2008 911 Turbo Cabriolet



911 turbo What is it?
The fastest way to feel the wind in your hair in a Porsche, this is the mighty 997 Turbo, sans roof.

Are my follicles safe?
Not if you fancy doing 193mph with the top dropped – we wouldn’t count on having a full head of hair by the time you got to where you were going.

So what’s it like?
Well, seeing as it’s a 911 Turbo, it’s going to be pretty good, roof or no roof. For starters, it’s massively fast and, with the optional Tiptronic S transmission, it’ll hit 62 faster than the manual versions. The VTG technology has reduced turbo lag to virtually zero, with only the tiniest fraction of a second between prodding the throttle and the subsequent burst of acceleration. There’s a huge amount of torque available, all the way through the rev range, giving the Turbo sensational mid-range thrust and flat out there are few things out there that will be able to keep up. It’s almost scarily quick and you just can’t imagine that there’s any situation where you’d need more performance than the Turbo has to offer.

The excellent four-wheel drive system allows you to use more power more of the time though you can hear the diffs clunking when cold and cold tyres, cold roads and too much throttle will get all four wheels spinning and a nasty bit of axle tramp.
With virtually no body roll, huge grip and traction and perfectly weighted steering, the Turbo inspires massive confidence and on a cross-country charge it’s simply epic. The brakes are sensational, especially in PCCB form and haul the Turbo down from huge speeds time and again with no fade and no fuss.

Sounds great – I’m off to buy one
Before you do, there are a few things you should know. The seats don’t go low enough, the steering wheel only adjusts for reach and there’s a huge amount of very intrusive road and wind noise. The worst part of the car is the gearbox – it’s awful. It feels so old and unresponsive and it’s really hard to get it to do what you want. It shuffles up through the gears far too soon at low speeds and seems unwilling to come back down again and then when you want just a bit more power it’ll kick down two gears, with all hell breaking loose. Tiptronic mode at least gives you back some control but it’s slow to respond and there are times when you don’t want to have to change gear yourself.

Ah, so it’s not that good after all?
In manual guise, it’s brilliant and we’d go and buy one tomorrow if we had the money, road noise be damned, and if you really want a convertible it’s pretty good, with minimal scuttle shake and a roof that doesn’t spoil the lines of the car but whatever you do, stay away from the Tiptronic ‘box…

Specification
911 Turbo 5-sp Tiptronic S
Engine: 3600cc, flat six, water-cooled
Max Power: 480hp @ 6000rpm
Max Torque: 457lb ft @ 1950-5000rpm
Weight: 1620kg
Transmission: Five-speed Tiptronic S, four-wheel drive
Max Speed: 193mph
0-60mph: 3.7 seconds
Price: £107,824


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