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Porsche (pronounced Pour-sha). Image. Status. A car that dreams are madeof, if only the Walter Mitty type, because a Porsche isn`t for everyone.

Price dictates who owns and who stands back and admires. The 911 startsat $31,900; the 944 at $22,950.

We test drove both. A turbo model is new for `86 in both series, but wedrove the versions without a turbo. Even without a turbo, the 911 packs power.But it has sheetmetal only a sports-car devotee could love.

The 944 without a turbo lacks the punch of a 911 but has far more pizazzin styling. The best of both worlds, you could argue, would be a 944 with the performance of a 911–or the 944 with the turbo.

The 911 is more venerable but at the same time vulnerable. The 911 is acar for the weekend; the 944, an everyday machine. The 911 is for theaficionado, the connoisseur, the person who reads–and understands–a NewYorker cartoon. The 944 is for the person who shops at Sears.

“The 911, like the 928, is the second, third or even fourth car in thefamily, the 944 is the primary car,“ said Porsche spokesman John Baker, whonoted that the 944 is the West German automaker`s best-selling car.

The fact that the 944 offers either 5-speed or automatic transmission and the 911 only a 5-speed tells you a lot about the personality of the cars andthe buyers.

The 911 is built on only an 89.5-inch wheelbase and is 168.9 inches long. Just getting into the low-slung car requires a special knack. The fuelinjected 193-cubic-inch 6-cylinder engine will propel you from 0 to 60 milesan hour in 6.3 seconds. Top speed is 146 m.p.h.

The 911 has peculiarities you put up with so you can brag you own one.You proudly point to the 150 m.p.h. speedometer while fighting a finicky 5-speed that has you grumbling before you reach 35 m.p.h.

The 911 is a machine with quarters so cramped that the body twists andtwitches for relief from being squeezed. You welcome turns and corners inorder to downshift, not so much to watch the car perform as to provide somemovement of the body–yours.

For the joy of downshifting into fourth out of a tight turn and kickingthe pedal again, you must accept more than a little road jostling andharshness of ride.

The 944 also is an adventure to enter. It`s built on a longer wheelbase(94.5 inches); perhaps that`s the reason the ride is less harsh as you sita tiny bit further from the wheels, although, it, too, is 168.9 inches long.The 944 is powered by a 151-cubic-inch, fuel-injected 4-cylinder engineclaiming a 0-to-60 m.p.h. time of 8.3 seconds with the 5-speed, 9.8 secondswith automatic and a top speed of 131 m.p.h.

The 944 is the flared fender, low ground-effects rockers, a rear spoilerstyling gem you don`t even have to drive to enjoy. In that respect, it couldbe compared with a Corvette, although to mention that car in the same breathas a Porsche is blasphemy among Porsche fans.

The 944 h as less punch, but a slippery smooth 5-speed. You have to backdown to third in that tight turn before hitting the pedal again, but that`s a small price to pay for the feeling of “more control“ in or out of turns and far less road harshness in the straightaways.

The 911 is available in coupe, targa, cabriolet and turbo models. Theturbo last sold here as the 930 in 1979. The 944 is offered naturallyaspirated and also in turbo version.

The 911 coupe starts at $31,950; the turbo at $48,000. The 944 starts at$22,950 or,–Porsche fans, forgive us–$5,000 less than a Corvette. The 944turbo starts at $29,500.

Porsche has upgraded its general warranty for 1986 to two years,unlimited mileage (up from one year, unlimited mileage in 1985); extended rustperforation coverage to 10 years (up from 7); and added 5 year/50,000 milecoverage on the powertrain.

Still to come is the high-tech 959 that goes on sale in Europe in 1986but in the U.S. in 1987. The 959 is “test bed“ of technology: A 200m.p.h., 400-horsepower machine with 4-wheel drive.