Porsche 924

Born in Coventry, the heart of Britain's motor industry, the author comes from a family with a proud heritage in engineering, in both automotive and aviation fields. He trained as a mechanical engineer, and worked at his father's garage before becoming heavily involved in the classic car scene at the age of 19.Nowadays a full-time writer, who says he turned to writing by accident, Brian's had more than 20 books published since the first in 1990.A member of the RJC (Researchers' & Journalists' Conference of Japan), a committee member of the Japan Automotive Hall of Fame and a member of the Society of Automotive Historians, Brian lives in Japan with his wife, Miho, and son, Louis.

Introduction & Acknowledgements 4 Chapter 1 a brief history of the marque 6 The legendary 356 7 Porsche in competition 12 356 developments 14 The 911 and 912 15 A competition update 18 Chapter 2 the 914: a joint project 20 VW's links with Porsche 21 The VW success story 21 A joint project 22 The 914 is born 24 A turning point 25 The 914 in detail 24 Launch of the new model 26 Progress of the 914 28 Corporate matters 30 914 developments 31 The 914 in competition 33 Matters of the moment 36 Company news 35 End of the line 38 Chapter 3 the 924: a new type of porsche 41 The situation in 1975 41 A new Porsche 42 The 1976 MY for America 52 Launch of the 924 54 Early press reaction 57 The contemporary 911s 62 The 924 hits America 64 A British viewpoint 69 Endurance runs 73 The 928 73 924 developments 73 The 1978 model year 75 1978 Stateside 79 Other 924 specials 79 Matters of the moment 84 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------Chapter 4 the 924 turbo 86 The 924 Turbo 86 Early press reaction 91 Other 1979 MY news 93 The Turbo in the States 95 The Turbo reaches the UK 101 Other 1980 model year news 105 Chapter 5 the 924 in competition 112 The 924 in rallying 112 SCCA racing 114 The Carrera GT 117 1980 Le Mans 118 The Carrera GT road car 119 The GTS and GTR 126 1981 Le Mans 126 Rally update 133 1982 Le Mans 136 A return to F1 137 Chapter 6 the twilight years 138 The 1981 model year 138 Corporate matters 144 The 944 146 The 1982 model year 149 The 1983 model year 152 The 1984 model year 156 End of the line - part I 158 Chapter 7 the 924 makes a comeback 161 The 924S 162 The 924S in Europe 166 The 924 returns to the US 170 The 1987 model year proper 171 Boardroom drama 171 The 1988 model year 174 End of the line - part II 176 Chapter 8 buying & restoration 179 Body 179 Exterior trim 180 Engine 180 Transmission 181 Suspension, steering & braking system 181 Interior 181 Spares today 181 The best buy? 181 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------Appendix: production details 184 Index 186