Few automobiles have the history and prestige Porsche’s 911 commands. After all, the German sports car has been in production since 1963, and over the course of nearly 60 years of production, though the shape has remained faithful to the original design, the Porsche 911 has been surgically altered throughout in order to deliver customers with an experience wholly unique and unquestionably linked to the original. Porsche’s all-new 911 doesn’t deviate, but like all new 911s, it raises the bar of what a sports car is capable of. Let’s dive in.
Porsche’s all-new 911 doesn’t deviate, but like all new 911s, it raises the bar of what a sports car is capable of.
Porsche hasn’t released all of the specs of the new 911 just yet, but it has teased us with a handful of images, power and torque information, and enough to have us chomping on the proverbial bit to get behind the redesigned steering wheel. According to Porsche, Stuttgart’s latest and greatest is an evolution of the last generation 911. Atop the rear axle sits the very familiar turbocharged flat six-cylinder engine. Power gets a bump from the previous model and now sits at 443 horsepower for the S models. Torque hasn’t yet been released, but it should be around 450-470 pound-foot if we had to hazard a guess.
Inside the cabin is a new hybrid dash that includes both an analog tachometer and digital gauges. Gone, however, is the traditional elongated shifter for dual-clutch optioned cars. In its place is a much smaller lever that deletes the option to shift outside the paddle shifters located on the steering wheel. As for the rest of the design, the interior was done from a clean sheet, though it all feels very familiar if you’ve ever been in a 911. Exactly what 911 customers want and Porsche’s design team demand.
The exterior also feels very familiar, but also unique to the new car. Porsche’s designers gave the 992-internally-coded 911 a vibe that’s more reminiscent of the brand’s older generation 911s. The body lines are very early 993-generation 911. That said, Porsche stated that the new 911 was meant to carry a more aggressive and muscular stance, which it does with a wider track width, enhanced wheel arches, a slick new active rear-wing, and a handful of active channels and vents that funnel air through the car to provide cooling and downforce.
Porsche also spared no expense when it comes to technology included either. The new 911 makes use of a suite of driver assistances, including thermal imaging, a new eight-speed dual-clutch transmission, a 10.9-inch infotainment display, Porsche Wet Mode for inclement weather, and adaptive cruise control.
As for price, Porsche hasn’t disclosed the base price for the new 911, but for those that want the uprated Carrera S and 4S, prices start at $113,200 and $120,600 respectively. The new 911 can be ordered right now with deliveries to begin summer of 2019. And though we haven’t yet driven the new 911, we’re sure Porsche has once again kept its heritage close while also pushing the limits of what the legendary sports car is capable of.
