Porsche Hones the Perfect 911 The place: California Speedway, Orange, CA. The car: Porsche's new 911 Carrera S. Well actually, Porsche had a great many more
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| The place: California Speedway, Orange, CA. The car: Porsche's new 911 Carrera S. (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press) |
models available to those present at its West Coast track day, one being the breathtaking Carrera GT, but being that I'm more experienced behind the wheel of a 911, the new
911 Carrera S quickly became my favourite of the day. What makes it so good? It's a combination of attributes, starting with the car's uncanny balance. It doesn't make sense, really, how a rear-engine car can defy physics and handle better than the majority of front- and mid-engine sports cars, but through decades of development Porsche has managed to do just that. First of all, a little background about the new model.
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| The new 911 Carrera S output is up considerably over the standard 325-horsepower Carrera, to 355-horsepower. (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press) |
Engine output is up considerably over the standard 325-horsepower Carrera, to 355-horsepower. And there's no turbo involved either. The power comes on immediately, thanks to an additional 20 lb-ft of torque over the standard 911, for 295. What makes the difference? Well, 200 cc's of displacement for starters, the new engine being a 3.8-litre unit compared to the standard engine's 3.6-litres. The upgraded engine comes standard with a six-speed manual transmission, while a five-speed automatic with thumb-actuated buttons on the steering wheel spokes is optional.