Part of Porsche's success over the years has been sticking to a core lineup of sports cars (and crossovers that drive like their sports cars). But there were a few ideas over the decades that, if pursued, could have taken the famed German brand in a different and possibly unsettling direction.
Here are five ideas we're glad Porsche didn't advance to the production stage.
The 911 is great, of course....but what if Porsche could make it a bit more practical? Italian design firm Pininfarina attempted that in the late 1960s with the B17. It was a 911 stretched to create a luxurious rear seat that could fit adults.
Luckily, Porsche wisely recognized the proportions were off, and stuck a pin in that idea for the next few decades.
Legendary Italian car designer Giorgetto Giugiaro, the creator of the Mk1 VW Golf, designed the Porsche Tapiro in 1970. While cars like the Porsche 356 and 911 feel timeless. The Tapiro was very much of its time, what with its wedge-shaped design and double gull-wing doors.
Some of this design would end up in Giugiaro's Lotus Espirit, which a fine car...but not a Porsche. And if the Tapiro and Mk1 Golf mated, you would get the Delorean DMC-12, another Giugiaro joint.
What if Porsche decided to be Toyota? That was the basic premise of the FLA concept, which was designed for maximum component longevity over a 20-year lifespan.
Certain improvements from the FLA made their way to the 911, but we're glad Porsche did not start building sensible hatchbacks that sought to eliminate the human from the gear-changing process.
If there was a way to make money in the early-to-mid 1990s, cash-strapped Porsche considered it. They built V8 sedans for Mercedes, and they also built the C88 — a concept for a Chinese government program intended to be a low-cost economy car for Chinese (and potentially other) markets. The car would have been built in China and sported no Porsche badging. But still.
Before the Cayenne Coupe, there was the Cayenne Cabriolet concept. Porsche converted a Cayenne into a two-door, almost Speedster-like convertible. The company was ahead of the curve on the exceptionally niche trend line that led to the Nissan Murano Crosscabriolet and the Range Rover Evoque convertible.
Truth be told, we live in fear that Porsche will revisit this in four-door form, but that people will buy it...and we'll all have to pretend it's normal.
The Porsche 911 Turbo Could Be the Last Car You'd Ever Need
Omaze
Stupendously quick, incredibly fun and remarkably usable, the 911 Turbo is about as close as you can find to a perfect car.
