movable passenger seat. Other interior differences included changing vinyl designs, gauge appearance, and air vent configurations in the dash.

The most significant performance upgrade during the vehicle's lifespan was the introduction of anti-roll bars, significantly improving the handling, and a change from the "tail shifter" to the "side shifter" gearbox for 1973, improving the otherwise vague long linkage.

Body kits

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  • Mitcom Chalon

https://jalopnik.com/at-9-950-will-this-1971-porsche-914-chalon-prove-a-ch-1835089841

http://web.archive.org/web/20091022222838/http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Lane/5240/chalon.htm

The Complete Guide to Kit Cars, page 89. Auto Logic Publications Inc.

  • Keith Wright Enterprises F-Zero
  • Beach Boys Racing Monterey
  • Rayco 986
  • Caruna
  • Troutman & Barnes 914 pickup
  • Fiber Jet Bravossa and 959
  • Eagle GT

Later sold to Alpha Design & Engineering

Motorsport

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SCCA

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In 1970 Porsche+Audi fielded three two-car teams in Class C Production. A 914 driven by Alan Johnson won its class in the first race of the year, and nine 914/6 cars qualified to run in the American Road Race of Champions.

IMSA

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Le Mans

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A 914/6 GT driven by Frenchmen Claude Ballot-Lena and Guy Chasseuil won the GTS class and finished sixth overall at the 1970 24 Hours of Le Mans.[20]

F1 Safety Car

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The Porsche 914 is renowned for having been Formula One's first Safety Car following its deployment at the 1973 Canadian Grand Prix to help manage the race, which had seen various incidents due to treacherous weather conditions.[21]

Other

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Brian Redman used a 914/6 to scout the course in practice runs for the 1970 Targa Florio.

Nickname vierzehner (fourteener).[14]: 95  Volks-Porsche (VoPo) The Peoples' Porsche.

Eight-cylinder 914 - 914S

Four-cylinder 914S - Motor Trend January 1973.

Notes

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Note 1 A four-cylinder car called the 914S was offered in the United States for a short time. It was withdrawn at the request of the factory.[22]

References

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  1. ^ Rieger, Bernhard (April 2013). The People's Car: A Global History of the Volkswagen Beetle. Harvard University Press. ISBN 9780674050914.
  2. ^ Copping, Richard (28 January 2002). Volkswagen Beetle: The Car of the Century. Veloce Publishing Plc. ISBN 978-1901295863.
  3. ^ Roberts, Andrew (4 December 2007). "Volkswagen Karmann Ghia". www.independent.co.uk.
  4. ^ "50 Years of the Porsche 914". www.porsche.com. 20 May 2019.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference long911book was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Amos, Rob. "Ferry Porsche". www.pre67vw.com.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference smithracing914book was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Ewing, Jack (23 May 2017). Faster, Higher, Farther: The Volkswagen Scandal. WW Norton. ISBN 978-0393254501.
  9. ^ a b Long, Brian (10 May 2006). Porsche 914 & 914-6: The Definitive History of the Road & Competition Cars. Veloce Publishing. ISBN 978-1845840143.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference jal-jul2018 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference cms-jul2018 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ "1970 Porsche 914 - Motor Trend Import Car of the Year - Motor Trend Classic". Motor Trend. 20 June 2006. Retrieved 2007-03-25.
  13. ^ a b c d e Cite error: The named reference ludvigsenbook was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference excellence-may2011 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference mp-jan2018 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference lugvigsenbook was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ Cite error: The named reference pca-aug2017 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  18. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference porsche-9146 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  19. ^ Cite error: The named reference porsche-914 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  20. ^ Cite error: The named reference lemans-1970 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  21. ^ Cite error: The named reference f1-safety was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  22. ^ "The New Porsche 914S". Motor Trend. 1973.
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