Porsche 997 Turbo: the ultimate 911
By Michael Booth
Published: 08 October 2006
Michael Booth gets inside the Porsche
Specifications
Would suit Power-hungry perfectionists
Price £107,263
Maximum speed 193mph, 0-60mph in 3.8 seconds
Combined fuel economy 22.1mpg
Further information 08457 911 911
Can a supercar be accused of overkill? That is their point after all, isn't it - to rub their preposterous power and shouty styling in people's faces until we cry for mercy. But I ask this having just driven the new Porsche 911 Turbo in a discreet shade of nuclear buttercup.
It is my third new 911 in just over a year, which is a high tally for someone who had, until recently, really quite loathed them. The first was the new Carrera, which I was lucky enough to spend an afternoon abusing in the most unforgivable manner and came away awestruck by its tenacious grip and unflappable composure. There was nothing I could do - no clumsy jerk of gear stick, no stamping of throttle or wrenching of steering wheel - that would upset that car. It was truly, heroically faithful.
I didn't expect to drive anything that accomplished again soon, if ever. Then I tried the Carrera 4, which has four-wheel drive and brakes that could halt tectonic plates. That was ever so slightly better - grippier, faster and even more reassuring in the wet.
And now I have tried what is, for now at least, the ultimate 911: the new 997 Turbo. This is faster still, thanks to the addition of a few more horsepower and a type of variable turbine technology. This virtually eliminates turbo lag - although there is still the teensiest pause below 2,000 revs - and jet propels this car to 60mph in a blink-and-you'll-miss-it 3.9 seconds. The turbos reach temperatures of 1,000C in the process, which meant they had to develop a new type of heat-resistant alloy specially (I'm simply fascinating company at dinner parties, you know). It will reach 30mph in less time than it takes to say "thirty" and, frankly, it's all a bit too much. Dare you floor the throttle? Well, yes, you dare because it is searingly addictive, but there were times driving this car when the scenery went just a bit too kaleidoscopic. The Turbo takes you to places that can seem beyond your control. In the process it eats you up, and spits you out of its fat exhausts, leaving a battered, quivering husk of a man whimpering on the Tarmac.
To make the most expensive 911 ever stand out from its "lesser" brothers, Porsche has widened the rear arches, added air gaspers in front of the rear wheels and rearranged the front, giving it natty LED indicators. In Turbo tradition, it has a large wing on the boot and some rather pleasing, spindly alloys. But the 911 isn't the most harmonious of shapes in the first place and I don't think all this go-faster kit does it any favours.
Conversely, the interior is quite dull in supercar terms. It has essentially the same dash, with fiddly wireless controls, lovely delicate steering wheel and plastic air vents that look like they've been pilfered from the VW Group. There is no doubting the quality, but there's none of the vodka-bar chic, Riva-speedboat poise, or Kouros-soaked machismo of an Aston, a Bentley or a Ferrari. The noise is a disappointment too - distant and subdued, not enough flatulence for my liking. I realise it seems a little contradictory to be asking for more of something while criticising a car for overkill, but a more distinctive timbre would help make the Turbo seem a little less earnest and a little more likeable. Or, to misquote Elvis, who owned a Porsche or two in his time, perhaps what we really need is a little more conversation and a little less action.
It's a classic: Porsche 911 Turbo
Porsche wasn't the first to strap a turbocharger to its cars - an Oldsmobile had one as far back as 1962 - but it was one of the earliest adopters.
The 1974 911 Turbo had a 4-litre, air-cooled flat six which produced 256bhp - more than enough for a temperamental turbo with no traction control or ABS. It boasted the now famous "whale tale" rear spoiler that was the car's trademark for the next two decades, and could reach 60mph in an incredible 5.5 seconds.
Over the years the power has increased - as have the barroom debates about which Turbo was the best. The 2001 GT2 was certainly the fastest but had a reputation for being a handful, while the 959 was, until the arrival of the McLaren F1, probably the most technically advanced sportscar on the planet.
Most people seem to agree that the last version, the 996, was the best, despite traditionalists moaning about its new liquid-cooled engine.
