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The Porsche 914 was an automobile built collaboratively by Volkswagen and Porsche from 1969 through 1976. VW/Porsche originally intended it to be sold in four cylinder trim as a Volkswagen, to be the top-spec VW sports car, and in six cylinder trim as a Porsche, to be Porsche's entry level car, replacing the 912. However, Porsche decided during development that having VW and Porsche models sharing the same body would be risky for business in the U.S. market, and convinced VW to allow them to sell both versions as Porsches in North America. Volkswagen versions originally came with a fuel-injected 1.7 litre flat-4 engine based on the unit that powered the 411 and 412 saloon cars, although 1.8 and 2.0 litre engines became avaliable as time went on. Porsche's 914/6 variant came with a carburated 2.0 litre flat six cylinder engine, taken from the 911S. VW manufactured the rolling chassis at their own plant, then either sent them to Porsche for fitment of the Porsche suspension and flat-six engine or kept them in house for their own hardware. Karmann manufactured the bodies, including the targa-top system. Porsche handled export to the U.S., where both versions were badged and sold as Porsches. Many enthusiasts regard this as having been a big mistake on Porsche's part. 914 production ended in 1976, two years prior to the introduction of it's eventual replacment, the 924. Porsche reused the 912, in an updated form called 912E, to fill the gap.
The 914 was Motor Trend's Import Car of the Year for 1970.
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