| PERFORMANCE RATING: |
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With this much power and so little mass (1380kg) to propel, what do you expect? The delivery is so progressive, at first it can seem unexciting - it's merely an extremely quick car as the revs rise up to and beyond 5000rpm. But use all the throttle, and you realise the surge just keeps getting more violent. In second or third, you use up a gear so quickly it's like being shot from a catapult. In fifth, the sensation is of a longer rush of force (surfing a huge wave perhaps). This car draws its surreal quality from the way it manages to grow and grow with revs rather than tail off. Even in, say, a regular 911 or BMW M-car, 150mph feels like a serious achievement derived after trouser-busting engine effort. The Carrera just flies through 150, its head of steam still rising. Only when you change to sixth does the acceleration fall away, but even so I saw 200mph (on an old airport runway). Comparisons? Easily more performance than the F50s of this world or the fastest TVRs. Less torque but more top-end fervour than a Pagani Zonda. Ferrari Enzo? Close, very close. Only the McLaren F1 is notably faster. The engine isn't acutely piercing while all this is going on, but it's mean. At the top end, I don't really need to describe it: just wait for the in-car footage from the next grand prix and turn your telly up as loud as it'll go. Lower down, it's a slightly discordant noise, but always the sound of performance. The short wooden-topped gearlever sits handily high up on the console - connecting a fast, short-throw, mechanical-feeling shift. With miniscule flywheel effect from the engine, gearshifts are a blipped delight. Who needs a sequential box?
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