The Porsche 924, 944, and 968 were never meant to be Porsches. This lineup started as a consulting gig for Volkswagen, code named EA425. Which was to be sold as an Audi or VW.

VW killed the project, leaving Porsche without one of the two prongs for its 911 replacement, the 4-cylinder transaxle 924 and the V-8 928.

So Porsche bought the rights to the project, applied an arbitrary "924" badge to the EA425, and Audi built it under contract for Porsche in Neckarsulm.

There wasn't a single Porsche part on it.

However, over time, the 924 became the 924S and the 944, with a real Porsche engine, rather than the old Daimler-inspired, Audi-built 2.0-liter from the VW LT transit van.

By the end of the car's 20-year run, the 968 had the second interior, second engine, third body — but still used suspension components designed for the Super Beetle (VW Type 1 1302), Mk1 Golf / Rabbit, Microbus, and Thing.

And yet it won awards for its handling. That is something only Porsche could accomplish — taking a flawed design and honing it to perfection over decades.

If there was ever a real measure of a true Porsche, that's it. And thus, the 924, 944, and 968 weren't born Porsches. But they very much became real Porsches.

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