The New 911 Tubro
 

http://www.porsche.com/microsite/911turbo/usa.aspx


Pretty cool presentation. Impressive data, but still a bit heavy for me.

Enjoy!

"Tubro" is an accurate term for these cars. As cool as they are to drive, they are big, heavy cars and you definitely feel the weight. I drive a early 911 on the track that weighs in at just under 2200 lbs wet; I get in one of these and feel like I'm driving a tank. Yes, they are plenty fast and the boost is a rush...I just wish Porsche could take some weight off.

jmatta - you are right. You can't change the laws of physics....

2200 lbs vs 3000+ lbs - regadless how much power you put down, or how much AWD trickery you have going - you can't change the fact that something is HEAVY.

Before buying my boxster, I used to have a 2004 Volvo S60R - modified. It was no 911 turbo, but with my engine/suspension mods, I had ZERO problems keeping up with E46 M3s at track events - and passing them. :) bottom line - as quick as that car was, and with the AWD system helping it move all 3700lbs around - it felt like a giant boat compared to my boxster - the two cars are roughly 1000 lbs apart in weight....

I'll bet as a daily driver / regularly driven street car, the 911 turbo is a ton of fun, super fast, and turns heads wherever it goes.

if you just want to tear the holy stink out of a twisty road or a track, a smaller lighter car is probably more fun.

but I have to admit, I'd HAPPILY take one of those new 911 turbos - fat or not!!!

Watched an episode of "SuperCarsExposed" with Tanner Faust last eve (re-run) where he and Townsend Bell take turns driving a 997 turbo, Ferrari 430 and a Lotus Exige on a closed portion of Mulholland Dr. Interesting comments; the turbo "felt" heavy, the Ferrari lack of grip (but won in the sound catagory) and the underpowered Exige (at 1800 lbs) beat the others with quickest times.

HP is fun, but not always quickest.

My 996 C4S weighed in at 3,381 lbs with half a tank of gas:

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l1.../CIMG6826a.jpg

The Turbo would be even more with intercoolers, piping, turbos, etc.

Yes it is heavy and you feel it, but it's still a Porsche and still performs amazingly in the twisties compared to 99% of other cars on the road. The limit of the car is well beyond what is legal or reasonable on public roads. Now my Boxster S with JRZ coilovers, strut braces, lower stress bars, and ~500 lbs less weight is a different beast. It's downright wicked scary to even push to 8/10 of its limits. When I autocross I use the Boxster, same if I were to track it. Each car has its purpose and function, and both are excellent at what they do.

Kirk

Did you notice the new steering wheel with paddle shifters on the Turbo with PDK? Apparently Porsche relented to all the criticism of their button system.
vincesf

Wow! I didn't notice that the first time around. good catch. that will definitely help with future reviews if they replace them on all models.