It proved to be the everyday sports car, at the same time bringing the 911 to a whole new level up; still, should you buy one?

Photos: Low Fai Ming

 

Ask any layman on the street to differentiate the previous 997-generation 911 to the new 991 and they’ll probably give you a loud sigh (of the ‘you-are-wasting-my-time’ sort, that is).  And you can't blame them – you have to be hard pressed, a Porsche aficionado, to really identify the key differences between the two.

That is until you view it from the side; the first give away. After all, the 991 was stretched by a further 100mm.

With that said, at least Porsche was wise enough — cos they knew, if they were to do something radical (think F430 to 458 Italia, Murcielago to Aventador), they would lose the plot. The car will not attract its targeted audience: those who enjoy driving and feel connected with the car BUT at the same time, one that’s not too flashy nor too loud. The sort who already past the BMW or Mercedes-Benz phase and looking for something one step up in their (motoring) life.

Kind of predictable, really, but now that I’ve driven it, the new Porsche 911 (in Carrera S guise here) definitely reminds me of the ultimate expression of Porsche’s ethic; it is the highest point, if you like, on a graph which measures driver involvement next to performance.

There are quite a number of tourers out there that you can place next to this particular Porsche: BMW’s 640i Coupe, Mercedes-Benz’s SL350, the Maserati GranTurismo or even to a certain extend, Audi’s S5 Coupe. But please understand this; all of those cars are brilliantly engineered, some of the best money can buy. However they are all also so crushingly competent, you find yourself maybe getting a little bored after a while and, ultimately, they leave you a little cold. The Maserati did that to me.

Aesthetically speaking, the 991 is a handsome piece of work. A new face (although still recognisably 911), nicer alloys (those are 20-inch wrapped in 245/35 R-20 front and rear 295/30 R-20 Pirellis), longer side profiles (apparent particularly from the B-pillar onwards) and a reworked rear (the slit tail lamps just made the rear sexaaay). If Porsche was vain before, they surely did a good job with their scalpels to give you this (FYI, half of the 991 consists of aluminium). It hasn’t ended there though — the widened front track (by 52mm) also gave an imposing stance, good to keep those pesky Hyundai Sonatas off the fastest lane.

Take a look inside and you’ll be surprised how familiar it is. The centre console, adopted from the Panamera/Cayenne, doesn’t look out of place here. In fact, every control button is much easier to reach with this configuration; surprisingly though, those mentioned controls feel no different than the 997’s. Also deserving praise are the tightly screwed fittings. Every gaps are properly shut, the extensively leathered interior together with soft plastics for the dashboard ensuring potential owners do not feel short-changed.

The 18-way seats are downright comfy and supportive, a form of art in Porsche’s case. However if there’s one thing you can nitpick on, it’s how they lack shoulder support especially when you’re driving it hard down a set of twisties. The 911 was never built as a four-seater, more as a 2+2, but the extended wheelbase did ensure extra legroom for rear passengers; although my 7-year old critic (a.k.a daughter) enjoyed the free space between her knee and the front seat, she complained of the rather stiff backrest. That aside, you can rest assure your child’s booster seat or golf club can fit in. It’s boot remains up ahead, and it’s just big enough to fit Seletar in there.

Engineered for driver’s satisfaction, the perfectly sized steering wheel gets a flat-bottom. On it, you do get the usual audio control, paddle-shifter and whatnot, but the coolest bit here is of course the classy strip: it displays what mode you’re currently on - Sport or Sport Plus. Toggle around a little bit more, and you find yourself the g-force meter. And unlike other cars, the 911 doesn’t get a traditional glass sunroof — instead, the aluminium roof will open wide to welcome extra sunlight. Good attention to details, Porsche.

The Carrera S retains the 3.8-liter flat-six, but it does get a power hike. If the 997 made do with 385bhp, the 991 have 400bhp. That’s not all: previously, all 420Nm of torque presents itself at 4,400rpm. Now, there’s 440Nm that kicks in at a higher 5,600rpm - meaning you can queeze more juice. It also translates to a shorter century sprint timing of 4.1 seconds. Figures aside, the car actually feels lazy and sluggish initially. But push it close to 4,000rpm and you suddenly feel the action building up and then, tadaa, you’re way beyond the legal speed limits. Also, Porsche hasn’t forgotten Mother Earth. This 991 is 16% more efficient than the 997 — thanks largely to the engine auto start/stop function and the significant weight difference.

Purists might not like this, but the 7-speed PDK box’ is a gem. It responds quickly and effectively, downshifting when you need it to without a huff. The engine even blips itself when you manually bring a gear down - so yes, you can appear as a real hero while driving this car. If you love hearing the engine singing away in all its glory, push it all the way to the 7,600rpm redline. Ahh… sheer aural pleasure.

Throttle inputs start even as you’re just thinking of pressing your right foot. The nose goes where you point it; quick direction changes are easy. This might be the first 911 to get for itself an electric power steering (‘electro-mechanical’ in Porsche’s words), but by golly, it doesn’t feel that way. Instead, it acts no much different than the hydraulic set-up in the 997’s (weight wise), the key difference only apparent at three-figure speeds whereby you can feel the weight and the steering wheel staying straight.

You know how much grip you have — credit goes to the Porsche Torque Vectoring Plus and active PASM dampers. If you always have the impression that rear-wheel driven Porsches allows you to play hooligan (actually they do), in the case of the 991, it provides more balance and front-end bite. You can provoke it any ways (no traditional handbrake lever, sorry), feel some understeer and then followed by a tinge of oversteer, but the rear will not kick-out. Never. Come to think of it, these nannies allow you to take bends faster and with more surefootedness…

You will have your own opinion, but the 991’s looks have received a general thumbs up around here; the meatier back end seem to suit it well. If you’re still not convinced and think the Porsche 911 is just a toy for the weekend, remember this: overall quality is a notch higher, the speed is there when you want and the brakes are utterly dependable too.

Practically speaking, there’s so much capacity and capability. So, if you want an everyday sports car, the Porsche 911 Carrera S will suffice. The wife should wilfully approve…