1989 Porsche 930 Slantnose

Porsche love affair with the turbocharger dates to the 60s with the 911 under the watchful eye of Porsche’s racing director, Ferdinand Piech with results that were, initially, disappointing.

Fast forward to 1972 when Ernest Fuhrmann, father of the 4-cam engines of the 1950-60s, had a 2.7 liter version built and installed in his personal 911 which, then, led to a prototype of the 930 displayed at the Frankfurt Auto Show in 1973.

The first production 930 was a 1975 model introduced in Europe, migrating to the U.S. in 1976 but handicapped with emission issues constrained the output to a mere 234 horsepower. Because of U.S. emission policies, the 930 took a circuitous sales path from 1975 to 1986. Reintroduced in the U.S. and Canada in 1986, the 930 became the ultimate road warrior for Porsche.

Enter the Slantnose. While 930s are not rare (20,000+ between ’75 and ’89) the Slantnose is exclusive. Of the 1,945 930s imported to the U.S. in 1989, only 34 were Slantnose Coupes. Mimicking the aggressive appearance of the 935 Factory racer, by 1987 demand was sufficient to make the “nose” conversion a Factory option. The cost: a staggering $40,000 added to the base 930 of $70,000. Dubbed the M505 option, these cars became highly sought after, especially the 1989 model.

The 1989 930 model is the most desired because it included a 5-speed Getrag G50 gear box, a marked improvement over the Type 915 unit, which had one less forward gear and was insufficient in handling the torque of the turbo. The G50 turbo would be a single year only. The 930 died in 1990 due to U.S. emission standards.

The performance of the 930 was impressive with 0-60 times in the 5.3 second range with a top speed of 169 mph, despite weighing 300 more pounds than a 911. Somewhat “tail happy”, road testers enjoyed the car’s straight line performance over executing sweepers and slaloms. The extra weight created some serious oversteer.

The 930 featured here is displaying 42,578 miles.