Good morning! Today we have another pair of cars with the most gossamer-thin connections between them: Both of today’s choices have V8 engines, and hail from the 1970s. Apart from that, they have very little in common. But why let that stop us from comparing them?
Yesterday’s front-wheel-drive European coupes were more evenly matched than I expected. In the end, the Italian drop-top won the day, though I expected it to win by more. Like me, a lot of you really would like to know exactly why it isn’t drivable. But I think, when it comes to Italian cars, the fact that it isn’t rusty is more important. Mechanical parts just bolt on; rust repair will drive you insane long before it drains your bank account dry.
Personally, I’d have a really hard time choosing. I’ve always wanted an Italian car, but a Lancia Beta would not be my first choice, or second. (Maybe fourth or fifth.) And the Quantum hatchback isn’t the same as my beloved Scirocco, or the Dasher that my family used to have, but it looks kind of similar if you squint. In the end, Ziggy would probably say there’s about a fifty-four percent likelihood that I’d take the Quantum leap.
Now then: Today is one of those days I expect to be a complete blowout, but we’ll see what happens. Without further ado, I present to you two very different ways of putting eight pistons in two banks ninety degrees apart.
1976 Chrysler Newport – $2,450
Engine/drivetrain: 400 cubic inch overhead valve V8, three-speed automatic, RWD
Location: Eugene, OR
Odometer reading: 74,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives, but needs electrical/steering column work
I did a double-take when I saw this car. One of the most uncomfortable car rides of my life happened in the supremely soft and welcoming interior of a Newport (or maybe New Yorker?) almost exactly like this. I went to Thanksgiving dinner with a girlfriend in college, and her dad and I did not get along. I can’t even remember what I said or did, but he was not happy about his daughter dating the likes of me. But he wasn’t about to come across as petty or unwelcoming, so we went to dinner anyway, all piling into his white two-door Chrysler, driving through a Minnesota snowstorm at precisely 55 miles per hour in complete silence. Good times.
But she ended up breaking my heart anyway, so to hell with what her dad thought. Let’s check out this car. What we have here is the last of the really big Chryslers, before they were downsized in 1979. It is smaller than the model that preceded it, in much the same way that a jackhammer is quieter than a Mötley Crüe concert. It’s still a massive, heavy car. To power such a beast, you need displacement, four hundred cubic inches of it, to be exact. Whatever faults Chrysler may have had in the ’70s, the big-block B engine was not one of them. Nor was the A-727 Torqueflite transmission behind it. This one is in fine operating condition, and breathes through a custom true dual exhaust.
Behind the wheel, things aren’t so rosy. The seat upholstery is toast, and the wiring under the dash “has been butchered,” according to the seller. The windshield wipers are inoperative, and the ignition switch is wired to a good old toggle-switch-and-push-button arrangement. The column-mounted gearshift is also damaged; the seller says the detents are gone and it’s hard to figure out what gear it’s in. Whether these issues are connected to the car’s salvage title they don’t say, but it does sound a bit like a recovered theft.
But it’s big, it’s badass, it’s cheap, it’s rust-free, and you can drive it home, if you can find Drive. They don’t make ’em like this anymore, which is probably a good thing, but I am glad there are still a few around.
1978 Porsche 928 – $4,500
Engine/drivetrain: 4.5 liter overhead cam V8, five-speed manual, RWD
Location: Silver City, NM
Odometer reading: listed as 12345, so probably unknown
Operational status: Runs and drives great
I love finding cars in places they don’t “belong.” In the comments of a recent “Autopian Asks” post, I mentioned seeing a newish Ram pickup street-parked in Paris, just a few blocks from the Louvre. It’s a vehicle that’s as common as dandelions here, but seeing it in that setting made it remarkable. Likewise, a bright red Porsche 928 wouldn’t even raise an eyebrow in the circular driveway outside Caesar’s Palace (or wouldn’t have in the ’80s), but it’s not the sort of car you expect to see someone driving around in the desert. (But then neither is a DeTomaso Mangusta, I suppose.) And yet here it is, outside of the tiny town of Silver City, New Mexico.
And if the seller is to be believed, it runs beautifully. It has had recent work on the fuel system, and wears new tires. The seller claims to have driven it back and forth to California “many times.” By all accounts, the 928 is a wonderful highway car, and the idea of blasting across large swaths of the Southwest in one does hold some appeal for sure. Even better, this one has a proper five-speed manual gearbox instead of the automatic so many American ones were stuck with.
The desert sun has had its way with the clearcoat, and I’m willing to bet that the dash top is a mass of cracks under that carpet cover, but it still has that 928 presence. These weren’t desirable Porsches for a long time, but pretty much anything with a Porsche badge on it is worth something these days. This car seems like a really good deal, considering the market.
It also includes quite a few extra 928 parts, including an engine and a transaxle, fenders, doors, and another set of those “phone-dial” wheels. As expensive as this typical “Porsche Tax” tends to be on parts, any extras thrown in with a car are a welcome sight.
So that’s what we’ve got for today: American king-sized personal luxury versus state-of-the-art-in-its-day German grand touring. Two different ways of making use of the melodious pulse and relentless torque of a V8 engine. Which one do you prefer?
(Image credits: Craigslist sellers)
Trailer Park Boys has given me an appreciation for Newports and New Yorkers. I’ll have to go with the big Chrysler and spend that $2,050 I saved on an interior and a 4bbl to wake up that 400.
The 928 looks appealing. The price isn’t too bad and the extra parts can come in handy or can be sold. The main interesting thing is that this is a manual.
Only about 60k 928s were in total and in 1978 roughly 1300 made it to the US. A large number has to have been the automatic, so this manual is pretty special.
Note you need to invest a lot of to get it back to a good state.
Respray?
Interior?
Engine overhaul?
Clutch?
Suspension?
If all those areas need attention then you’ll need to bring easily another $10k or even more.
Note 1978 is the first year of this car.
https://www.stuttcars.com/porsche-928-production-numbers/
https://drivecult.com/articles/931/finding-the-perfect-manual-porsche-928.html
Would honestly lean Chrysler but for the hot-wiring aftermath. That’s too much bother for a car that has presence but not much more going for it.
This was an easy decision, but in another context the Newport would be a fine choice. The extra parts with the 928 could lead to some bartering fun when it comes time to replace the dash.
I had a ’76 Dodge Monaco, same platform as the Newport here. It was a great car, but I’m not sure this one is.
If the mechanicals on the 928 are as good as the seller says, then the trashed bits don’t matter. If it runs, and runs reliably, it’s a steal.
The Newp almost won the day strictly because of those Castillian seats, but … woof, that one is gonna be some WORK.
We’ll take the 928 — right to Maaco for new paint.
Something strange about the 928 ad. “This is a car that started in California, then El Paso to Silver.” It has AZ plates on it? I still want it though
Damn, I really wanted to vote for the yacht, but the extra parts with 928 plus the opportunity to get “NO SUB” license plates just made the Porsche too good to pass up.
So, Mark, please make this Friday a loser’s second chance!
The Newport is temping in a weird way, but hell if I have anywhere to put that thing. Not only am I not certain it’s width would fit into my single car garage, but even though I have an extended garage with workspace in the back? I’m not sure even the length would fit. It’s over two feet longer than my van!
These cars made a lot more sense dimensionally (sort of) when (intentional) single car households were more common.
Where the hell is the “both” option today?
Picked the land yacht because the long door reminded me of the neighbor’s 72 metallic green 2 door Caprice, which also had a 400 under the hood.
I really want that Porsche too. My only Porsche experience was briefly owning a 914 parts car.
I bought my 951 for not much more than that. It, too, came with a complete extra engine (minus the turbo). I completely gutted the interior and rebuilt… most of the car.
I’ll take the 928.
Too bad it’s not an S4…
Off topic… that car didn’t originally have a clear coat. Guards Red paint was a single-stage enamel at that point in time. Too bad it has one now. The single stage can be cut and polished.
Edit… good thing that thing isn’t anywhere close to me. I’d have a lot of explaining to do to my wife…
I got my 951 for even less and spent 5 years doing the same as you. I was looking at a euro 928 in Wisconsin at the same time, but that one got scooped before I could get it. This also has me wondering what my apology would be for bringing it home…
A long while back, a coworker bought a red 928 on Ebay. It was a great cruiser. This one comes with some great spare parts too. I’d be all over this if I were still in the SW. I know it’s strange, but I really like this body style for some reason. Give me the 928 please.
I voted Porsche, but this is what I’d rather do:
1) buy the Chrysler
2) drive it to NM
3) buy the Porsche
4) put the extra engine and other parts in the trunk/back seat of the Newport
5) put the Porsche on a trailer and tow it back home.
6) sell the Chrysler for parts and fix up the 928.
Hmm. Would I rather cruise to a jazz festival while enjoying a cool, full flavored menthol cigarette in the pampered isolation of a rolling zip code, or play with my stick in a shifty, faded, scarlet hussy that likes nothing more than a mad dash through the desert night. I’ll take the Teutonic tramp.
Well said!
Would you be smoking a pack of Newports while on the way to the Newport Jazz Festival while riding in your Chrysler Newport? Just curious.
Affirmative
Porsche please. The Chrysler might be worth $1,500 if you plan to pull the powertrain for your Mopar project car.
That 928 is a steal, especially with all the extras. I’d like both, tbh.
I totally wanted to vote against the Porsche knowing their nightmarish systems of that age (dry rot, vacuum based systems) or sketchy German electrical.
But “runs great” would make me thing a decent re-paint to fix that clear coat and it could be flipped rather easily – or driven around as-is (depending on what that dash looks like)
That Chrysler needs work to make it liveable & driveable. Adding salvage on top, urgh. No.
I went with land barge because
1) I already have a small sportscar
2) I’ve always loved the sheer decadence of cars a block long with only 2 doors.
Buy one Porsche, get an extra engine for free! Who can turn down a deal like that?
Im biased, because I’m a total Parsh fanboy and the 928 is one of my favorite designs of all time…but this is also an absurd deal. A running, manual 928 for under 5 grand is unheard of. I’m sure there’s some fine print not listed in the ad, but that’s firmly Fuck It money for a real, desirably, historically significant Porsche.
One of us needs to buy this, and fast. Budget an extra few grand to bring the body and interior up to snuff, do the basic tune up type stuff, and you have a real conversation piece on your hands for 4 figures. If this was anywhere near me I’d have wired the money already.
The 928 was my childhood dream car, so I’d have to pick it even if all I could do with it is sit in the driveway and make broom-broom noises.
Ditto. My neighbor a couple of years ago had one that he would drive maybe once a week. He was so proud of it and worried that one day it’d stop running and he wouldn’t be able to find or afford parts.
I can’t believe I picked the Porsche, but running, driving, and a whole pile-o-parts? Even if it all goes wrong, and I end up a U-Boat commander, parting it out would come pretty close to making me whole.
And to get the Newport into regular service would likely cost as much as buying the Porsche, but let’s be honest, it would be much less fun to drive.
I don’t honestly believe the seller of that Parsh that it runs and drives excellent. And even if it does, I wouldn’t be able to drive it without the knowledge that something catastrophically expensive and/or difficult to fix is likely to fail at any moment.
That Chrysler, for all it’s foibles, THAT I can fix with my stupid meat hooks, a claw hammer, and a wire stripper/crimper from Hobo Freight.
Porsche and the extra parts for me please and thank you.
I’ve always wanted a 928, even though I know it’d drain my bank account before I could truly trust it on a road trip it’s my pick.
Plus, can you imagine trying to park that Newport anywhere?