Porsche 991 Gen 2: next chapter in the Porsche evolution

By Botchi Santos March 01,2016
PORSCHE Philippines managing director Roberto Coyiuto III (left) and Porsche AG vice president for region overseas and emerging markets Matthias Becker with the all-new Porsche 911 Carrera S

PORSCHE Philippines managing director Roberto Coyiuto III (left) and Porsche AG vice president for region overseas and emerging markets Matthias Becker with the all-new Porsche 911 Carrera S

PORSCHE has always been an interesting company. Of all the sports car manufacturers in the world, none enjoy Porsche’s greatly admired status.

The company has enjoyed great success in recent times, and was often the first to catch on future trends. It has grown slowly but surely, predominantly with evolution, changing with the times, but every so often, it does so dramatically, almost like a revolution more than the obvious evolution.

Porsche was brave enough to launch the Cayenne SUV, followed by the Panamera four-door coupe. Critics and purists cried foul, but these two models have greatly helped stabilize Porsche’s standing and secure its future.

Porsche also pioneered the use of hybrid technology in a high-performance sports car, and the 918 Spyder was launched 50 years after the 911, in 2013 at the Frankfurt Motor Show as well, ahead of its rivals from Italy and the United Kindom.

THE NEW 911’s steering wheel now comes with a mode switch sport response button.

THE NEW 911’s steering wheel now comes with a mode switch sport response button.

Today, the 918 Spyder, with the optional Weissach Handling Pack, is the quickest and fastest production sports car around the famed Nurburgring’s Northern Loop Or Norde Schleife with a 6:57 second time, the only serial production sports car to break seven minutes.

Porsche’s 911, in particular, is the company’s most famous of all its models. Launched in 1963 at the Frankfurt Motor Show in Germany, it has stood for more than 50 years as the company’s poster boy.

In the late 80’s, Porsche was close to calling it quits, but thanks to some ingenious efficiency programs, brought itself back into profitability.

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When the 996 chassis broke cover, it was the first water-cooled flat-six to power the 911.

The 997 was a perfect evolution of that: better built, better handling, more refined.

The 991 generation, launched in 2011 introduced a raft of technologies to elevate the 911 model further up and widen its appeal.

Porsche Doppelkupplung or Dual-Clutch technology, Porsche Torque Vectoring and the new line of cleaner, more fuel-efficient direct-injected engines put the 911 firmly into the new millennium.

Now, the Gen 2 991 series is finally officially launched, and the biggest change is its heart. From here on out, only the GT3 and GT3 RS will remain as naturally aspirated models.

THE PORSCHE 911 Carrera S Cabriolet

THE PORSCHE 911 Carrera S Cabriolet

The basic Carrera and Carrera S finally feature smaller displacement, lighter and ultimately more fuel-efficient turbocharged engines, coming from a new family of 3-liter, dual-overhead cam, 24-valve, direct-injected engines.

If at least 5 percent of a car’s production is dedicated for motorsport, you know the basic model will be a real cracker of a car.

And so it goes with the new 911 Carrera and Carrera S. The turbocharged engines not only reduce emissions, but also deliver greater performance in the process.

THE ALL-NEW 911 drives with agility during scenic drive in Lisbon.

THE ALL-NEW 911 drives with agility during scenic drive in Lisbon.

The Carrera makes a considerable 370 horsepower and 450 Newton-meters of torque, allowing it to sprint to 100 kilometers per hour in 4.3 seconds from rest all the way to a 290 km/h top speed.

Three generations prior (the 964 generation that is), that would have made the Carrera the top-performing variant of the 911 range. No doubt many of these improvements were done to prepare the latest 911 in its role in motorsports.

The 911 Carrera S comes with the same engine, but outputs an even greater 420 HP and 500 Nm of torque, giving it stronger legs to reach 100 km/h in only 3.9 seconds with the optional Sports Chrono Pack all the way to 306 km/h.

As is typical Porsche, these performance estimates will always be on the conservative side, allowing average hacks and drivers to repeatedly access and achieve Porsche’s claimed performance figures.

And did we mention that the new engines have helped the Carrera and Carrera S become at least 12 percent more fuel efficient than its normally aspirated predecessors?

The smaller, lighter and more fuel-efficient engines, combined with seven-speed PDK transmissions, are also core to the company’s beliefs: Porsche Intelligent Performance. It has never been about how much absolute and outright power, speed, agility, etc. It isn’t just about absolutes and maximums, but balance, usability and efficiency.

VARIOUS 911 variants lined up for an exhilarating drive at the Estoril racetrack.

VARIOUS 911 variants lined up for an exhilarating drive at the Estoril racetrack.

Porsche challenges itself on maximizing a car’s natural attributes to create a fast, efficient, enjoyable and unique driving experience, exciting to drive yet not tiring on long stints behind the wheel, whether on track, or an intercontinental drive across Europe or the Americas.

It might not sound like an exciting brief, but it has surely worked, as the 911 is the winningest production-based sports car in history, reaping thousands of wins in motorsport, from grassroots level, all the way to the highest echelons of sports car endurance racing: Le Mans, Nurburgring, Spa, Fuji, Daytona and so on. None of Porsche’s key rivals can ever hold a candle to the 911’s numerous achievements.

Aside from the revolutionary changes at the back, other changes now include Porsche Active Suspension Management on all 911s (previously only available as an option on the Carrera S), giving the 911 the best on the expressway and on the track.

New bumpers, revised front and rear lights, a new set of wheel designs available from the factory, and new exhaust outlets or tips round out the exterior changes. Additionally, the rear engine deck cover uses a retro-inspired cooling grill from 911’s of yore, a nod to the past while bravely looking into the future.

Inside, the 918-style steering wheel is now standard as well as a new Porsche Communication Management, essentially a much sharper 7-inch infotainment touchscreen system that functions like a regular smartphone.

You can pinch, pull and swipe at it, intuitively. It also offers Apple CarPlay integration, Google Earth and Street View maps.

Purists and cynics think it foul that Porsche has gone unnatural aspiration. But for both Porsche and those who truly understand the brand, it’s just another means to be the first to move ahead, to move forward and to find the next challenge to improve itself. Just as it has always done so.

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