Porsche 911 Video Reviews

Yes, this new 911 is technically a midlife update, but the changes here go beyond skin deep. Leading the charge, so to speak, is the introduction of a hybrid option for first time, with the 911 Carrera GTS debuting a new t-hybrid powertrain that dials up the performance. But it also fundamentally alters everything we’ve come to know, and love, about the 911. But is it a change for the better?

It was a hit in the '991' series Porsche 911 and it's back for the '992' generation. The Carrera T is a lightened and tweaked version of this iconic two-door sports coupe with a focus on a pure, enjoyable driving experience. Has it hit the bullseye again?

You're never going to mistake it for anything but a Porsche 911, but this eighth-generation version of one of the world's most iconic sports car is all-new, and all-brilliant.

The latest 911 to come to market is the best of the bunch. The GTS, a more powerful, more pretty version of the Carrera S that hits the 911 sweet spot like a perfectly played tennis forehand.

The track focused Porsche 911, the GT3, is up against the the fastest ever Aston, the V12 Vantage S.

You've probably seen and heard a lot about the new Jaguar F-Type but how would it compare on a track battle against arguably the most capable convertible sports car money can buy?

This is only the third totally new 911 platform since the model started decades ago. The S gets a higher level of standard kit that includes six pot brakes and other goodies.We got to drive the manual Carrera Cabrio and the S with PDK and frankly, prefer the PDK because it's a more engaging drive and has much quicker gear changes. You can also hold onto the wheel with both hands all the time - a distinct benefit at 200kmh plus on the racetrack. Purists will probably like the manual.TECHNOLOGYIt's a rear drive naturally aspirated sports car with the latest technology and thinking Porsche has to offer. That includes a downsized 3.4-litre flat six in the Carrera (with more power and torque rated at 257kW/390Nm) and a power enhanced 3.8-litre flat six in the S model rated at 294kW/440Nm. Redline in both engines is up by 300rpm to 7800.The direct injection engines are a development of the previous 997 model with revised gas flow, reduced friction, ignition upgrade, integrated stop/start, quicker throttle action and earlier torque peak. And like the coupe, there's a choice of seven-speed manual (the first of its kind) and a seven-speed dual clutch PDK manumatic.DESIGNAs you'd expect, the new 911's dynamics are finely honed making it a better thing to drive in all environments - including at the limit on a race track. The body is a hybrid of aluminium and steel and helps make the new model some 45-60kg lighter than the previous 911 Cabrio.It sits 5mm lower has, a 100mm longer wheelbase, wider track, is stiffer and more aerodynamically efficient. The soft top can be deployed at speeds up to 50kmh and it takes around 13 seconds.DRIVEHowling down the long, sloping straight at Sydney Motorsport Park (formerly Eastern Creek) sees 220 - 230kmh click over on the Porsche Carrera Cabriolet speedo. It's seriously fast when you have to peel off left into the big sweeper at the end.But the straight also served to demonstrate just how far soft top "cabriolets" have come in terms of roof integrity. With the roof up, you simply can't tell this is a soft top sports car, even at extremely high speed. There's no bulging, flapping or whooshing as you might expect from lesser brands.No, the 911 Cabrio is tight as a drum at any speed and that applies to water too. It has a clever magnesium frame with three support panels guaranteeing a smooth, tight roofline that mimics the lines of the Carrera coupe almost exactly.Then of course, you can take down the roof and enjoy the climate "au naturale" bat the same speeds but with a degree of buffeting. This is the 991 version of the Porsche 911 Carrera Cabriolet and it arrives not long after the tin top coupe models in the same Carrera and Carrera S variants -- for the time being.The PDK is faster in both models by a couple of tenths over a 0-100kmh sprint and uses only slightly more fuel. That number is an incredible 9.2-litres combined in the Carrera Cabriolet -- in a vehicle with near supercar performance. It will knock off a 0-100kmh sprint in 4.8 seconds with the PDK. The S with PDK does it in 4.5, quicker with the Sports Chrono pack that includes launch control.VERDICTAs expected, the Cabrio is a superb driver's vehicle, engaging, flattering and with that superb flat six howl _ all the better with the roof down.  We love the evolved styling, the luxury interior, the exhaust pop on gear changes -- pretty much everything about this car.

Nobody wants to wreck a winning formula. Especially nobody at Porsche, where the 911 is the heart and soul of the brand, with a devoted fan club and a pedestal spot in sports car history. So it’s no surprise the seventh generation of the car follows the same recipe of all its ancestors since 1963.There’s been some work on weight reduction, adding power and saving fuel. There’s some more techno trickery and clever features. But no extreme changes that might scare off the faithful. They are looking for what Porsche global board sales head Bernhard Maier called at the launch "the icon of our brand".DESIGN As you’d expect, the new Porsche 911 convertible looks pretty much like the old Porsche 911 convertible.But it also now looks more like the coupe in profile, thanks to the line of the new power-retractable soft-top – which includes rigid panels but is lighter and swifter-folding than the current design. It can be opened or closed in 13 seconds at speeds up to 50km/h and has a powered pop-up wind deflector to keep the cabin breezy without being battered.Porsche’s head of 911 product, August Achleitner, says it’s more than ‘closer’ … “It’s exactly the same as the 911 coupe – exactly. This is able to be done because of the hard magnesium panels, which also make it acoustically better,” he says, thumping our car to demonstrate their robustness.The body is slightly lower-slung than the outgoing car, longer and wider – emphasised at the back by taillights trimmed down to horizontal slivers that almost risk a copyright call from Aston Martin. There are new wheels that add an arch-filling inch to give the Carrera 19-in and the Carrera S 20-in.More aluminium and high-strength steels have been used to trim the weight to as low 1450kg, side mirrors have migrated to the doors and the roofline has apparently been lowered by a tiny 5mm. The cabin gets switchgear from the Panamera and a new colour display screen, but the biggest change there are the hefty metal paddles behind the wheel.VALUEThe starter Carrera will be priced from $255,100, with the Carrera S coming in from $288,300. What other cars can you get for the same sort of money? Quite a few.But what can you get with the same combination of performance, handling, engineering integrity and – last but not least – the styling of quiet confidence rather than neurotic attention-seeking? Not many.Jaguar’s XKR Convertible is in the ballpark at $263,000 with restrained style and a thumping supercharged 5.0-litre V8 slotted in after the brand’s shift from Ford to Tata (a move purist decried but which hasn’t seem to do any harm so far). And there’s familiarity to the styling, although in this case it’s because the Jag is due for a makeover.There’s the Aston Martin Vantage V8 Roadster at $274,698 with a 4.7-litre V8, stunning looks and all the cachet of being related to James Bond’s traditional brand of choice. But it’s not as sharp or refined as the Porsche. And touches of Ford here and there will remind you 007 drove a Mondeo too.And you can’t entirely dismiss the4.7-litre V8 Maserati Gran Cabrio, which has arguably one of the loveliest bodies around, but at $328,000 is overpriced without matching the 911’s engineering and performance.Yes, they’re all V8s and the Porsche is an in-line six. But it overdelivers on the value scale.TECHNOLOGYIt carries the same engine line-up as the 911 Coupes that will arrive here in March, but with only slight speed and acceleration penalties.The Carrera S gets a 294kW/440Nm 3.8-litre six-cylinder with top speed pegged at 301km/h (the Coupe ceilings at 304km/h) and 0-100 sprint of 4.7 seconds with the seven-speed manual transmission, and 299km/h and 4.5secs with the PDK dual-clutch manumatic.The Carrera gets a 257kW/390Nm 3.4-litre six that promises a top speed of 286km/h and 0-100 sprint of 5 seconds with the manual, and 284km/h and 4.8secs with the PDK.Efficency measures include a stop-start system and mean fuel consumption – if that’s going to worry anybody driving this car – starts from a claimed 8.4L/100km for the Carrera with PDK. But even the thirstiest official figure on the sheet is reasonably modest at 9.7L for the manual S.SAFETYIt gets six airbags, anti-skid brakes with all the extras, stability and traction controls.  Add in the new torque-vectoring differential -- which modulates braking on the inside wheel when cornering -- and increased side-impact protection, and you can judge it as having five-star safety.DRIVINGIt’s just about everything you could ask for in a sports convertible. And then, it’s also everything you could ask for in a relaxed cruising drive. You don't have to go fast to enjoy it, and it simply seems even more tractable – so much so, old-school purists might argue it’s lost a bit of soul. It hasn’t.The first thing you notice is how easy the 911 Cabriolet is to drive. We started off in the Carrera S and in a mix of town streets, freeway and tight mountain road – dodging cyclists and the occasional farm truck – the Porsche was always tractable and obliging.The steering is sweet and sharp, and through bends the massive 20-in wheels almost seemed to find their own way as the car switches direction through one bend after another, with barely any impact from the patches of crumbled surface on back roads.Slipping it over to the faux manual side and flicking the paddles sparks bursts of acceleration and glorious sound – snarling and burbling as you play with the gears and throttle.And that’s when you start to notice the second thing – how quiet the cabin is (when you’re not poking a stick through the engine’s bars, that is). Roof up or roof down – and even up to bahnstorming speeds – you’re still able to carry on a conversation without having to yell.Sure, there’s some wind rush in open mode, even with the pop-up deflector in place. But it’s never overbearing.And with the roof up, it’s closer to the coupe in comfort levels and – more importantly perhaps – the looks.VERDICTIt’s quieter, more refined and more tractable, but still has the punch and poise you expect. And it still looks like the previous 911 Cabriolet -- more or less -- but now it feels more like the Coupe.It’s a 911, Jim, and exactly as we know it.

THE all-new Porsche 911 is everything you expect, then more. Actually, it can also be less if you just want to doze along the freeway in seventh - yes, seventh - gear in the latest manual transmission with the engine turning at just 2000 revs.But it's still a sports car to dream about, to tussle and tease along a twisty road, and one of the rare cars to make a memorable entry at your favourite haunt.The new 911 - Porsche people will call it the 991 - is only the third totally new model since the badge hit the road in 1963, and the German sports car maker has gone all-out to ensure it's a landmark.Spending? No-one will say, but it's unlikely there was any change from $800 million.It's just as fast as always, but bigger, more refined, and with the quirkiness of previous generations either removed entirely or damped down almost to Camry levels. And there is lots of efficiency, headlined by better fuel economy and a smaller 3.4-litre engine in the Carrera starter.PRICINGThe first of the new 911s will reach Australia in March, priced from $229,900 for the Carrera or $263,100 for a Carrera S with the larger 3.8-litre engine. The new coupes will be followed quickly by the cabrio - look for pictures on Carsguide next week - and eventually the hero cars including the GT3 track monster and the Turbo in 2013.TECHNOLOGYFor now, work on the 911 is concentrated on a new and lighter body, a cabin with noticeably more space and a dashboard that's been morphed from from the Panamera, with everything from a wider front track and a stretched wheelbase to controversial electric power steering.Engine outputs are 257 kiloWatts/390 Newton-metres for the 3.4 and 294/440 for the 3.8, which means sprint times as quick as 4.3 seconds to 100km/h and a top speed of 304km/h in the S.Fuel consumption can be as little as 8.2 litres/100km and all new 911s have a stop-start system as standard, headlining a suit of efficiency improvements.There is also the seven-speed manual - with an extra leg on the usual H pattern - that shares its casing and basic mechanicals with the quick-shifting PDK twin-clutch manumatic.Other details run from standard wheel sizes up from 19 and 10 inches, with all sorts of options including sports seats, sound systems, leather choices and special luggage. And there is a new hero colour - a creamy brown - called cognac.But it's still a 911, from the body shape to the feedback at the wheel.DRIVINGThe first and most-obvious improvement for anyone who has driven any previous 911 is the elimination of the pitchy, jouncy ride that has always had the front wheels pattering and drumming to any changes in road surface. The improvement is partly in the front suspension, partly in a steering system that eliminates unwanted distractions.The car is also noticeably quieter and there is more room for both of the people in the front. The back? It's not something to test, unless you're younger than five.The performance is as strong as the recent 911s, perhaps a touch better but it's hard to know in the real world, and it still has the mid-range punch and throaty exhaust note that makes the car special.Braking is great, the ride is good, and the new dashboard is simpler to use, although the electronic park brake is hidden below the dash.For me, the multi-adjustable electric seats in the Carrera S are set too high, and the fake-ceramic steering wheel looks a bit cheap. And it's easy to get lost in the new seven-speed manual gearbox, which is also sprung towards the 3-4 plane and means you have to concentrate to go from seven to five.The PDK gearbox is great and my choice now Porsche has paddles, and the sound systems punch.My complaints are mostly very minor stuff and that's no surprise on any 911, and especially not on a ground-up rework.The Porsche people have done everything they can to ensure the car is headed for greatness.They even laid more than two kilometres of smooth new bitumen road at a California airfield to ensure the car would make the best possible impression on the world's motoring press ...VERDICTHow good is the new 911? Very, very good. How good? Ok, I want one.RATING