Hot on the heels of the first official photographs of the next generation
911, Porsche have today announced that the 911 Turbo S will make its world
debut at the
2004 British Motor Show in
Birmingham. Don't be mistaken though; as James Jenkins pointed out in
his article last week, the generations will be sold alongside
one another for a while yet, and the Turbo S is available in the older body
only for the moment, though as a Cabriolet as well as a Coupe.
Porsche has tuned the superb twin-turbocharged, 3.6-litre flat six engine to
produce 30 bhp more than the 'standard' Turbo (the S has 450 bhp), at the
same time as achieving a peak torque figure of 457 lb.ft (the regular Turbo
manages 413 lb.ft). The engine delivers these figures courtesy of larger
turbochargers, modified intercoolers and revised engine management strategy.
Additionally, the six-speed manual gearbox has been reinforced to handle the
torque increase, though the five-speed Tiptronic automatic 'box is available
as an option.. Amazingly, Porsche claims that the fuel economy and emissions
barely suffer, though we don't think that the typical Porsche 911 Turbo
buyer has those things high up their list of priorities.
Brakes have always been seen as a Porsche strong point. The Turbo S is
fitted with Porsche Ceramic Composite Brakes (PCCB) as standard, which are a
whopping 50% lighter than equivalent steel discs. Porsche claims that
ceramic brakes resist fade better than steel too, though we have heard
reports that the current ceramic discs are not all that durable, with cracks
appearing quite early on in the disc's life. Hopefully Porsche have sorted
that problem out for the Turbo S.
Other standard equipment on the Turbo S includes metallic paint (including a
special colour - Dark Olive metallic), Xenon headlights, a Bose stereo
system and the Porsche Communication Management System (PCM) incorporating
audio, telephone and satellite navigation functionality. Additionally, the
Turbo S offers 18" alloy wheels painted in GT Silver metallic, plus full
leather interior trim, aluminium-coloured instrument dials, cruise control
and a CD autochanger.
The Cabriolet Turbo S has the same mechanicals as the Coupe, with the
addition of the electro-hydraulic soft-top, which can be raised or lowered at
speeds up to 31 mph. An aluminium hardtop is standard equipment.
The Turbo S goes on sale in the UK in August this year, at £99,300 for the
Coupe and £105,030 for the Cabriolet. Get yourself along to the motor show
in Birmingham next week to get your first glimpse of the car in the metal.
Technical Specifications
911 Turbo S Coupe
Engine: 6 cylinder
Capacity: 3596 cc
Max power: 450 bhp at 5700 rpm
Max torque: 457 lb.ft from 3500 to 4400 rpm
Unladen weight: 1590 kg
Top speed 191 mph
0-62 mph 4.2 secs
0-100 mph 9.0 secs
Fuel consumption:
Combined 21.2 mpg
Urban 14.4 mpg
Extra-urban 29.1 mpg
911 Turbo S Cabriolet
Engine: 6 cylinder
Capacity: 3596 cc
Max power: 450 bhp at 5700 rpm
Max torque: 457 lb.ft from 3500 to 4400 rpm
Unladen weight: 1660 kg
Top speed 191 mph
0-62 mph 4.3 secs
0-100 mph 9.2 secs
Fuel consumption: Combined 21.2 mpg
Urban 14.4 mpg
Extra-urban 29.1 mpg
Shane O' Donoghue - 20 May 2004
