[Brian]

so i'm under the rear of the car this weekend changing the fuel filter and doing a few routine checks when i noticed a couple brand logos formed right into the transmission housing.



unmistakably, the ringed audi logo and the circle vw logo.



is our transmission made by another company?



i can snap a few pic's if anyone's interested.

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[BruceWard]

It was made by Audi and is used (perhaps with modification) in some Audis as well.

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[flash]

to be more specific, it is made by gettrag for porsche, using an audi case

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[Brian]

hmmmm. i had no idea.

these germans are all in bed together, aren't they?

do we have any other parts from other manufacturers? i hope the engine is porsche!! <img src="/forum/images/smilies/968/smile.gif" class="smilie" alt="" />

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[BruceWard]

Porsche recently applied to become the largest shareholder of VAG (Volkswagen Auto Group) who owns Audi, Bugatti, Bentley, Lamborghini and Seat amongst others.



924s and 944s were built in Audi's Neckarsulm factory.

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[Eric_K]

The 968 tranny is a variant of the Audi 01E, thus the common parts and stampings. The 'bellhousing' casting and input shaft differentiate the 968 version.



Variations of the same box are used in a lot of Audi cars including recent S4, A4, S6, A6's.



For reference see:

http://www.elektro.com/~audi/01E/

or 968 specific:

http://www.elektro.com/~audi/01E/ind3.html



Porsche doesn't "make" a lot of the car, rather assembles parts from a lot of different suppliers. Many of the suppliers, like Getrag, would have ties with other nearby companies. Some have obvious origins, others don't.



The tiptronic was made by Mercedes, was it not?



Eric

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[BruceWard]

Great info, Thanks Eric!

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[flash]

this car is what i lovingly refer to as a frankenporsche



with its chassis roots connected to the bmw 2002, the beetle and rabbit suspensions, audi box, and the other odd miscellany and amalgamation of parts, it is truly an automotive archeologist's dream

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[Brian]

sounds like we should do a family tree for this car.

goes to show you that even back in the 90's the world economy was still cranking along.

if i remember right, our cab brake light is made by gm and the top is also american?



so our cars were made in an audi plant? too bad it didn't cost the same as an audi at the time!



i seem to recall reading that the acquisition of vw shares by porsche caused some controversy because vw is supposed to be owned 'by the people' and having one large share holder violates company principles. there was some magical maximum percentage of shares to be owned by one person?



i also saw a recent show on pbs that porshe (the person) was one of hitler's main allies/friends. apparantly a super nazi that actually had to move away after the war for protection. i'm kind of new to the history, but found it interesting. not sure if i got the facts straight. i only caught the end of the show.

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[flash]

remember, this car was started in the early 70s - it went through a lot from the onset, going up through the 924 all the way to the 968 - they kept as much as they could along the way, and just kept swapping out stuff and calling it a new model - that led to what we have now - danged economical



yes, the cab light is gm

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[BruceWard]

so our cars were made in an audi plant?

Our 968s and some 944 S2s were hand made by Porsche in Stuttgart. The 924s and 944s were built in Neckarsulm.



The Cab conversion was performed by Karmann who had been acquired by American Sunroof Company (ASC).



There is a good but short history of Ferdinand Porsche online at http://www.autohistory.org/feature_6.html .

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[Brian]

thanks for the info, bruce. so we do have a 'real' porsche and not an 'audi' like the older versions...

i'm a sucker for history.

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[BruceWard]

I say that anything designed by the company and wearing the crest is a "Porsche".



The 914 was built by VW as a joint design venture and marketed in the US exclusively by Porsche http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porsche_914



The Boxster is built in Finland.



After you lose a few autocrosses to 914s or late 924s you gain respect for them.



Our 968s were among the first of the 924 line to be built and Stuttgart and also among the last Porsches to be hand built. Beginning with the Boxster and 996 Porsches have been built by machines based on Japanese methods.

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[Eric_K]

Beginning with the Boxster and 996 Porsches have been built by machines based on Japanese methods.

Porsches are still hand assembled, at least the Stuttgart ones are. Take a factory tour, it is quite interesting. The 'just in time' delivery of parts (Japanese method) is cool. Automated robotic carts drive themselves around the factory delivering parts to the assembly line. The human driven fork lifts are cool for the old emblems glued on them. One I saw had 928 GTS on the back - among others.



eeric

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[BruceWard]

Thanks Eric, My wife toured the Museum but unfortunately despite the time i spent working at the other car company in Stuttgart I missed out on the factory tours.

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