Porsche 928GTS

[Ron Resnick]

The Porsche 928GTS was one of my favorite cars growing up. I personally never loved the 911 pattern cars, but I always liked the 928 (and, of course, the amazing Carrera GT).





Even today the 928 looks to my eyes like an attractive design. With a 2+2 seating layout the 928 had exterior dimensions very close to the current Mercedes SL550, a 2 seater.

Did anyone here ever own a 928?

 

[BruceD]

Indeed fine machine---as long as one remembers the Timing belt

BruceD

 

[wisnon]

Yes, the Carrera GT is my favourite Porsche ever too!

 

[jdza]

I had one. Fantastic autobahn cruiser. Less so on lesser roads. More of a GT in the true sense of the word . However for crossing continents the suspension on the GT/GTS was a bit hard while the S4 was a little too soft. In the bendy bits the little Renault Clio Sport I replaced the Porsche with ran rings around the heavy 928.

But,get to a corner on a good freeway, break hard to 120mph,gear down to 4th,be amazed at how flat it stays in the corner,pass the apex and boot it. The rev counter will swing from 3.5k towards red and that lovely V8 growl will turn into a scream as the shark's nose lifts effortlessly towards the horizon. Do it again and again.

I miss that car. Do I want it back? No,that was then ,this is now. My ML500 develops far more power while my wife's CLS shooting brake develops the same sort of power and will get us there in the same time without all passengers having a headache or the kids, squeezed in the rear ,vomiting all over the wine red leather in the hot as hell,useless rear seats.

What I would really want is Porsche lopping off two doors on the bulky Panamera ,creating a 928 for this century. That,I'd buy without even thinking about vomiting children.

 

[GMKF]

My dad had a 928 (1979(Manual)) and my grand-dad has a 928 S4 (1988).

My dad put ~330 000km on his from 1981 to 1993. Engine and Transmission without problems. The front suspension was always a problem.
Regular maintenance was changing the bushings in the front. The weissach-axle in the back was fine.
Although it chewed trough tires at an enormous rate. New tires every 20 000km!
The mechanical fuel injection system had to be rebuilt after a few years.



The 928S4 (Auto) that my Grand-Dad own`s hasnt had problems with the suspension or gearbox. But with the ECU.
A few of the sensors went bad, especially the mass air flow sensor. Thats a platinum wire in front of the throttle body.
It's a heated platinum wire thats gets colder the more air flows trough the intake. So in 2013 the thing snapped and trubble was ahead.
Finding a pristine example of such a device was near impossible. Finally he found one in Holland.



Then the entire fuel system clogged up with some mysterious goo.
After lots research I stumbled upon that high performance gas (Shell 100 Octane) attacks the plastic liner in the fuel tank.
This goo then gets into the fuel system through the fuel pump. Its sort of a semi liquid, so only some of it gets absorbed by the fuel filter.
The rest blocked the injectors. So the entire fuel sytem had to be pulled apart and cleaned.... and the fuel cell replaced.

The early 928 are mechanically very complex cars, with some issues. But those issues got fixed during the years. The later one mostly have problems with electro-mechanical stuff.

But wonderfull cars to drive according to them... I want one aswell...

Greetings
Max

 

[Steve Williams]

I owned a 1976 928 and it was one of the nicest cars I ever drove. Very fast and very stable on the road at high speeds

All white with tan leather interior

 

[BMCG]

On Porsche Parts....

GMKF..in case you require parts for the 928s...in my experience..not to mention a bunch of track rat buddies stateside.....pretty tough to find something in the porsche parts world that www.pelicanparts.com can't source.

the sensor page for the 1988 928 S4 follows..(think the 928 world had harmonised globally by 1988 but i could be wrong)

http://www.pelicanparts.com/catalog/SuperCat/1003/POR_1003_ELSENS_pg1.htm

hope its useful. cheers. BMCG

 

[GMKF]

All well as we speak, but you never know.

As far as I know the sensor itself is very easy to come by. But the wire inside the mass air flow meter rarely brakes, so it not so easy to come by.



The small wire thats spans across the plastic in the middle was the issue.

I searched on pelican parts and their isnt one in the catalog. (for 1987 http://www.pelicanparts.com/catalog/SuperCat/1002/POR_1002_FULINT_pg1.htm#item6 or for 1988 http://www.pelicanparts.com/catalog/SuperCat/1003/POR_1003_FULINT_pg1.htm#item6)

Thanks for the help !

 

[Folsom]

Indeed fine machine---as long as one remembers the Timing belt

BruceD

Are they interference engines?

 

[Ron Resnick]

Jdza, Max and Steve -- very cool!

Steve, I like that color combination! Why in the world did you sell that car? That sounds like a keeper even as a vintage just to have around!

 

[853guy]

I got this as a birthday present for my eighth birthday.

In fact, that's not true.

I pestered my Mum so insistently and so annoyingly for it, that eventually she went to the wardrobe, reached into the top shelf and shoved it into my hands saying "There, are you happy now?" several days before my birthday.

I was both incredibly bummed out I had ruined getting a birthday present, and incredibly stoked I got my (then) dream car. I still gawk every time I see one now, though after watching the Top Gear Patagonia Special, am glad I never owned a real one.





853guy

 

[BruceD]

Are they interference engines?

Yes the 928 4L to 5L are Interference Models necessitating careful monitoring of Mileage/usage etc relating to replacement of the Timing belt

Even in the Chain Duo models--most owners aware of this fact --luckily, as neglect can/will blow the engine

Agree exciting machine--I've not owned a 928 but have had a 911T and 911s.

Enjoy

BruceD

 

[tdh888]

Indeed fine machine---as long as one remembers the Timing belt

BruceD

And water pump

 

[Bruce B]

The 928 was a true looker, but I had my sights set on the 944. That was my dream car back in the day!! The 911 looks (still) too much like a Beetle or Karmann Ghia!!

 

[BMCG]

The 911 looks (still) too much like a Beetle or Karmann Ghia!!

2:45....(and I am a Porsche nut...but hey....Jezza was amusing)