Fifty-some years after the 914 showed up at Frankfurt and quietly became one of Porsche’s best-selling cars ever, a designer named @kotecinho came up with what a modern version might look like: The 2019 Porsche 914/50 Concept. He calls the series Parallel Lines, cars from another reality. This one feels less like fantasy and more like a missed opportunity.
The 914 Deserves More Credit Than It Gets
The Porsche 914 gets a weird amount of grief considering what it actually was. Porsche and VW teamed up in the late 60s because both needed something. Porsche wanted an entry-level car below the 911, VW needed to replace the Karmann Ghia. What came out of that was a mid-engined, targa-topped two-seater that, for a while, was outselling the 911. People forget that part. It won Import Car of the Year in 1970 and even served as Formula One’s first safety car at the 1973 Canadian Grand Prix. Not exactly a footnote.
So What Is the 914/50?
The 914/50 concept takes that same thinking and runs with it. Compact body, rear-mid engine layout, a detuned Flat-4. Light, simple, built around the act of driving rather than around spec sheet bragging rights. The artist describes it as “a love letter to car enthusiasts looking for a true Porsche expression of the fun-to-drive philosophy.”
It was made using hand sketching, digital work, Photoshop, and AI, and it shows in the best way. There’s a cleanliness to it that feels considered rather than generated.
The Car Porsche Stopped Making
Porsche hasn’t really made something like this since the 914 went out of production in 1976. The Boxster came close in spirit when it launched, but prices have climbed steadily since then. A new base 718 will run you well over $60,000 now. The 914 was supposed to be the car a younger buyer could actually get into. That car doesn’t exist in the current lineup.
So when something like the 914/50 shows up, even as a rendering, it stings a little. Not because it’s sad, it’s a genuinely cool piece of design work, but because you look at it and think: why not? Light car, mid engine, Flat-4, Porsche badge. What exactly is the problem here? Maybe there isn’t one, Porsche just chose not to.
