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Porsche 944

The car was the brainchild of the newly appointed Peter Schutz, the CEO of the Porsche company. He decided to debut the new 944, which was the replacement for the 924, at the 24 Hours Le Mans race of 1981. The project was greenlighted in 1980, in response to dropping sales of the Porsche 924. Although it was basically a 924 with a proper Porsche engine, body styling and trim, the 944 looked like a more grown up car than the 924. Improvements over the out-going 924 were plain to see – beginning with the flared front and rear wheel arches. These became the trademark of the 944, and pulled in the buyers due to the butch stance and powerful presence they gave the car. Other differences were small but significant – on US models, the ugly 924 side reflectors were replaced with smooth, bumper-line examples. A rear spoiler, lining the lift-glass, made the rear-end look more functional and sporty. Drag coefficient was reduced to 0.35 over the 924, and the body panels were zinc-coated in all markets to prevent corrosion. This Porsche 944 was fitted with the new 2.5 liter four cylinder engine derived from Porsche’s V8. See all our Porsche 944 Research.

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Porsche 944 S2 SE
Model In Depth

Porsche 944 S2 SE (1992)

The 944 range officially ended production in July 1991. A dated range and slow sales wrote the obituary for the model, but in the UK, brand-new cars still languished at dealers well into 1993. A UK-only special edition was made in 1992 and it was called the Porsche 944 S2 SE. It was  basically an S2 brought up to full specification, for less than the standard car. Very limited, only 15 were eventually made. Benefits listed include improved acceleration in higher rev range; flatter cornering due to stiffer springs and increased roll resistance...
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Porsche 944

Porsche 944 Turbo Cabriolet (1991)

The last iteration of the 944 Turbo was the 944 Turbo Cabriolet which was the 944 Turbo Cabriolet. This was a 944 Turbo S with a special cabriolet body made by the American Sunroof Company (ASC) of Weinsberg, Germany, who also made the bodies for the 944 S2 Cabriolet. 625 of the 944 Turbo Cabriolet were made with 100 being built with right hand drive and the remaining 525 being left hand drive.
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Model In Depth

Porsche 944 S2 Cabriolet (1989 – 1991)

The S2 was also available as a cabriolet, a first for the 944 line. The Cabriolet, engineered by American Sunroof Company, was rumored to be two years late in arriving on the market due to unprecedented chassis flex problems. The finished article, despite being 70 KG heavier than the coupe, displayed no obvious signs of such problems, and its clean lines found a place in many hearts.
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Porsche 944 S2 Coupe (1989 - 1991)
Model In Depth

Porsche 944 S2 Coupe (1989 – 1991)

The covers were lifted off the 944's next-generation model in early 1989, the stunningly contemporary 944 S2. Porsche, as a company, were heading into tough times and were relying on the 944 S2 and the new 911, the 964, to make enough money just to stay afloat. Porsche upped the performance of the 944 S2 thanks to an upgraded engine, a 3.0 liter version of the DOHC double valve four cylinder that was good for solid 208 hp. The 16-valve engine was bored out from 2.5 litres to 3.0 litres.
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Porsche 944 S Coupe (1987 - 1988)
Model In Depth

Porsche 944 S Coupe (1987 – 1988)

In 1987 Porsche debuted the 944 S, the “S” standing for “Super”. This “Super” Porsche 944 was fitted with a more high performance version of the naturally aspirated four cylinder engine. This engine version had dual overhead camshafts to operate the four valves per cylinder and a revised Motronic 2 engine management system with dual knock sensors to best handle the 10.9:1 compression ratio. Power was a comfortably adequate 187hp.
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Porsche 944 Celebration Edition (1988)
Model In Depth

Porsche 944 Celebration Edition (1988)

The Porsche 944 Celebration Edition was a special edition of the 944 base model produced to commemorate the 100,000th 944 built in Neckarsulm, Germany. A total of 930 units were produced in one of two colors: Zermatt Silver and Satin Black Metallic. These celebration models- effectively standard cars brought up to a very high specification, featured black leatherette, the attractive grey or maroon "STUDIO" cloth and silver and grey carpeting. 
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Porsche 944

Porsche 944 Turbo S (1988)

In 1988, Porsche introduced the 944 Turbo S with a more powerful engine (designation number M44/52) rated at a maximum power output of 250 PS (184 kW) at 6,000 rpm and 350 N⋅m (258 lb⋅ft) of torque at 4,000 rpm (the engine in the standard 944 Turbo generated 223 PS (164 kW) and 243 lb⋅ft (329 N⋅m)). This higher output was achieved by using a larger KKK K26-8 turbocharger housing and revised engine mapping to maximize boost for longer.
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Porsche 944

Porsche 944 Turbo Coupe (1985 – 1991)

It didn’t take Porsche’s engineers long to significantly improve on the base 944’s performance by doing the obvious and adding a turbocharger to the engine. The 944 Turbo entered production in 1985 for the 1986 production year and it made a significant difference to the stock 944’s performance. Power of the new turbocharged engine was 220hp and torque was 243lb/ft, a significant increase over the naturally aspirated standard 944.
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Porsche 944 French Special (1984)

In spring of 1984 Rothmans cosmetic edition 944 was made, a batch of 100 numbered cars ordered by the French importer Sonauto (the subsidiary of Porsche AG) to celebrate the victorious Rothmans-sponsored Porsche 956 that had won Le Mans 24 hour race in France in 1982 and in 1983. At the time when the Rothmans 944 was sold, Rothmans-Porsche factory team decided to boycott the 1984 Le Mans race. Only 100 were produced. 
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Porsche 944 Swiss Special (1984)
Model In Depth

Porsche 944 Swiss Special (1984)

The Swiss Special 944 was a very limited edition 944 Special produced in 1984. Only 200 944 Swiss Specials were produced and it was largely a design exercise, with several upgrades to the normal 944. The changes included, Red-colored stickers on the back of "Porsche” “944", Special size teledial rims, Seats , rear bench and door panels in 924 Carrera GT fabric and dashboard plastic parts in black instead of the standard silver.
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Porsche 944 Callaway (1983)
Model In Depth

Porsche 944 Callaway (1983)

In 1983, American tuning company Callaway Cars began offering a turbocharged package for the US-Spec 944 in collaboration with Porsche. The standard 2.5 L inline-four engine was not suitable for forced induction because of the higher compression ratio of 9.5:1 which made the engine prone to failure when subject to forced induction along with the complex Bosch Motronic engine management system.
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Model In Depth

Porsche 944 Coupe (1982 – 1989)

The base Porsche 944 coupe was built between 1982 and 1989, essentially the same platform as the Porsche 924 (there was some overlap as the 924 was produced till 1988). The 944 was intended to last into the 1990s, but major revisions planned for a 944 S3 model were eventually rolled into the Porsche 968 instead, which replaced the 944.
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Porsche 944

Porsche 944 Turbo Cup (1986 – 1988)

In late 1985 Porsche developed the 944 “Weissach turbo cup race car” to provide amateur enthusiasts with a cost effective entry into motorsports. Porsche initially designed to participate in a single-marque racing series run in conjunction with 1986 German ADAC Supercup races, but soon spread to Italy, Spain, Belgium, Austria , USA, Canada and even Czechoslovakia. The cars were modified extensively for racing duties, including taking out a lot of weight.
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Porsche 944

Porsche 944 GTP (1981)

In 1981 Porsche developed two 944 prototypes to succeed the 924 GTPs which raced the 1980 24 Hours of Le Mans. To coincide with the release of the 944 in fall of 1981, Porsche prepared a GTP version to promote the car before the launch. The GTP was equipped with a special Type 949 cylinder block with dry sump lubrication, KKK K28 turbocharger and an air-to-air intercooler.
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