Over the course of a five-year manufacturing run, Porsche built little under 30,000 912 coupes and roughly 2500 912 Targa body style units (Porsche’s unique form of a cabriolet).
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Embrace the Targa
Porsche created the Targa model in 1966, the year the 911 and 912 were released, to give sports car enthusiasts an open option if they chose it to the coupe. Manufacturers exporting to the United States had expressed some fear in the 1960s that the government would decide to outlaw convertible cars due to safety issues regarding passenger protection in a roll-over. The Targa was Porsche’s logical solution to this possible issue, offering a beautiful roll bar and giving the car the capacity to function as either an open roadster or a weatherproof coupe.
The 100,000th Porsche would be a 912 Targa, specially built for the Baden-Wurttemberg police of Ferdinand Porsche’s home state, and handed to them on December 21st, 1966.
The original Targa had translucent plastic rear windows that could be opened by a zip fastener and a removable roof portion. These “Version I” Targa cars demonstrated that the design may use some work. The plastic rear windows had a bad reputation for degrading when exposed to the elements for an extended period of time. As a result, the Version II was updated in January 1968 to include a real glass back window. This design turned out to be much better because it offered the same level of durability as a typical coupe while also having a retractable roof for when open-air driving is preferred.
Comparatively speaking, the Porsche 912 is inexpensive.
According to Jalopnik, the Porsche 912 initially outsold the 911 in terms of sales. According to Hagerty, by the time production ended in late 1969, over 30,000 had been produced. The 912E, a completely different vehicle, did bear the 912 designation in 1976.
Porsche 912s were far less expensive than the modern air-cooled 911s until recently. Although they are still less expensive than the typical early 911, the price gap isn’t quite as significant as it previously was. According to Hagerty, a good-condition coupe typically costs around $40k, with Targa variants costing closer to $50k. That is not too much more expensive than the typical air-cooled 911.
However, according to Bring a Trailer, you can still locate reasonably well-kept RVs for around $30,000. Therefore, even if a Porsche 912 is a cheap air-cooled 911, the experience is in no way diminished.
The Porsche 912 Is Important, And Here’s Why
For many years, the Porsche 912 went unnoticed, but these days it is a highly sought-after classic.
A more affordable option to the six-cylinder 911 coupe was the Porsche 912. The 912, which was built between 1965 and 1969, was less priced and had considerably less power than the 911 model. In fact, the 912 was created at the time to fill the space between the old Porsche 356 and the brand-new 911. However, the Porsche 911 came with a significantly higher price tag, driving away the company’s loyal fans. Thus, the creation of a base-model Porsche facilitated the move from the 356 to the 911.
The Porsche 912’s four-cylinder engine, which was adapted from the Porsche 356, was considerably lighter than its six-cylinder stablemate. The 912 was better balanced than the 911 because it featured a lighter rear end, which reduced the propensity to oversteer. The 912 and 911 were nearly identical, save for the engine.
The 912 thus proved to be highly well-liked at the time. Without a doubt, the 912’s mix of good looks, dependability, and affordability made it an appealing package for both new and returning consumers. Therefore, during the first few years of its manufacture, the Porsche 912 sold more units than the Porsche 911.
Between 1965 and 1969, the Porsche 912 was developed alongside the more expensive six-cylinder, with about 32,000 vehicles produced. Porsche reportedly sold twice as many 912s as the more potent 911 through 1967.
Porsche’s 912 moniker was brought back in 1976, but this time as the 912E. After the 914 was discontinued, the 912E (E for Einspritzung) was created to fill the void as the entry-level Porsche. The 912E featured the same body as the Porsche 911 G-model just for the US market. Additionally, the Porsche 924 wasn’t ready yet, thus the 912E filled the void for a year on the market.
From the Porsche 914, the 2.0-liter flat-four engine was derived. During its one year of existence, reportedly close to 2100 copies were produced.
How many Porsche 912 RHDs were produced?
Over 30,000 912s were produced between April 1965 and March 1969. Less than 4% of those were specifically designed for export markets that need the right hand drive arrangement. Any original 912 with a right-hand drive is now a highly prized collectible.
Are Porsche 912s uncommon?
This is one of the rarest vintage Porsches available anywhere, making it one of the hottest collectible cars on the market right now. Even though this is one of the rarest Porsche 912s ever produced—less than half as many were made as the much coveted 356—any 912 is extremely unusual.
What distinguishes a Porsche 911 from a Porsche 912?
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Porsche introduced the 912 in 1965, a less priced and substantially less powerful version of the 911, to close the price gap between the 356, which was still in production at the time, and the 911.
The 912 and 911 were nearly identical in terms of appearance and technology. But unlike the 911, it had a 1.6-liter flat-four engine from the 356 SC at the back. For usage in the 912, its power output was decreased from 95 to 90 hp at 5,800 rpm to provide the engine additional low-end torque and stability. A 4-speed manual transmission was used to transmit power.
A Porsche 912 can go how fast?
The highest speed of the 912 was advertised at 116 mph, and it could accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 11.5–12 seconds. However, Road & Track magazine actually reached a top speed of 119 mph.
What are the Porsche 911’s many generations?
Even Porsche undoubtedly didn’t anticipate the production run of the 901 idea from 1963 to last six decades, and no likely surpass it. Fans of trivia can rejoice that the name was changed from 901 to 911 in order to prevent any potential altercations with Peugeot.
It was intended to be a bigger, more useful 356 with an additional set of seats. For this reason, detractors were eager to point out its lack of focus.
Early 911s weighed close to a tonne yet had two-liter engines with as little as 130bhp. Over the following ten years, engine sizes and power output increased, reaching a zenith with the 210bhp 2.7 Carrera RS, possibly the most sought-after of all early 911s.
Which used Porsche 911 is the best?
I would suggest either a 911 from the 997 or 991 generations if you’re searching for the greatest secondhand 911 to buy. Porsche identifies the generations of the 911 with three-digit numbers. Production of the 997, which debuted in 2004, continued until the launch of the 991 in 2011.
The 997 is less problematic than the 996 of the previous generation, and it also has much better and more contemporary body style. Because they are older, 997s are usually more reasonable than 991s, though some fantastic deals can be obtained on low mileage models.
The 911’s 991 generation, which debuted in 2011, was produced through the end of 2019. These are renowned to be incredibly dependable and contain the majority of the newest technology. Additionally, the 911s came with a naturally aspirated engine only during this generation. They switched to all-turbo engines in 2020 with the launch of the 992 generation.
What does Porsche’s 911 stand for?
Porsche came up with the idea to add gold letters spelling out the car’s name to the dashboard and the back of the vehicle. Since these letters were already made, they already had the “9” and the “1,” so they simply swapped out the “0” for another “1,” and the name 911 was born.
Which Porsche is the most desired?
There were just 22 Carrera 4 Lightweights produced. Surplus components from the 953 Paris-Dakar project were used to construct the automobile. Fiberglass was heavily utilized to reduce the weight to 2,315 lbs. Additionally, it had a short-ratio gearbox, a four-way adjustable differential, and a bare cabin.
Porsche never saw any financial benefit from the Leichtbau, although it did keep the engineers at Weissach busy after the 959/961 development was completed.
How Quick Is the Porsche 911?
911 Porsche Top Speed Therefore, it is undeniable that the Porsche 911’s highest speeds live up to its reputation: Top Speed of the Porsche 911 Carrera is 182 mph. Top speed of the Porsche 911 Targa 4 is 179 mph. Top Speed of Porsche 911 GTS: 193 mph
What Porsche maintains its value the best?
Our top choice for the finest 911 model year value is the 2021 Porsche 911. The 2021 would cost you, on average, 96% less than a brand-new vehicle while still having 92% of its usable life left.
For the 911, the 2020 and 2019 model years are also desirable and offer a respectable value. Our rankings take into account a number of variables, such as the 911’s original purchase price, current price, maintenance costs, and the remaining years of anticipated overall costs. The Porsche 911 models from our top-ranked model year offer the most value for the money.
What Porsche model is the least expensive?
- Cayman 718. From $63,400* Investigate.
- Boxster 718 Explore starting at $65,500.
- 718 Cayman T. Starting at $72,500* Research.
- 718 Boxster T. Start exploring at $74,600.
- 718 Cayman S. Starting at $75,400* Research.
- 718 Boxster S. Starting at $77,500* Research.
- Explore the 718 Cayman GTS 4.0, starting at $90,300.
- From $92400*, there are 718 Boxster GTS models. Explore
A 911 is what kind of vehicle?
The Porsche 911, also known as Nine Eleven or Neunelfer in German, is a two-door, two-plus-two, high-performance sports car that Porsche AG of Stuttgart, Germany first unveiled in September 1964. It had a flat-six engine that is located at the rear and had a torsion bar suspension at first. The car has undergone constant improvement throughout the years, but the fundamental design has not changed. The engines were air-cooled prior to the 1998 launch of the 996 series.
Private and factory teams have participated in numerous races using the 911 in a range of classes. It is one of the most effective competition vehicles. The naturally aspirated 911 Carrera RSR won several world championship events in the middle of the 1970s, including the Targa Florio and the 24 Hours of Daytona. The 1979 24 Hours of Le Mans was also won by the 911-derived 935 turbo. Porsche’s 911-derived cars helped the company win the World Championship for Makes in 1976, 1977, 1978, and 1979.
The 911 placed fifth in a 1999 poll to choose the Car of the Century. It is one of just two top-five products that has been constantly produced. The one millionth copy, which is now part of the company’s permanent collection, was produced in May 2017.