Porsche purists derided them, Tom Cruise sank one, and Artz/Nordstadt turned one into a . While the 928 seems to have been the Rodney Dangerfield of Porsches, respects them just the same.

Respect is not something easily afforded to used car dealers, and the one offering yesterday's candidate isn't going to change that any time soon. As pointed out by Dominic, a frequent Jalopnik reader and full time Canadian sleuth, what was purported by the seller to be a was really a cheap knock-off look alike by a company called . As the vast majority of commenters complained that even the real T-Rex lacked desirability at any price, it's surprising that it even has a knock-off. That being said, the trike itself got knocked off with a 76% Crack Pipe vote, and that dealership is getting an angry glare from me.

The Tyrannosaurus Rex was once the most fearsome creature on the planet, but that didn't stop it…

Today's candidate is not glare inducing, and should appeal to a much wider audience than any sort of three-wheel ‘busa death machine. Back in the late ‘60s Porsche started to get an itch to supplant the 911 as their top dog. Anticipating advancing safety and emissions requirements, they eschewed decades of tradition in designing a grand tourer with its engine where previously most Porsches carried their luggage. The resultant 928 debuted at the 1977 Geneva Auto Show with flatworm-emulating headlights and an exaggerated checkerboard seat pattern that looked like something the Mad Hatter might have hallucinated.

This keeps the lights, but ditches the funky seats for leather Recaros. Representing from the first full year of the S4 model run it benefits from that model's uprated 5-litre motor, easier to use single-plate clutch, and styling changes that help aerodynamics and softens the sharkiness of the nose. Some people prefer the earlier car's styling, but there's no denying that the 928 became a better car with each iteration, and by this time it was in possession of super car performance.

That was due to the 316-bhp produced by the DOHC aluminum V8 and, in the case of this car, put down through a five-speed transaxle and passive-steering Weissach rear suspension. That and the 50/50 weight distribution make the 3,500-lb car drive much lighter than it is, but it's still better suited to bombing down the Autobahn than burping from stoplight to stoplight.

As noted, each year brought a progressively better 928, and while you could buy an earlier, or less intact one for a lot cheaper than this car's asking, keep in mind that those cars are typically money-sucking bottomless pits with flaking Porsche badges hanging from them. This car looks pristine, and the seller claims an recent maintenance regime including replacement of the timing belt 3,000 miles ago. That's a big plus as it's an expensive job and a belt failure can leave you with a large number of bent valves and conceivably an engine repair bill that's larger than this entire car's price.

The 54K total on the clock is also a plus, but not unexpected if you read the ad as the owner appears to have treated this car with the utmost of respect, including apparently keeping it inside during inclement weather as though it were a sickly child. On the outside of the car itself, only the wheels are not OEM, but neither do they peg the douche-o-meter. If they're not to your taste, he'll throw in the factory alloys too. The rest of the car, from the flip-up wing in back to the stygian color scheme both inside and out, looks like it has been well cared for.

You would think that someone that takes such good care of his car wouldn't be interested in letting it go, and in this case, the seller says he's putting it on the market due to health reasons. That's too bad, but it does give us an opportunity to diagnose his pricing acumen. The seller is asking $18,000 for this 54K 928, and on top of the car he's throwing in some parts and a spare set of rims. As I said, prices for these things are all over the board, but buying a cheap one will almost always end up being a more expensive proposition.

But what about this proposition? For $18,000 would you park this Porsche at your pad? Or does that price put this black beauty in the red?

You decide!

or go if the ad disappears.

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