However, the Porsche 959 of the mid-1980s was and is a dream car of mine. It has unique looks. It was a true supercar of its era, with a mid three second 0-60 time and a top speed of nearly 200 mph. It is air-cooled. But what sets it apart from the F40 and other early supercars, was the fact that it was built for the Paris to Dakar offroad rally. Porsche made a special 953 with which they won the race in 1984. From what they learned with the 953, they designed an even better rally car: the 959, and with it they won first and second place in 1986. The fact that the car is both fast and rugged, and can have more ground clearance for off-roading, all in the same vehicle, is simply amazing.
The 8th generation Porsche 911 was introduced in late 2018. It is called the Porsche 992, and it comes very close to the 959, some thirty years later, power-wise, and with an even better all-wheel drive setup. However, the 992 has low ground clearance and is not at all designed to go offroad.
The Porsche 911 Dakar, announced in late 2022, is the true modern equivalent of the 959 rally cars, but is PDK only. Its top speed is much lower than the 959 due to tire choices. It has 30mm lift systems front and rear, as well as an extra 50mm lift. It has rear-wheel steering, and two new modes: Off-Road & Rallye. It really needs a much larger fuel tank like the 959 has, but otherwise it comes close.
Here are their specifications to compare.
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Spec | 1987 Porsche 959 | 2022 Porsche 911 Carrera 4S | 2022 Porsche 911 Dakar |
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| Model | 959 | 992 | 992 |
| Engine | flat-6, dual turbocharged | flat-6, dual turbocharged | flat-6, dual turbocharged |
| Displacement | 2850 cc | 2981 cc | 2981 cc |
| Bore/Stroke | 95 mm / 67 mm | 91 mm / 76.4 mm | 91 mm / 76.4 mm |
| Horsepower | 330 kw (450 PS) @ 6500 RPM | 331 kW (450 PS) @ 6500 RPM | 353 kW (480 PS) @ 6500 RPM |
| Torque | 500 Nm (369 ft*lbf) @ 5000 RPM | 530 Nm (391 ft*lbf) @ 2300-5000 RPM | 570 Nm (420 ft*lbf) @ 2300-5000 RPM |
| Compression Ratio | 8.3:1 | 10.2:1 | 10.2:1 |
| Redline | 7600 RPM | 7500 RPM | 7500 RPM |
| Electrical | 12 V 66 Ah battery, 1610 W alternator | 12 V 80 Ah battery, 2940 W alternator | 12 V 80 Ah battery, 2940 W alternator |
| Drive | All wheel drive, ABS | All wheel drive, ABS, PSM, PTM, PTV+ | All wheel drive, ABS, PSM, PTM, PTV+ |
| Transmission | 6-speed manual | 7-speed manual or 8-speed PDK | 8-speed PDK |
| Suspension | Comfort or Sport modes | Active suspension managment (PASM) | Active suspension managment (PASM) |
| Suspension Front | Coil springs, double wishbones | McPherson struts | McPherson struts |
| Suspension Rear | Coil springs, double wishbones | Multilink | Multilink |
| Brakes | 322 x 32 mm front, 304 x 28 mm rear | 350 x 34 mm front, 350 x 28 mm rear | 350 x 34 mm front, 350 x 28 mm rear |
| Wheels | 8J x 17 front, 10J x 17 rear | 8.5 x 20 front, 11.5 x 21 rear | 8.0 x 19 front, 11.5 x 20 rear |
| Tires | 235/45 R17 front, 255/40 R17 rear | 245/35 R20 front, 305/30 R21 rear | 245/45 R19 front, 295/40 R20 rear |
| Length | 4260 mm | 4519 mm | 4530 mm |
| Width | 1840 mm | 1852 mm | 1864 mm |
| Height | 1280 mm | 1301 mm manual, 1299 mm PDK | 1338 mm |
| Wheelbase | 2300 mm | 2450 mm | 2450 mm |
| Track | 1504 mm front, 1550 mm rear | 1589 mm front, 1557 mm rear | 1617 mm front, 1572 mm rear |
| Ground clearance | 120 mm, 150 mm, 180 mm - adjustable | 124 mm | 161 mm, 191 mm - adjustable |
| Turning circle | 11.1 m | 11.2 m | 10.7 m |
| Trunk space | 135 l trunk, 163 l rear area, 298 l total | 132 l trunk, 163 l rear seats, 295 l total | 132 l trunk, 163 l rear area, 295 l total |
| Fuel tank capacity | 90 l, optionally 120 l | 67 l | 67 l |
| Fuel economy city | 17.5 l/100 km | 18.6 l/100km manual, 18.4 l/100km PDK | 15.1 l/100km |
| Fuel economy highway | 9.3 l/100 km | 8.9 l/100km manual, 9.6 l/100km PDK | 7.8 l/100km |
| Fuel economy overall | 10.7 l/100 km | 10.6 l/100km manual, 10.9 l/100km PDK | 10.5 l/100km |
| 90% highway range | 871 km, optionally 1161 km | 677 km manual, 628 km PDK | 773 km |
| Aero Cd | 0.31 | 0.29 | 0.35 |
| Weight DIN | 1450 kg | 1600 kg manual, 1635 kg PDK | 1605 kg |
| Top speed | 315 km/h | 304 km/h | 240 km/h |
| 0-100 km/h | 3.9 s | 4.4 s manual, 3.8 s PDK | 3.2 s |
| 0-200 km/h | 13.3 s | 14.2 s manual, 13.4 s PDK | 12.0 s |
| Stopping from 100 km/h | 39 m | 30.7 m | - |
| Stopping from 190 km/h | 153 m | 52.9 m | - |
| Price | $225K new, $2M today | $137K or 140K Euros | $223K |
Created: 21 Jan 2023 Modified: 21 Jan 2023