When it comes to desirable automakers, Porsche is sure to pop into one's mind. And the first car that springs to mind is of course the 911; a car that began its journey in 1964. A vision by Porsche that succeeded in every way possible. The two-door sports performance car came powered by a rear-mounted engine with a rear-wheel drive system in place.
The 911 has of course received its fair share of enhancements and improvements over the years, but the main formula has remained the same. Not only has the 911 provided the public with endless amounts of fun and excitement, but has also been an extremely successful race car, in fact, it is one of the most successful competition cars ever created.
A vote was held in 1999 to announce the car of the century, and while the Porsche 911 didn’t win, it came fifth on the list - still an incredible achievement. It sure did break records, considering that it was only one of two placed in the top five that had remained continuously in production and that it has been since 1964 up until the present day, 58 years of amazing engineering and immense fun!
And that incredible goal was achieved yet again with the 1994 Porsche 911 Turbo. When the 1994 Porsche 911 Turbo launched, it turned itself into America's highest-performing, road-legal, and series production car ever.
The engine remained at the rear of this Porsche but was upgraded to an almighty 3.6-liter, while the rear-wheel drive system helped this impressive car create 355 horses and 384 lb-ft of torque.
Porsche 911 (964) Turbo Packed A Boxer Engine That Hit Hard And High
If you believed that the previous 911 Turbo's 3.3-liter engine was something to boast about, the 1994 Porsche 911 Turbo was on another level. It packed an even more impressive naturally aspirated 3.6-liter powertrain. An engine so impressive, it powered the Porsche Carrera since 1989.
This new engine bumped the performance figures up by 40 hp and 52 lb-ft of torque. Since then 911 Turbos and Carreras share crankshafts, crankcases, cylinder jugs, and connecting rods. The 1994 Porsche 911 Turbo housed new pistons and cams, although still, only two valves allowed the new 911 Turbo to breathe.
This was because of Porsche's inability to cool a four-valve-per-cylinder engine effectively and sufficiency. Bearing in mind the 1994 Porsche 911’s predecessor, it seemed like an incredibly stupid idea to add even more power to an already difficult-to-control and uncooperative sports car.
1994 Porsche 911 Turbo Turned The Table
But the new 1994 Porsche 911 Turbo was the complete opposite. Responsive, predictable, and controllable right from the initial acceleration. Despite the previous 911 Turbo's sudden exposure to power, it was hard to believe that the new 911 Turbo would turn on the power quite as successfully, but that it did.
At 5500 revs, it matches its weight distribution to achieve the ultimate urge of power and speed, to reach 0-60 mph in around 4.4 seconds, while topping out at a rather impressive 174 mph. This made the Porsche 911 Turbo the fastest road-legal car available in America at the time. This motor drove incredibly smoothly on its 18-inch split-rim Speedline alloy wheels.
The 1994 Porsche 911 Turbo came fitted with the same turbocharger and tail-mounted intercooler found in the previous Porsche 911 Turbo. However, the new 911 was different, recalibration increased the maximum boost to 13.1 psi.
This meant 300cc of exhaust gas thundering the same impeller spools yet reaching full boost at a much lower 3500 rpm. Check out this short clip of the 1994 Porsche 911 Turbo featured in Bad Boys!
The Beauty Of This 911 Turbo Seeped Into The Cabin Too
In addition to the 1994 Porsche 911 Turbo’s beautifully finished exterior paintwork, this glorious theme continued inside the cabin. If you got your hands on one of the highest trim level models, it would have been covered in Marine Blue leather upholstery.
The Porsche 911 Turbo featured electronically controllable seats which provided its drivers and passengers with the utmost comfort, something that was very rare and innovative in the mid-1990s. Not only that, the 1994 Porsche 911 Turbos interior trim matched perfectly with its leather-trimmed steering wheel.
Technology and features within the Porsche 911 Turbos were highly advanced and futuristic, to say the least, many of the equipment inside the cabin had not been seen before or was an extreme rarity. These high-technology features included an electric sunroof, air conditioning, an onboard computer, a rear windshield wiper, a tinted windshield, and a headlight leveling system.
All features were unique and original. Of course, it's safe to say that the 3.6-liter 964 generation Porsche 911 Turbo was an incredibly special car, and still is! The aesthetically pleasing looks of the 911 make it an original and historical piece of art that would suit being a centerpiece in anybody’s car collection.
The 964-gen Porsche 911 Turbo goes for insane money nowadays. If you are lucky, one can be had for as low as $44,000, but things have gotten wilder with a 1994 Porsche 911 Turbo sold for a whopping $1.4 million! Now, that's a testament to how iconic this desirable sports car is.
Sources: Porsche, Classic, Mecum