Tag: Porsche

GROUP TEST: Driving the Boxster GTS, Cayman GTS and 911 Carrera back to back!

On By svenIn Test drivesLeave a comment

Last year I was at a Porsche event and had the opportunity to drive the Boxster GTS, Cayman GTS and 911 Carrera back to back.  The cars were evenly matched regarding power en weight. The Boxster GTS has 330 hp, the Cayman GTOS 340hp and the standard Carrera  350bp. The Carrera is slightly (25kg) heavier than the other two, offsetting the small advantage in power.

There were a couple of surprises.

Firstly, the Cayman GTS is much more hardcore than the Boxster GTS. This is partly due to the fact that the Cayman GTS we drove had the optional sports suspension; 20mm lower with no adjustable dampers. The Boxster GTS, on the other hand, was on standard adjustable dampers (PASM) and felt much more rounded and easy to exploit. The Cayman GTS (exactly the same car that I drove for my review here), is better suited for track work, though.

Secondly, the 911 Carrera felt slower than the two GTS cars, but not necessarily because it was slower, but because it was masking its speed. Looking at the speedo you realise that you are going much quicker than you think in the Carrera. On the other hand, with the Boxster and Cayman you feel like you are going faster, which adds to the fun.

Final words

The 911 is the practical proposition; it has back seats and it is very comfortable, in a GT way. The Cayman GTS, with the option of the extra sporty suspension, is probably more suited to track work and felt nervous on the Catalan mountain roads we drove. For me, on this roads, the Boxster GTS was the pick of the day.

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New Porsche Panamera spotted in Weissach

On By svenIn News2 Comments

Yesterday I drove past Porsche’s research facility in Weissach. I was able to spot a few of the brand new Panameras. I must say it looks much more better than the old Panamera. My photos don’t do it justice, it is actually really beautiful.

After Weissach, I went to the Porsche Museum in Zuffenhausen. I will post photos from the museum soon. I will keep you posted!

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TEST DRIVE: The new 911 Carrera S – ruined by the turbo engine?

On By svenIn News, Test drives3 Comments

On Christmas Eve (!), during a couple of hours, I test drove the brand new turbocharged Porsche 911 Carrera S, i.e. the 2nd iteration of the current 991 generation.

The main change, compared to the 1st generation 991, is the all new 3.0-liter twin-turbo engine. Adding turbos to the standard Carrera and Carrera S models is the biggest change in the history of the 911, since the controversial (at the time) introduction of water cooling in the late 90s.

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How is the new turbocharged engine?

Let’s get straight to the point, does the turbocharged engine transform the car? If so, how? Does it ruin the character of the car? How does it sound? Continue reading “TEST DRIVE: The new 911 Carrera S – ruined by the turbo engine?” →

Porsche’s most important sports car launch since 1999: the Cayman GT4!

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Rumours have been circulating for a long time but on Wednesday Porsche finally released the details, specs and photos of the new Cayman GT4. OMG is it desirable!

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It has the 911 Carrera S engine producing 385 hp at 7400 rpm, but according to Porsche it is “probably more than 385 hp”. Porsche’s hp figures are always conservative for the GT cars and since the same engine is producing 400 hp in the Carrera S, you can draw your own conclusions…

Performance is astonishing, it goes from 0-100 km/h in 4.4s and it laps the Nürburgring Nordschleife in 7:40! (the same time as the 997 GT3 Mk2…)

The upgraded brakes consist of steel discs (380 mm) on all 4 wheels, i.e the same size as the 991 GT3, in spite of the latter being a heavier car.

The front suspension is almost identical to the 991 GT3 while the rear suspension is “new”, but it seems it is still a MacPherson-strut, although with new improved components.
The GT4 weights 1,340 kg DIN (1,415 kg EU), i.e. 90 kg less than the current 911 GT3. Compared to a standard Cayman, the GT4 is 30 mm lower.

It is only available with a manual gearbox as opposed to the 991 GT3 which is only available with PDK-gearbox.

Looking at the exterior, the GT4 has a few additions: front bumper and splitter, big rear wing and air scopes on the side to improve aerodynamics, looks, cooling and engine breathing.

In addition, there is a Clubsport package, only available together with optional bucket seats, that includes: roll cage, six-point harnesses, fire extinguisher and preparation for a body shell and battery disconnect switch. This is hardcore stuff…

Sharing many suspension components with the 911 GT3 and having the engine from the 991 Carrera S, the Cayman GT4 looks like a bargain, at a price way lower than both cars and even below the entry level 911 Carrera, which is a slower car.

Enjoy the photos and the video below!
(and read about my test drive of the Cayman GTS here)

TEST DRIVE: Two days with the Porsche Cayman GTS

On By svenIn Test drives4 Comments

The Cayman GTS is beautiful!! During the two days I had the car, plenty of people on the street complimented me on the looks of the car.

Cayman GTS

How does it drive?

Ok, it looks great, but more importantly, how does it drive? The car I borrowed was equipped with the optional sports chassis that lowers the car 20mm and removes adaptive dampers (PASM). You can clearly see in the pictures that the car is looow. This optional sports chassis is very firm for road use. If you are not planning to track the car, I would recommend going for the standard adjustable PASM chassis.

Having said that, the car drives absolutely on rails. It is an old cliché but it has never been so true. I can’t remember any car I have driven, that is more keyed to the road. It is at the same level as the two 911 GT3:s (996/997) I had a couple of years ago. Turn-in is excellent, the balance is neutral and fluent. The steering is very good and well weighted, in spite of having electric power steering. Brake feel is excellent. I am running out of superlatives…

Drivetrain

Driving the Cayman GTS, I initially felt a lack of power, until I realised I have to rev it much higher. I was upshifting at 4500 rpm… I have been driving diesels for too long. The V8 in my California was very torquey, in spite of being an atmospheric engine.

The sound from the engine and the Sports exhaust (standard on the GTS) is very good, although I have to admit that I had it in “silent” mode most of the time.

The dubble-clutch PDK gearbox is excellent, as always. The only problem is that the gearing is very long. If you rev the engine, as you should, in 3rd or even in 2nd gear,  you are suddenly carrying very high speeds. With shorter gearing you would be able to rev the engine more often.

Interior

The interior is very sporty with a lot of alcantara and carbon fibre parts. The spec on this car closely resembles the interior of the 997 GT3 Mk1, that I used to have. This car has the interior GTS package that adds more alcantara as well as contrasting stitching (I apologise for the poor quality of the photo). The leather dashboard is standard on the GTS, and contributes to the car feeling special.

Cayman GTS interior

Final words

Summarising, I believe that this is the best sports car in the market, with the possible exception of the Ferrari 458. My wife drove the car as well and was not keen at all on giving the wheel back to me…

Thanks to Porsche Center Ibercarrera in Barcelona for generously lending me this car.

TEST DRIVE: Porsche Carrera S Cabriolet

On By svenIn Test drives1 Comment

I spent a couple of days with a Porsche 991 Carrera S Cabriolet rental car last summer. In this report I will mainly compare the Porsche with my Ferrari California, which I sold a couple of months before this test drive.

Looks

The 991 generation Cabriolet has very good looks. With the roof up it looks much better than the previous generation 997 Cabriolet and almost as good as the 991 Coupé. With the roof down it is less beautiful than with the roof up, but still better looking than the 996/997. Possibly, the 4WD version which has a wider rear, would look better than this 2WD version.

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How does it drive?

The 991 feels more planted to the road than my California. Despite the power deficit the Porsche is probably faster point to point; albeit with less passion and drama…

In spite of the car being a Cabriolet i couldn’t fell any chassis flexing. I guess you have to drive a Coupé back to back in order to feel the difference.

Feeling that body roll was virtually inexistent, I presumed that the car was fitted with active anti-roll bars, i.e. PDCC (Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control). In order to be sure, I drove to Porsche Center Stockholm Segeltorp and they confirmed that this particular car indeed had the PDCC option. There has been some debate about whether the PDCC options is any good or not. The argument against it, is that PDCC removes feedback to the driver. In the end I guess it is a question of personal preference; whether you prefer that the car feels “planted and on rails” or “more alive”. From a performance and technological point of view, PDCC is a tour de force. Maybe you can guess which camp I am in…

Although the 991 S has less power than my California, it feels plenty enough. The sound, even without sport exhaust, is very good; in particular the intake sound. The 991 has a Sound Symposer  (http://articles.sae.org/10374/) that channels exhaust and intake sounds into the cabin (without creating artificial sound through the speakers!). The Porsche sounds great, but you can’t compare it with the glorious and symphonic sound of the Ferrari V8 in the California…

Open top

It is nice to be able to open and close the top at speed, which was not possible in my California. The cabin noise is low, even with the roof down. With the roof open there is much less turbulence than in the California and the foldable wind protector is very good. It can be raised and lowered at the touch of a button.

Final words

Summarising, the 991 Carrera S is an excellent allround open top sports car. My son and daughter love it… Would I buy it? Well, historically I buy an open top car every ten years; a Porsche Boxster S in 2001 and the Ferrari California in 2011. In both cases I would rather have bought the same car with a fixed roof had it been available (the Porsche Cayman didn’t exist in 2001). Having said that, it is good fun to have an open-top car and the kids love it, but all things considered I would rather go for the Coupé.

Update: See my review of the facelifted turbocharged second generation 991 Carrera S.

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TEST DRIVE: Porsche Macan – sports car or SUV?

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I was fortunate to drive the new Macan at a Porsche event close to Barcelona a couple of weeks ago.

For the purpose of this review, I will mainly compare the Macan with my BMW X3 xDrive35d (MY 2012).

The most important bit first; the Macan feels more agile than my X3, or rather, more agile than any SUV I have driven. Don’t be fooled, the Macan is no sports car, it’s no 911 with four doors, but it is as sporty as a SUV gets.

Before driving the car I had a passanger ride in the back seat of a Macan S Diesel. It felt properly quick, not the least since the driver was driving the car like a complete lunatic… In spite of his efforts, the Macan Turbo in front of us pulled away from us on the straights. The diesel engine had a pretty OK soundtrack, considering it is basically a reworked Audi diesel…

After the scary back seat ride, I drove the Macan Turbo on some mountain roads. Boy is it fast! The engine produces 400 hp with a somewhat muted soundtrack, but it makes nice exhaust noises on upshifts…

The steering is light, which is something I like. On my X3 it feels more weighty, specially in Sport mode, but in a bad, artificial way.

Now to the practical stuff. The interior feels very “premium”; much more luxurious than my X3. The Macans on show had full leather interiors, which added to the premium feeling.

Interior space in the back seat is limited and luggage space is markedly smaller than in the X3. Headroom in the back seat is not plentiful; tall people will hit the roof.

Finally, the most important question: do I want one? The answer is yes, but I wouldn’t sell a kidney to buy it… Let me clarify: if I didn’t own a family car and needed a small, sporty SUV, I would definitely buy a Macan. But is it worth upgrading from my BMW X3 xDrive35d? That’s a tough question. The Macan looks a little better, it feels a little more expensive inside, it is much more agile, but quite less practical than the X3.

If I had a sports car along the X3, as I used to have, I would keep the X3 as a family car. But without a sports car on the side, the family car needs to be sportier. In that context, the Macan would be an excellent all-rounder; it would make everyday driving a little bit more exciting. On the other hand, I am really fond of the new Maserati Ghibli (test drive report coming soon…). Decisions, decisions, decisions…

Porsche 911 Targa (991) – first pictures!

On By svenIn News3 Comments

Boy, does the new 991 Targa look good!!!

The new design is much closer to the original Targa from the 70s, as opposed to the glass-roofed 996 and 997 Targa.

Apparently it will be available only with 4WD (Targa4 and Targa4S models) as it is based on the wide body 4WD Carrera cabriolet.

How the Targa roof can fold automatically is hard to understand, but we will know more this afternoon after Porsche’s press conference in Detroit at 17:45 CET.  

Porsche 991 GT3 driven by Chris Harris – the most important car of the year!

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Chris Harris has driven an engineering sample of the new GT3. How does he get away with this?

Conclusions (spoiler warning):

  • The engine is superb, in spite of the new GT3 dropping the Mezger engine used in previous GT3s. It revs to 9,000 rpm!
  • The four wheel steering adds value; the car turns in much better than the 997 GT3 and has less understeer.
  • The electric power steering is much, much better than in the 991 Carrera. It is “actually superb”, according to Chris. Not once, did he wish the car had hydraulic power steering.
  • The PDK is the best so far, but Chris would like the GT3 to be “the last bastion of the manual gearbox”. This is actually his only gripe about the car.

Summarising: it is much, much better than the 997. If you can live with a paddle shift gearbox, the GT3 is an amazing achievement.

Porsche 991 GT3

Porsche updates the Panamera and introduces a plug-in hybrid!

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Porsche shows a facelifted Panamera, with a redesigned front and back. The most interesting part is that it is available as a Plug-in hybrid, which is quicker than the old hybrid while being able to cruise on “charged” electricity. The combined power of the V6 and the electrical motors is 416 hp, with a claimed fuel consumption of 3.1(!) l/100 km.

The other big news is that the V8 engine in the Panamera S and 4S is replaced by a new twin-turbo V6 engine with 420 hp.

More info at evo.

Porsche Panamera S E-Hybrid

PROVKÖRNING: Nya Porsche Boxster S – briljant och suverän!

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Jag provkörde nya Porsche Boxster S (981) för en tid sedan och jag blev mäkta imponerad. Till att börja med är bilen väldigt snygg; den påminner lite om såväl Carrera GT som 918 Spyder.

Det är varit en hel del debatt om Porsches elektriska servostyrning i nya 991 och Boxster. I Boxstern tycker jag dock att den fungerar mycket bra, t.o.m. bättre än i 991. Styrningen är direkt och kommunikativ, om än inte lika direktstyrd som i min California.

Chassit är följsamt både i standard- och sportläge. En bra sak är att man kan ställa in stötdämpare separat från övriga inställningar. Detta saknar jag i Californian, men det finns t.ex. på Ferrari 458.

Efter en tid i Californian är det kul att höra att motorljudet kommer bakifrån! Det går inte att komma ifrån att en bil med mittmotor (eller svansmotor) känns sportigare än en bil med motorn fram. Ljudet från motorn är fint om än lite svagare än 991 med sportavgssystem avstängt. Det beror nog på att 991 har en “Sound symposer”, vilket är ett rör som leder avgasljud in i coupén.

Prestanda känns endast marginellt sämre än i 991. Bilen har 315 hästar och accelererar från 0-100 km/h på 4,8 sekunder med dubbelkopplingslåda (PDK) och Sport Chrono. Dubbelkopplingslådan växlar väldigt mjukt utom i Sport Plus-läge, då Porsches ingenjörer tillåter att uppväxlingarna känns lite mer…

Bilen har en bra ratt med utmärkta växlingspaddlar (med SportDesign-ratten). Det finns indikatorer i ratten som lyser om Sport eller Sport Plus-lägena är inställda. En sak jag saknar är ett reglage på själva ratten för att ställa in Sport och Sport Plus-lägena, så att man kan ändra läge utan att behöva flytta handen från ratten och titta ned. Min California har en “Manettino”, M5:an har M1 och M2-knappar på ratten och Aston Martin Vanquish har knappar för såväl inställning av sportläge som stötdämpare, direkt på ratten.

Standardstolarna är väldigt bra och bekväma, med bra sidostöd. Hittade rätt körställning direkt. Pedalerna sitter också väldigt bra. Kvalitet i inredning är väsentligt bättre än förr. Den känns inte enklare än 991. Bilen var utrustad med stereo från BOSE, men den tyckte jag lät sådär.

Taket fälls ned på 9 sekunder i farten (upp till 50 km/h)! Att kunna fälla upp och ned taket i farten är något jag saknar i Californian, kanske skulle jag köra mer nedcabbad i så fall.

Leendet infinner sig verkligen när man kör Boxstern. Vad är då slutsatsen? Boxstern kostar hälften så mycket som en 911 Cabriolet. Prisvärt är ordet! Min California är tre gånger dyrare men definitivt inte tre gånger bättre. Nya Boxstern bådar gott för nya Cayman som precis visats. Om BMW 520d är världens bästa bil, måste Porsche Boxster S, med alla rimliga mått mätt, vara världens bästa sportbil. Aldrig har det gått att köpa en så komplett sportbil för så (i relativa termer) lite pengar!

Se även några av mina tidigare inlägg om nya Boxstern: