21 Feb 05
There will always be worries about safety with any open car, but here, Porsche has gone the extra mile. There are two head airbags concealed in the top of the doors, which inflate upwards to protect occupants. Also, there are ultra-strong steel tubes in each of the windscreen A-pillars and two rollover bars that pop up automatically if the car's sensors detect an imminent inversion.
We drove both Tiptronic and manual versions of the 911 Cab. Unless you have absolutely no interest in driving and are purchasing a 911 in order to pose about the place, don't specify the Tiptronic. This automatic with manual shift option is cursed with badly judged gear ratios, which means the engine is either screaming for mercy or loping along with too few revs. By contrast, the manual six-speed transmission is quite possibly the best 4Car has ever experienced. Its direct, mechanical feel and faultless precision really do a great engine justice. And the 911's flat-six engine is one of the greatest ever.
So is the extra power of the S worth the £7000 premium? Well, the S does sound more raw and urgent, but nobody would ever feel shortchanged in the regular Carrera, which is plenty fast by any measure.
For that premium, the Carrera S also gains bigger brakes and Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) as standard. This allows the driver to alternate between a softer ride or a much more aggressive 'sport' setting on the dampers. The sports mode is very stiff indeed, suitable for track days but just a little too hardcore for regular road duty. And 'normal' delivers perfectly acceptable levels of handling.
Porsche purists reckon an open 911 is a compromise too far, that it takes the precise edge off one of the greatest sportscars of all time. Maybe, but in the 911 Cabriolet, we have one of the most thoroughly engineered and beautifully built convertibles for sale at any price. If that's compromise, bring it on...
