The supercar might have been a child of the 1960s, but it didn't really seize our imagination until the following decade, when glam rock and the Lamborghini Countach were all we cared about. But if the 1960s was all about free expression and self-indulgence, the 1970s brought us social unrest, an economic meltdown and cars strangled by air-emissions regulations. It makes you wonder how the supercar survived the decade at all.
While most of Europe's car builders hunkered down for the duration of the 1970s, Porsche and Aston Martin surprisingly decided to go big and build supercars meant to rival the exotic midengine cars from Italy. We remember the 1975 Porsche 911 Turbo, which could hit 60 mph in 6 seconds and make 100 mph in 13.2 seconds on the way to a top speed of 155 mph. But do we remember that the 1977 Aston Martin V8 Vantage did 60 mph in 5.4 seconds and hit 100 mph in 13.2 seconds as it went on to a top speed of 170 mph?
When we drive the 1975 Porsche 911 Turbo and the 1977 Aston Martin V8 Vantage now, we discover two car companies thinking very different things. Which suggests that all of us were thinking very different things back in the 1970s, too.
Porsche's Front-Engine Future
It's hard to believe now, but the Porsche 911 was never meant to last beyond 1981. The challenge of U.S. noise- and air-emissions regulations made Porsche believe that the clock was ticking on its air-cooled, rear-engine sports car, especially since the thing had been in production since 1964. The future was thought to be with the front-engine Porsche 928, which would be introduced in 1977. Yet the Porsche 911 continued to be a powerful force on racing tracks of the time once it incorporated the turbocharging technology developed for the 917-10 Can-Am racing car, and turbocharging was very much the most exciting technology of the decade.
With the 1975 Porsche 911 Turbo (the type 930), the Porsche executives in Stuttgart meant to build a homologation special for the turbocharged 934 and 935 racing cars scheduled for introduction in 1976 and maybe sell a few street cars besides. This G-body car had the new, big, federally mandated bumpers; the newly popular wide fenders of the Carrera RS; a large front airdam; and a signature rear spoiler (called a "tea tray" in Britain and a "whale tail" in the U.S.).
The Turbo's 2,994cc horizontally opposed-6 had Bosch K-Jetronic fuel injection and a KKK 3LDZ turbocharger, two technologies made for each other. With 12 psi of boost, you had 250 horsepower at 5,500 rpm, a massive amount of power for the time. A four-speed transmission with stout gears had to be used to withstand the torque load of 253 pound-feet at 4,000 rpm.
Demand for the 1975 Porsche 911 Turbo was so great that the original production run of 500 was swiftly extended into perpetuity. No longer would Porsche be regarded as a manufacturer of mere sports cars; the 911 Turbo was a supercar.
Back to the Future
Today the reputation of the original Porsche 911 Turbo is burdened by two hoary preconceptions. First, it's a 911, so we all know what happens when a rear-engine car is driven rather overambitiously around a corner. And second, the single-turbo setup has throttle lag so dire that you need to send ahead your right foot's intentions in writing to make sure the power will finally arrive at the right moment.
Well, here and now on devious Welsh roads, neither of these applies. Despite our paranoia, the rear of the car behaves itself perfectly. As for throttle lag, the turbo gradually feeds in the power at 3,000 rpm, and below that the 3.0-liter flat-6 is hardly lacking in torque. And aren't turbocharged engines supposed to be quiet? This one certainly isn't, as it has a lumpy, off-beat resonance with a lovely guttural note.
The Turbo also rides a little lumpy at low speed, and it takes a bit to get used to the offset driving position, the floor-mounted pivots for the pedals and the tall shift lever. But as the engine's revs rise, there's a complicated repertoire of vocals, proceeding from bass to a brief V8 impression accompanied by fluttering cam-gear while the KKK turbo gently whistles. When you get serious, the engine howls as the power shoves the 2,513-pound car into the middle distance.
The steering is incredibly light, and there's a brief sensation of numbness on-center from all the steering caster dialed in to make the beast track straight. The brakes are good once you get used to the lack of power assist, but the transmission takes a bit longer to accommodate because you have to mentally adjust to the use of just four widely spaced ratios.
Like many German cars, the Turbo grows on you. The further you press this charismatic engine toward its wailing 6,750-rpm redline, the more you fall for this car. Far from being tricky, aloof or hefty, the Turbo is an education. It's poised and balanced and gives relentless power delivery.
Come Home to England
Compared to the functional muscularity of the Porsche 911, this particular 1981-built iteration of the 1977 Aston Martin V8 Vantage seems beautifully proportioned and detailed in a traditional British way. It inherited much of its styling from William Towns' beautiful DBS of 1967, although dreadful, tacked-on plastic cladding disguises it.
Like the 911 Turbo, the Vantage is really all about its engine, which endured a troubled gestation. Designer Tadek Marek planned it for the DBS and it was dynoed as a 4.8-liter V8 in 1965. Punched out to 5.0 liters, it made 450 hp in the back of the Lola T70 MkIII that ex-F1 champion John Surtees took to the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1967. Finally a fuel-injected DOHC 5,340cc version was revealed in the nose of the 1970 DBS V8, but it was criticized for heavy fuel consumption and a lack of low-down torque, so four two-barrel Weber carburetors made a return in the 1973 DBS.
While the 1970s opened a brave new chapter for Porsche, times were grim for Aston Martin. The glory days of the 1950s and '60s were gone (though the company struggled even then, really), and things were just beginning to progress under new ownership by 1976. Everyone was eager to introduce a new V8-powered car and finally by 1977 it had come together. They did their best to keep from putting much wood in the car's interior — a point of distinction between Aston Martin and Jaguar — but customer demand was too strong.
Classically Super
No official power outputs were released for the 1977 Vantage's 5.3-liter V8, but 430 hp at 5,800 rpm is frequently mentioned. Once you fire it up, you realize why so many have always dreamed of owning an Aston Martin V8. Of course once you take the car up through the cogs, the gearbox proves heavy and obstinate and it won't be rushed, just like those David Brown transmissions of the 1950s that were literally designed for agricultural and industrial applications.
Once a truce is signed with the gearbox, the 3,803-pound V8 Vantage thunders down the road like heavy cavalry charging into battle. The V8 delivers unbridled torque, and it's total and irresistible, tearing at the tarmac with maniacal determination. The beast bellows, and the throttle response is surprisingly crisp and precise for a 1970s power plant all the way up to the redline of 6,250 rpm.
The power-assisted steering is quite light, but it's still positive and direct. This car is far more precise and alert than you would imagine a big bruiser has any right to be. Once you turn into a corner, you become aware of the Vantage's considerable weight, so cornering is done in slow motion. Slow into the corner on the brakes, set up for the apex and let the body settle, and once the car tells you it's happy, then you make with the throttle. A soulful bellow from the engine follows.
There is little clever or complicated about the Vantage, but therein lies its appeal. It is honest, unlike its DB-series predecessors, whose svelte styling was at odds with none-too-dainty dynamics. This Aston is what it is, and it is immense fun.
Choose Your Weapon
Choosing between these two cars is like being asked whether you prefer a good night at the pub or downhill skiing — that's how different they are.
The 1975 Porsche 911 Turbo scores for individuality, great chassis dynamics and an engine that inspires lust. Before the Turbo, the Porsche 911 was just a car, and Porsche reckoned it would soon come to the end of its useful life. In fact, there was no other modern example of a car that had maintained its shape and its appeal over a long life span. Well, maybe the Volkswagen Beetle, but even that car was being replaced by the Volkswagen Golf in 1976.
With turbocharging and extreme performance, the 911 became at once a supercar and an icon, the kind of car that everyone talked about. Though Porsche has stepped away from turbocharged power for the 911 several times, the company finds itself compelled by enthusiasts to bring it back again and again in yet another generation.
Meanwhile, the 1977 Aston Martin V8 Vantage counters the Porsche's supercar message with a beautiful design, hugely charismatic charm and another engine that inspires lust (though sadly it never appeared in the U.S. in extreme-output form). In the 1970s, the excitement about midengine cars like the Ferrari 328 GTB, Lamborghini Countach and even the Lotus Esprit threatened to sweep aside front-engine sports cars, which seemed old-fashioned and irrelevant. Without the presence of the V8 Vantage, we might have missed the revival of the classic front-engine sports car in the 1990s by such cars as the Aston Martin Vanquish, Ferrari 550M and Jaguar XK8, which made the package relevant for a supercar once again.
Before today we didn't really understand the appeal of the Porsche 911 or the Aston Martin V8 Vantage, but now we're in mental gridlock while choosing between the two. Pick the one that's super in the first mile or the one that's super mile after mile? Call us British if you will, but the Aston Martin V8 Vantage is the one for us.
Portions of this content have appeared in foreign print media and are reproduced with permission.
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