PORSCHE 911
PORSCHE 911 FROM $217,800
The 2016 Porsche 911, a crucial update of the 2012 991 series, which premieres a twin-turbo 3.0-litre drivetrain, opens at $217,800 for the Carrera coupe with a sevenspeed manual. Carrera cabriolet is $239,300.
The very desirable Carrera S coupe will set you back $252,800. Carrera S cabriolet is $274,300.
All-wheel drive Carrera 4 coupe/cabriolet cost $233,900/$255,400; Carrera 4S prices are $269,000/$290,500.
With the new 3.0-litre twinturbo engine, the 911 Carrera gains more power and torque, plus lower emissions and claimed fuel efficiency improvements of around 12 per cent.
Carrera now produces 272kW of power and Carrera S 309kW – both peak at 6500rpm, 900rpm below the naturally-aspirated engines, with redline now set at 7500rpm.
Power gains are incremental (15kW in both variants), however torque is the big winner in the shift to turbocharging. Peak torque in Carrera rises from 390Nm to 450Nm, and every one of those Newtons is at your disposal from 1700–5000rpm. The naturallyaspirated 3.4-litre engine didn’t deliver peak torque until 5600rpm.
Carrera S now generates 500Nm, up from 440Nm in the 3.8, across the same 1700– 5000rpm range.
PDK is a $5950 option almost every buyer ticks. The manual is 0.4 seconds slower to 100km/h because a human can’t change gears as fast or as smoothly as PDK, which also produces better fuel numbers than the manual.
Taller gearing exploits the torque-laden turbo’s wider spread of usable performance, so in most situations you’re now typically a gear or two higher than in the naturally-aspirated models. You also use about half as much right foot to get comparable go-forward from low revs.
The downside is that across the upper midrange and top end, where the atmo engines were happy and glorious, the turbo doesn’t have the same crispness or immediacy of response.
The drive mode switch for the Sports Chrono option ($4790) now lives on the steering wheel, Ferrari Manettino-style, and on PDK-equipped cars features a central button that you push for “enhanced sprinting readiness.” That’s Porsche code for kicking down a couple of gears and pinning the revs at about 5000rpm, just shy of maximum boost in anticipation of your desire for immediate, ballistic acceleration. It will give you 20 seconds to fire your weapon before reverting to cruise mode.
This 911 is all about the engine, so other updates are few. The infotainment system features a slick, sensitive seven-inch touchscreen, faster navigation and voice control, Wi-Fiphone connectivity, wireless charging and Apple CarPlay.
I couldn’t pick any significant change in dynamics. PASM adaptive dampers are standard on both models. Carrera S gets wider rear wheels with fatter 305/30-20 tyres, so its preternatural rear end grip on the bitumen is even more difficult to shake. Porsche has progressively improved the ride with each 911 and this one is the most compliant and comfortable to date. The cabin is also much quieter than previously and on a long drive the car is all the more pleasant for it.
The 2016 model demonstrated that as an out-of-the-box, everyday sports car that can also operate under extreme pressure, the 911 still has no peer — unless you crave raucous, responsive top-end atmo power, in which case you will probably prefer a low-kilometre 3.8-litre 2015 Carrera S.
THINGS WE LIKE
✔ Still a real 911
✔ Smooth, effortless turbo grunt
✔ Fabulous handling
✔ Built to the highest quality and reliability standards
✔ The most comfortable, refined 911 yet
THINGS YOU MIGHT NOT LIKE
✘ Atmo engine top end kick and responsiveness are gone
✘ It doesn’t howl like a it used to, either
✘ You’ll pay about $45,000 in luxury car tax on Carrera S
✘ Will it have the same desirability factor and resale values as its nonturbo predecessors?
SPEX (Carrera S PDK)
• Made in Germany
• 3.0-litre twin turbo flat six/seven-speed automated manual/rear-wheel drive
• 309kW of power at 6500rpm/500Nm of torque from 1700–5000rpm
• 0–100km/h in 3.9 seconds (claimed, with Sport Plus; Carrera 4.2 seconds)
• 7.7L/100km highway; 10.1L/100km city; 98 octane premium; CO2 emissions are 199g/km
• Warranty: Two years/unlimited kilometres
• Standard: Six airbags, stability control, partial leather upholstery, 20-inch alloys, PASM adaptive dampers, Bluetooth, digital radio, Apple CarPlay, navigation, camera, tyre pressure monitoring, metallic paint
• Redbook future values: 3yr: 58%; 5yr: 45%
compare with ...Jaguar F Type, Mercedes AMG GT S, Nissan GTR
PORSCHE MACAN FROM $91,900
Porsche’s 190kW/580Nm 3.0-litre V6 turbodieselpowered Macan S is $91,900, the 250kW/460Nm 3.0-litre V6 twinturbo petrol version is $93,100, the 265kW/500Nm tuned GTS is $109,500 and the range-topping 294kW/550Nm 3.6-litre twinturbo Macan Turbo is $130,300.
All three variants are fitted with Porsche’s exceptionally slick-shifting seven-speed dual-clutch PDK transmission, permanent all-wheel drive and Off-Road electronic drive modes.
The Macan is more expensive than Audi’s Q5 (with which it shares around 30 per cent of its components), BMW’s X3 or the Range Rover Evoque. But even a cursory glance at its specifications suggests that Porsche offers segment-leading performance, levels of standard of equipment and (generally pricey) option choices.
Porsche’s self-penned “sports car of the (mid-sized) SUV segment” claim is backed up by healthy numbers. For the 0–100km/h sprint, they are 6.3 seconds (diesel S), 5.4 seconds (petrol S) and a scintillating 4.8 seconds (Turbo). The optional Sport Chrono pack, with its launch control and more aggressive drivetrain mapping, shrinks these times by a further 0.2 seconds.
The PDK transmissions perform beautifully and are intuitively mated to any of the available engines, whether you’re cruising to the shops or chasing backroad enjoyment.
The Turbo certainly feels very quick, but the margin of pace between the all-alloy petrol V6s isn’t as wide as one might expect. Both petrol versions are easily capable of antisocial public road velocity with little provocation, and a pace few owners might harness on a regular basis. The surprise sweetie is the diesel. It has 30Nm more torque than the Turbo and is extremely smooth and quiet in operation.
Dynamically, nothing will hang on to the Macan Turbo’s tyre tracks when
