PORSCHE 911 CARRERA S
Manual die-hards be prepared to convert for the Porsche's long awaited double-clutch 'box
WIWAT CHANG
While other car makers call their update of a current model a face-lift, minor-change or evolution, Porsche calls it "second generation" for its four-year-old 911, codenamed 997.
The changes on the outside are very subtle and nor merely limited to aesthetic upgrades. The new headlights are now bi-Xenon as standard on the two Carreras, with automatic cornering function plus LED day-time running lights on the bumper.
The taillights are now nearly all LED - sixty diodes on each side - with just the reversing light still using a conventional bulb (who knows why).
The new front bumper has larger air intakes that help cool the new radiators with 20% better cooling efficiency.
If you don't own a current 997, you might not notice that this minor-change has slightly bigger side mirrors (zzzz).
And if you'd cursed the electronics people at Weissach for missing out on relatively simple consumer technologies like touch-screen display, Bluetooth and iPod connections, now is the time you can uncurse them.
But the real work lays beneath the skin and under the boot: the new petrol direction injection boxer engine.
It's new from the bottom up with new dry sump, and the smaller but stronger block and head is the result of more compact design with less internal parts.
The 5kg lighter powertrain sits lower thus helping to lower the centre of gravity.
Porsche claims that both 3.6- and 3.8-litre version for the Carrera and Carrera S gain not only more power but meatier, flatter torque curves.
At the same time the engines sip considerably less fuel - thanks in part to the new PDK double-clutch transmission used for the first time in a Porsche road car.
For the last time we'll spell out the full name of this PDK wundergear: Porsche-Doppelkupplungsgetriebe.
At its best in Sport Chrono Plus mode, it can kickdown from sixth to second gear in 0.4 second - 0.6 second faster than the outgoing Tiptronic S ever could.
Or forget comparing it to the unloved Tiptronic, and the PDK still shifts a lot faster than any human being with any conventional manual.
When asked why it has taken so long to reach the 911 roadcar, a Porsche transmission engineer reasoned that drivers need refinement and comfort in gear-changing for everyday driving which the race PDK lacked.
He explained that prior to this the technology - especially with regard to electronics - just was not there for an acceptably user-friendly or reliable enough gearbox.
This seven-speed PDK is said to be good for an engine torque output of up to 440Nm - merely 20 more then Carrera S' figure - so a stronger one is in the works for the Turbo.
But of course, the sticking point is not how well it compares to the old Tiptronic S but how it compares to the tried-and-trusted six-speed manual.
First, it doesn't look much different with the stick having the same arrangement as the outgoing Tiptronic system with P-R-N-D positions plus up and down in manual mode.
Trying to figure out how to work the new steering wheel-mounted gearshift knobs is confusing - again.
The irksome up and down toggle style of old has given way to a sort of push-and-pull system where you press the buttons for upshift on either left or right, but use other fingers to press the unseen downshift button on the backside of the still-huge 370mm wheel.
Porsche's document says this is their paddle system, but we did not find this to feel nor work like most shift paddles we're used to.
This can take a while to get used to, so for the majority of our test day we relied more on the gear lever.
In normal transmission mode in D, the PDK automatically shift as smooth as any conventional auto yet engage gears more quickly.
Flick the gear lever to manual and we begin to have fun shoving it up and down - ah, this is more like it.
At 200kph in seventh gear on the autobahn, the rev needle points at around only 3,500rpm - that's a long overdrive - no wonder it can be frugal.
But that's not the point of being a sportscar and the engine is mute like having earplugs on.
Press on the sport mode and driving ambient changes with sportier exhaust note emanating from the back.
And the PDK responds in kind, holding the gears for longer and more eager to accelerate on demand.
The new engine is clean-revving, willing and at no point below the redline feeling strained. So responsive are the combination of the engine and the PDK that you can get ahead busy highways even in D.
The superb chassis of the S has not even the slightest hint of difficulty dealing with the increased power and pace.
The standard Carrera S brakes are also still strong while the immensely stronger optional carbon-ceramic brakes could be the single most cost-effective investment on a Porsche.
Then, there are times you want that rush on the track - or just pretending to be - and pressing the Sport Plus can give you that.
Just for fun, this mode activates the launch control for the snappiest sprint off the line than you or anyone can manage in the manual.
Porsche claims that the launch control cuts a further 0.2 second off the Carrera S PDK's 0-100 sprint time to just 4.3 seconds - that is almost half a second faster than the manual version.
Away from the track and autobahns and in the midst of upcountry Swabian villages, the Carrera S PDK can crawl along under the speed limit as smoothly as a cooking VW Golf.
Why, we wonder, would anyone want to work harder with a manual in city traffic yet loose out to the double-clutch on the highways?
The PDK is an excellent two-in-one transmission; good as a full auto and better as a manual with ultimately faster shifting than conventional manual.
It also lack the jerkiness found in all robotised manual sportscars (though, in all fairness, they're now more subtle than before).
Prior to this, going manual was the way to have fun in a Porsche, but time has changed for the better.
By the time you're reading this, there are eight variants of the updated 911 to choose from in either coupe' or cabriolet body, rear-wheel-drive or four-wheel-drive, 345hp "basic" Carrera or the 385hp Carrera S.
The PDK equipped Carrera coupe' should cost roughly the same as the outgoing model with Tiptronic S - at around B15.89m.
The power deficit to the S may not be so wanting in real world driving, but you would not be able to specify the Sport Plus mode as in the Carrera S that costs a million more.
- New `paddle' shifters not intuitive. |
FROM LEFT
- PDK gear lever a delight to use.
- Carrera S has Sport Plus with launch control.
- Updated 911 identifiable by new bi-Xenon headlights and all-LED taillights.
- PDK 'box looks complicated but easy to use.
- Track drivers should go for the optional PCCB. |
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