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Prettiest Porsche 911s—The Sliding-Glass Targas

Inspired by a concept car that many called ugly, the Type 993 Targa brought striking new style and function to the 911. On offer through two more Carrera ranges, these distinctive Targas continue to reward their fortunate drivers and passengers.

The sun might be setting but a new day for Porsche was beginning with its launch of the Type 993 Targa in its 911 Carrera range. Targas were back with a beautiful bang.

When Ulrich Bez returned from BMW to Porsche to become its technical board director in October 1988, he found a senior management that thought the 911 had outworn its welcome. “The general view when I came was that we should do something new,” said Bez, “to make a new car.” This meant not a new 911, rather a new automobile.

After the flurry of decision-making that had marked Ernst Fuhrmann’s reign, Porsche had simply pressed on with variants of the cars that he and Helmuth Bott created. The traditional surrogate for the Porsche customer, Ferry Porsche, turned 79 in the month before Ulrich Bez took office. While Bez took care to cultivate his counsel and support, Ferry could no longer assume his traditional role as the company’s touchstone for new design concepts.