Porsche has always been very good at what it does. Their expertise does not lie in the mass-produced practical cars, but in the ones that excite and provide utter driving perfection. It would be a lie to say that there was one single car that built the reputation that Porsche has today. Vehicles like the 911, Carrera, and most recently the 918 Spyder have all shown in their respective field that Porsche is an expert.
But in addition to those well-known and iconic Porsches, another has done a lot to keep Porsche on the map even now. That car is the Porsche 959. Debuting in the 1980s, the 959 was a technological marvel. It gave a glimpse into the imminent era of hypercars that opened the door to insane performance. Overall, it paved a path that many supercar successors would follow in the subsequent decades.
The 959 showed us what was possible far ahead of the competition. Here’s why the model is such an automotive icon.
The Porsche 959: Technology Far Ahead Of Its Time
The 959 had many technological features that made it one of the most significant cars in its era. Its 2.8 liter flat six-cylinder engine was turbocharged and was able to get the 959 to a top speed that's just shy of 200 miles per hour. For a comparison, the highly lauded 1988 Lamborghini Countach was considered a level higher in the supercar hierarchy yet could only reach a top speed of 183 miles per hour.
The twin turbos used in the 959’s powertrain were cleverly sequential turbocharging to get around the common issue of turbo lag. Even today, automakers are still finding a way around this same issue that the 959 solved almost four decades ago.
Supercars After The Porsche 959 Have Followed In Its Footsteps
With the Porsche 959 pioneering so much technology at a time when no other performance vehicle was doing it means that many of them took a page out of the 959’s book later on. The 959 gave us a glimpse on how all-wheel drive could be an asset for the grip needed for enormous amounts of power. The adjustable power split between front and rear wheels is still a talking point for modern sports cars yet the 959 showcased this feature long before. For aerodynamic purposes, the 959 had an adjustable ride height that is also a staple for so many performance-oriented cars these days.
The Porsche 959 was in so many ways the source for a trickle-down effect years later. Today, we see these impressive features on so many sporty vehicles that we have come to love. The technology was proven on the 959 to be groundbreaking and the perfect ingredients for a truly perfect car. Porsche has been at the roots of a lot of great things in the automotive world, but it is hard to pinpoint many vehicles in their lineup that have had as big of an impact as the 959 has. All we can say is that, it is the grandfather of the modern sports car as we know it.