The story
Car and Driver called the 959’s engine essentially a domesticated version of the 962’s racing powerhouse: a 2849-cc flat-six with four overhead cams, 24 valves and twin turbochargers making 444 hp at 6,500 rpm and 369 lb-ft. The turbos are staged, so at low rpm all of the exhaust runs through just one turbocharger to bring it up to speed quickly. Power goes through a six-speed manual to a programmable four-wheel-drive system.
At the Hockenheim-Ring, with the four-wheel drive locked and the clutch dropped at 7,000 rpm, the 3,500-pound 959 reached 60 mph in 3.6 seconds and 100 mph in 8.8, and ran the quarter-mile in 12.0 seconds at 116 mph. Its 190-mph top speed was the highest top end the magazine had ever measured. Price as tested: $227,000 (West Germany).
Sources: Car and Driver, Tested: 1987 Porsche 959.