Did the Movie Risky Business Have Any Impact on Porsche 928 Sales?

Back in 1983, Hollywood released a film that would go down in history as one of the quintessential coming-of-age stories of the decade: Risky Business. The film, starring Tom Cruise, was anything but ordinary, and it featured several iconic automotive scenes, including a memorable scene where the protagonist, Joel Goodson, drives a Porsche 928. Given the high profile of the car, many fans of the movie and car enthusiasts started wondering: did the film have any impact on the sales of Porsche 928s?

The Role of the Porsche 928 in the Film

Tom Cruise's character, Joel Goodson, is seen driving a red Porsche 928 early in the movie. The car plays a significant role in the plot, as Joel smashes it into a wall, causing a commotion. This scene, though intense, does not come without its inaccuracies. In reality, any car submerged over the dashboard would be totaled, rendering it completely unsafe. The film, while entertaining, presents a distorted version of car behavior.

Reality Check: Actual Cost of a Porsche 928

At the time of the film's release, a new Porsche 928 cost around $35,000. This was a substantial amount of money, even by today's standards. Given the cost, it is unlikely that a character would simply discard a car during a movie. In the real world, such an action would be far more economically unfeasible. Joel, as a fictional character, could afford to pay less to replace the car instead of getting it repaired, making the scene highly improbable in reality.

Impact on Sales: A Myth or a Reality?

Several factors point to the fact that the movie Risky Business had limited, if any, impact on the sales of Porsche 928s:

The film was released in 1983, a time when high-end cars were already a status symbol. The Porsche 928 had been on the market since 1978 and was already well-known by the time the film was made. Any potential interest from the movie would have been a minor factor in the overall sales figures. The Porsche 928, while expensive, was a niche product. Sales of high-end sports cars were already driven by the luxury market's interest in performance and exclusivity. A movie was not likely to significantly change that dynamic, especially not for a car priced at over $30,000. Economic conditions of the time played a larger role in car sales. The economic recession of the early 1980s and the subsequent economic boom in the late 80s and 90s had a more significant impact on car sales than a single movie can.

Conclusion

While the Porsche 928 in Risky Business was undoubtedly a memorable scene, it is unlikely to have had a significant impact on the car's sales. The cost of such a vehicle, combined with the Hollywood-driven inaccuracies of the scene, make it highly improbable that the movie would have had a substantial influence on the sales of Porsche 928s.

The Porsche 928, with its own unique appeal, was already a favorite among enthusiasts before the movie was released, and its popularity continued to thrive for years after. The real reason behind its sales was the intangible allure of owning a high-performance sports car from Porsche, a brand that had already established a reputation for excellence.