Porsche’s New 911 Turbo Packs a 480 hp Punch
This car is the Granddaddy of all sports cars. It’s the big Kahuna, the King of the Hill, the One. After six generations of impressive 911 Turbos, the latest generation has broken the cover, and by the looks of things it was worth the wait. This latest model, which will debut at the Geneva Motor Show this February, will be the fastest, most powerful to date, and adds another exciting chapter to the fantastic Porsche 911 Turbo history book.
For a Porsche Turbo, the latest 997-type is more understated than over the top. The vast majority of exterior changes take place below the waist and include typical aerodynamic and performance-inspired exchanges. The 997-type 911 Turbo sports a front valance with gaping intakes segmented by LED cornering lamps and offset by tiny projector foglamps. Around the rear, the 911’s haunches have swollen up, punctuated by vents and slashed with grates to cool the brakes and feed the charge-air intercooler; nothing conceptually new here. Overall, the car is 22 mm (0.9 in.) wider than the previous generation, a gain present for no other purpose than to provide a manhandling grip of the road, no matter the conditions. And though the trademark ‘Whale Tail’ from the air-cooled 911 Turbos has diminished in size compared to years prior. No worries as far as aerodynamics though, as the smaller active wing does an even better job at keeping the tail glued to the ground.
When it comes to such a monumental vehicle as the 911 Turbo, what matters isn’t the way that the exterior looks, or, what kind of changes were made to the interior (of which there are none of great importance over the new 997 although many compared to the previous 996-based Turbo): it’s the engine that’s the centre of the conversation, the masterpiece of modern engineering that, in defiance of all conventional wisdom, continues to sit at the very back of the vehicle.
The flagship Porsche’s engine is a 3.6-litre turbocharged horizontally opposed six-cylinder that generates 480-horsepower and 457 lb-ft of torque, which, all things considered, should make for a good discussion piece. Not only is this motor 60-hp more powerful than the outgoing 911 Turbo, but it’s also more efficient and more responsive thanks to a variable vein geometry turbo (see automotive news section of this website for November 16, 2005: Porsche Celebrates 100 Years of Turbochargers with Innovative New Turbo Technology), the first of its kind applied to a gasoline-powered vehicle.
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