If you’re in the market for a tasteful, good looking SUV then the forecourt is your oyster. In fact, the only thing on 4 wheels in which you are even more spoilt for choice is the new breed of compact SUV which has surfaced and become king of the road for the last few years.
No matter how deep your pockets are, there is a compact SUV for you. Looking for something on the cheap? Look to the Far East for the likes of the Nissan Juke, Kia Sportage or Mazda CX-5. Few more pennies in your pocket? Well where do you begin? BMW X3, Audi Q3, Volvo XC-60, Volkswagen Tiguan or perhaps a Range Rover Evoque. Clearly what this world does not need is another compact SUV to make that decision even harder.
So with that Porsche have announced that following from the sublime Cayenne, they’re going to throw their lederhosen into the ring with the release of the Porsche Macan. This long awaited lump of German steel is set to be Porsche’s best seller with sales estimates of 55,000 to 75,000 being suggested.
The range topping twin-turbocharged 3.0-litre V6 petrol engine will kick out just shy of 400bhp, which sounds like a bit of a threat to those in BMW’s M-Sport skunkworks. Other than that there will feature several four-cylinder engines, including 2.0-litre turbocharged petrols and diesels, which would make the Macan the first Porsche with less than 6-cylinders since the 968.
Prices are expected to start at £36,000 for the basic V6 models and with it’s (although somewhat disguised) striking good looks and tasteful ride height and size there’s no surprise that this is expected to be a top seller. We can expect more information and images over the next 12 months before its release next year. But for now I can imagine there are some worried looks going around the offices of the Macan’s competition.
Evolution. It occurs over millions of years. It is natures way of finding perfection in a world of organized chaos. Porsche over the decades have used the very same principle of natural selection to rebel against the conformity of the sports car world. No matter what anyone says, putting the engine in the boot is illogical. However, Porsche with their flag ship of the 911 have made it work and not only is the car of great success in the show room, it is also the most successful race car to ever have existed. It is the definitive sports car and the 997 rage was simply unrivaled in its efficient delivery of performance. At this point I would like to level with you… I am not the 911’s biggest fan. I like them, but I do not love them in the same way I adore an Aston Martin. They are fantastic machines but I feel that they lack the character and soul that the afore mentioned has. If a Porsche 911 were a guest at a party it would not dance on the tables, crack a questionable joke or vomit on the hosts cat. It would politely mention its occupation and spend the rest of the evening surveying the houses paintings. It is fantastically functional like a spoon and for that it is greatly appreciated, but it is not as memorable as struggling to use chopsticks in a chinese restaurant. But now their is an all-new 911 that claims to be only the third complete reincarnation of the car. Can you teach a 48 year old dog new tricks?
This is the 2012 Porsche 911 Carrera S, though still unmistakably a 911, the cars further pronounced profile is rather handsome. In particular the rear with its broad hunches and aggressive detailing does tick the “pleasing to the eye” box. As always with Porsche, it is not a styling revolution but an evolution. That said, the cockpit is class leading in design and functionality. Our car fitted with Porsche’s optional PDK 7 speed gearbox had brilliant interior architecture with bold lines and fantastic attention to detail. Everything tangible has taken a real step up in terms of quality over its predecessor. The seats deserve particular admiration as the support they offer in every area is faultless. The cars boot has also increased slightly in capacity making an already practical car that little more helpful on a day to day basis. These are all great points about the new 991 911, but as someone once told me, “the only real way to experience a 911 is to drive one.”
The moment that its 3.8 litre flat-six is fired up a change in demeanour is instantly established. The burble of the car at idle is much deeper giving this 911 a hint of testosterone even whilst not in motion. But this best selling single turns into an album of greatest hits when you open taps! The sound this car produces is a really throaty progressive roar that is intoxicating. Hit sport plus and not only does it blip the throttle on downshifts, but the exhaust crackles and spits making short bursts of acceleration feverishly addictive. Clicking through the gears is effortless with millisecond changes taking place with the precision of a laser guided smart bomb. That said, leaving it in automatic unveils a new trait of the Porsche 911. Softening the suspension settings and quietening the car down transforms the dramatically involving machine into a luxurious grand tourer. No 911 before it has dialed out the road, tyre and engine noise better than this. It is a car you could cover vast distances in without even realizing. It has not taken anything away from the cars biblical performance, but it has added a new dynamic that the 991 911 is all the better for.
The steering may no longer be belt driven but the engineers for this car have created the most perfect balance of precision in its new electric system. It is sharp, well calibrated and still offers that all important feedback that true drivers crave. A byproduct of this is that the 997’s signature understeer has been eradicated. The carbon ceramic breaks in our test car were sublime bringing this 911 to a rapid halt from speed in mind boggling distances. You are never afraid to really push this car because you know you will always be able to stop. It encourages you to drive exuberantly with torque vectoring allowing for even more vigorous changes of direction.
This 911has almost left me speechless. The Germans have addressed everything that hindered the previous model. They have improved upon their formula for success by giving the car the ability to be tranquil, by giving it more definition, by giving it the latest performance tech. But better than all this, Porsche has given the 911 a soul.
Precision engineering. Performance focused accuracy. Efficient, intelligent and 100% functional. All of this is very stereotypically German but there is one manufacture in particular that can claim all of this as an everyday occurrence. Porsche’s are the world’s most purchased performance machines and for the past 48 years they have been refining one model that today is the very definition of the brand. The 911 is a car that many struggle to comprehend as there is often little change on a new cars part from its predecessor. Yet if you take a few steps back what the world is witnessing is evolution in action. From one car to the next only a few benefits are gained but over the decades they collectively add up culminating in a car so well engineered that it defies logic. These days you can get a 911 in almost every flavour imaginable from convertible to coupe and everything in between. Would you like turbo’s with that? How about drive train and gearbox selections? The combinations that are possible form numbers we dare not quote. However there has always been one 911 that exemplifies the breed. One three digit labelled car the strikes fear into the heart of competitors, excitement for those in the passenger seat and pure driving pleasure for the one behind the wheel. Ladies and gentlemen, the GT3.
Porsche do bring faster incarnations of the 911 to the road in the forms of the GT2 or even GT3 RS but they are not so much cars for the road as racers with indicators. The GT3 is the perfect combination of refinement, ok it still has scaffolding in the back, and race derived performance. The car requires the driver to use it in a set way to gain the most from it, to really think about the inputs he or she is making. It is not a machine for those looking to strike a pose at every street corner and let me assure you the second you take it for granted it will bite.
As with tradition this 911 is powered by a flat-six loaded into the rear. The 3.8 litre produces 435BHP that will accelerate the car to 62MPH in just 4.1 seconds. Top speed is 194MPH more than qualifying for that intrigued expression you now wear on your face. Yet the thing to note about the GT3 is not how fast it moves, but the way it moves.
From the moment that engine burbles into life to your last few seconds in the car you can feel exactly how the Porsche philosophy has benefited this car. The steering is superbly weighted allowing for the very precise placement of this astonishing machine. The gearbox may now be seen as old hat by the likes of Ferrari but the connection with the car that is created when slamming through the gears with this 6 speed manual is almost unrivalled. It is not easy but use it correctly and the rewards the GT3 will bestow on you are almost beyond value. The wide track, front splitter and rear wing all work in tandem giving high levels of down force consistently. Combine that with 430Nm of torque and you are in driving heaven. Everything about this car is tailored for somebody who can really appreciate what the designers at Porsche were aiming for. Some will find the ride too firm, others the gear changes too clunky and to those people I say go and buy another 911 as this clearly isn’t the car for you.
From within the cabin the howling engine will fill your eardrums and as it is naturally aspirate the sounds is an even sweeter symphony. As previously mentioned the rear seats in this 911 are absent and are instead replaced with various beams to improve the cars rigidity. That’s not to say it is completely void of creature comforts as there is a whole host of quality fabric lining the interior, racing seats and an onboard computer that does all the fancy music stuff in addition to giving you live telemetry.
At £89,785 it is quite costly in the grand scheme of Porsche but as far as competition goes the Germans have thrived on value for money. Personally I’m not really a Porsche man but this car, this next evolutionary step is not only the best GT3 yet, but also one of the best sports cars money can buy.
Porsche is a brand that over its lifespan has become one of the big players in the automotive industry. To go up against the likes of heavyweights namely Ferrari and Lamborghini is an admirable accolade but to emerge as the unquestioned market leader is something no other manufacturer has done before it. Porsche has always provided the Italians with a serrated thorn in their sides but for the past 47 years that job has been immortalized in three digits. 911. The 911 is the worlds best selling sports car offering comfort, precise German engineering and performance at a reasonable price. Despite have it’s engine in the wrong location, in the rear over the axel, the German companies persistence over decades has slowly backwards engineered this questionable formula into a success.
Porsche engineers have often been remarked as lazy, changing the absolute minimum from model year to model year. However those who know how Porsche works can take a step back and see that each car is not a revolution but an evolution. Every incarnation a slight improvement on the last, slowly moving towards becoming the ultimate sports car.
This is the Porsche 911 Carrera 4S and being the top of the Carrera line it must impress without question as this will become one of the manufacturers top sellers by the end of the year. For those who don’t know the 4S is a four-wheel-drive variant of the Carrera S in theory making it one of Porsche most usable models for any driver. This particular 4S has Porsche’s new PDK option that entails a 7 speed dual clutch gearbox being pair to the cars 3.8 litre flat-six. Ticking the PDK box does more than just add £2,500 to the overall price as gear changes become faster than what is humanly possible with a manual, and the 0-62MPH time drops to an exhilarating 4.5 seconds (4.3 seconds with the sport+ option.) Oh and 420Nm of torque also comes in very handy on B-roads when the heavy right foot is required for overtaking.
With the classic flat-six producing 385BHP the 4S is never short on power and being naturally aspirated does mean that under brisk acceleration the engine note is clear, crisp and captivating. Inside it is your standardized Porsche interior it functional and being brutally honest, slightly dull fascias and consoles. Seating has GT comfort levels though you must remember that in the world of 911’s “seats four in comfort” translates to “seats 2 and a half.”
On the road the car is very responsive giving the driver pinpoint accuracy through thecorners. Fears of the heavily weighted rear snapping back have been put to bed many years ago and now the 911 is a real tool to encourage performance driving and not deter it. The sequential gearbox is a masterpiece offering quick changes through wheel mounted paddles as opposed to the standard 6 speed manual. Hitting the sport button on the Carrera is a must as the dampers firm up and the ride get all the most exhilarating. These days a 911 like this driven cautiously will even achieve 27MPG, though ours was much closer to 11…
In all the small changes to this years Carrera 4S are as small as ever however it is a winning combination. This car is the reason you could justify a performance car in your life as it’s reasonably practical and for a starting price of £79,123 you must question anybody who buys anything else. That said the Audi R8…
Porsche, a badge that has become defined by three numbers. The 911 is by far and away the world’s bestselling sports car and for many reasons I agree with its owners for giving it that title. Porsche engineering is some of the world’s best as they have proved time and again that despite putting the engine in the wrong place there is always a way to make it mechanically sound. But what if the engineers were unshackled from this tradition and did something very un-German, get creative. In 2005 that is exactly what happened and the result was something absolutely profound. Five years later we have finally got hold of the machine to see just how much of a German rebellion it was. We are of course talking about the Porsche Carrera GT.
Looking at this car is much like watching a revolution unfold. Its appearance is very much classic Porsche from many angles but from others it can be likened more to a streamlined fish. The whole car is supremely sculpted with every linehaving a connection and every curvature precisely angled along the bodywork. I’m not going to say it is a beautiful car but what I will say is that it certainly makes a statement of intent with a presence as strong as gravity. I think the Germans would describe its aesthetics as functional.
What you have to remember about this car is that many of its components were originally designed for a Le Mans racer but thanks to changes in regulations they found a use for them in the Carrera GT. One such component is that gargantuan 5.7 litre V10 that produces a mammoth 605BHP. More power than god? Debatable, but one thing we know for sure is that it is one of the most powerful cars we have ever laid hands on. The car is also equipped with race suspension fresh from the Porsche GT1 and a 6 speed manual gearbox. The entire car is built on a carbon fibre monocoque chassis that not only keeps the weight down but also increases structural rigidity. In fact this car is so strong that Porsche could add those removable roof panels without having to strengthen the floor. The culmination of all this is a machine that is mid-engined and can achieve 0-60MPH in 3.9 seconds and won’t stop until it gets to 209MPH. Traveling at those warp speeds means that the car also has 15 inch carbon breaks fitted as standard as well as a spoiler that deploys once the car reaches 75MPH.
The cockpit is something that many Porsche owners would find familiar as features such as overlapping gauges also appear in the Carrera GT. In the centre sits a column that stretches from the floor to the top of the dashboard wearing various buttons and holding a Beachwood gearstick. An interesting design feature and one that I very much like but I’m not so keen on the wood, it just looks a bit out of place on a car that is the equivalent of a high-tech Swiss army knife.
When the car is given life its V10 fizzes as the starter motor does its job and is then followed by the engine barking into life. At tick over the Carrera is surprisingly civilised emitting a slight hum as it waits patiently to be used for its purpose. This refinement slowly deteriorates as the car picks up speed with excited bursts from the engine escaping at every opportunity. Open the taps and you will soon forget about this cars German origins as it makes no apologies for the V10 howl that fills every orifice of your body. The acceleration is astonishing not because of the time it takes but because of the way it never yields, it just keeps getting faster at the very same rate you set off at. I have never experienced anything like it! In the turns the car is equally impressive as the aerodynamic body cuts through the air and the rear spoiler drives the rear tyres into the ground. One word to describe the handling would be responsive, it is just so direct, you point it where you want to go and it’s gone.
It may be five years old but it can still keep todays youngsters in line. Only 1500 Porsche Carrera GT’s were ever made and each sold for over £300,000. Worth the money? Well let’s put it this way, there are many ways to experience an adrenaline rush; you can ski down a mountain, fight bears or even fall out of a plane but none of these compare with the pure rush you get from unrelenting speed. And the Porsche Carrera GT, well that’s the ultimate aphrodisiac.
Man has always strived to conquer nature; for millions of years we have fought predators, mastered fire and built shelter in order to combat the gods will. After overcoming tough terrain we began to put our higher brain function into use. Instead of clambering over rock formations like mere apes we began to redefine the way our species became mobile. Enter the 4X4, a mode of transport that didn’t ask how far we could get but rather how easily can we get there. Today I am reviewing a car that takes the 4X4 a step further, a car that asks a different question. How fast can we get there?
This is the all-new Porsche Cayenne or to be more specific the new Cayenne S. Now Cayenne’s in motoring circles may come with a reputation of being driven by the Chelsea squad but they have always been commended for their uncanny ability to tackle nearly any terrain at criminally insane speeds. Porsche’s new car has gone through a metamorphosis turning from something that resembles a troll, to a much more sociably acceptable or rather a more palatable form. The design work might not be a radical new direction but you have to admit that it looks much less like a tumour in comparison to its predecessor.
The Cayenne S conceals a 4.8 litre V8 engine that has the power of 400 ultra-efficient horses that aids this car in achieving some remarkable figures. The 0-62MPH dash is completed in a staggering 5.9 seconds and can go on to reach a top speed of 160MPH. That makes this two tonne goliath as fast as its little brother the Boxster, which I shall remind you is a light weight two seat sports car. So it has the speed to scuttle up Mt Everest in 45 seconds but that is nothing without the capability to give Mother Nature a right hook. The Cayenne comes with a descent control system that will keep the car at a constant speed whilst navigating your way down from a steep decline. It does not however have a low range gearbox which is a necessity out in the wilderness, so are we to see Cayenne’s scattered across the countryside? Well, no as the boffins at Porsche have developed the cars 8 speed gearbox to have a low first gear negating the need for a separate system. Pair that with a lockable centre differential and it makes this one rapid 4X4. Ok so it’s not going to compete with the likes of the Discovery but its impressive none the less.
Inside it is extremely comfortable as it takes the garnishing’s of the Panamera and uses them to its own ends. The seats are very supportive and something to take particular note of is that rear occupants have adjustable seats also. The boot in the new Cayenne uses the latest in TARDIS technology as it is much bigger than what it appears to be on the outside. With the rear seats up and pushed all the way back the minimum amount of boot space is still a colossal 580 litres, more than enough to swallow ¾ of the moon. Every cayenne comes standard with cruise control and to be perfectly honest that’s a very good thing as the majority of these cars will only live to stalk the motorway.
On the road the Cayenne S is exhilarating as it whisks you briskly towards its top speed without a hint of surrender. The chassis is taught allowing for accurate and meaningful turn in as well as balanced levels of comfort. My only real criticism of this car would be that it does all the day-to-day stuff with ease, so much so that you feel that it doesn’t really need you there. Now that’s fine if you’re just looking for a quick and practical way to transport the family but as a driver’s car it’s not all that involving.
Don’t get me wrong the Cayenne S is a mechanical masterpiece and at £54,000 I would argue that it almost makes the much more expensive turbo model unworthy of its price tag. But I can think of a particular British manufacturer that produces a competitor and given the choice I think it’s the Range Rovers keys that would end up in my pocket.
After having a discussion in the office we came to the conclusion that we may have been going a bit over the top with the vast number of supercars we have reviewed of late. The result of this is me being told to leave the Mercedes SLS for another day and go and find a hybrid to review. Brilliant, from 200MPH gods to the scourge of the roads, but then again they didn’t say what hybrid.
This is the new Porsche Cayenne S, no really, it is an all new car and not just Porsches usual trick of changing the headlights. The Cayenne has always been hailed as one of the ugliest cars to ever stalk the earth, making passers-by projectile vomit on sight. However if you could hold down the carrot chunks and get behind the wheel you would soon find that despite its looks it was a phenomenal bit of machinery. You see it might be a 4X4 but it does run on Porsche power meaning that it will happily do 80MPH over just about anything. This thoroughly redesigned Cayenne is much less likely to scare your children and truth be told, I rather like the design with its purposeful stance yet understated persona.
This being the Cayenne hybrid it receives Porsches first petrol electric motor that can do a claimed 34.4MPG. Now for a car of this size with 333BHP and can reach 150MPH that’s quite the achievement. The hybrid starts at a rather costly £57,609 but then again it is a premium product and not a BMW X5. Our car had a few more toys, ok £12,000 worth of extras, making it just over £69,000. So is it worth your hard earned pounds?
Inside of the Porsche is a genuinely nice place to be as many design features have been lifted from the Panamera which we phrased specifically for the quality of its interior. The seats hold occupants firmly in place whilst offering ample support for the lower back and legs. The driving position is fantastic allowing for a good peripheral view without the requirement of the common 4X4 driver’s seat wriggle manoeuvre that can often be viewed at junctions. In the back passengers have a good level of leg room as well as fully adjustable seats that allow for optimum comfort. The boot is in fact a near bottomless pit that will willingly swallow bags, push chairs, dogs and a medium sized cow if you require it to. The interior in general is near faultless and looking at it you can really tell it cost the owner a shiny penny or two.
The V6 hybrid engine under the bonnet can propel this car to 62MPH in 6.5 seconds rivalling many sports cars on sale today. This is the Cayenne S’ strong point as for such a big car it really does shift. 324lb of torque aids in this cars speed and agility though this is sometimes compromised by its own 8 speed automatic gearbox. It just seems to change up and down at will regardless whether you are in the process of going around a corner or even pottering along a B-road. Another thing that castrates this cars performance in the very fact that it is a hybrid. Regenerative breaking systems, such as the one found in this Cayenne, use magnets in the breaks to generate a voltage to charge the electrical element of the car. That’s great for the environment but makes judging when the hybrid will stop difficult as the system acts like an extra set of breaks.
Overall the Porsche Cayenne S hybrid is a brilliant combination for those looking for a practical yet premium solution to transporting the family at a fair pace. However everything I dislike about it is due to the changes made to create a hybrid. In my opinion if you are willing to spend this sort of money on a car like this you might as well buy the Turbo model and enjoy life a little more. Ok so your fuel bill grows but your enjoyment from not having the ball and chain attached to the Cayenne will outweigh your environmental guilt.
Over 40 years ago Porsche attempted an experiment so important, that had it not been accepted then the company would not be in the successful position it is in today. The philosophy was simple, build a sports car with an engine sitting on the rear axle and make it drive the rear wheels. This in itself was an engineering conundrum, but being German, the designers at Porsche found a way. They called the car a 911 and today, 40 years on, it is one of the world’s most successful sports cars ever produced. The position of the engine gives every incarnation a very definitive shape and it is a shape that has captured the imagination of small children and adults for generations.
However, I will be the first to put my hand up and say that whilst the Porsche mentality of making the car a little more perfect than its predecessor every year is a good one, it doesn’t yield major surprises when the next car arrives. Some say it’s because the designers have become lazy and that cars of old were much more exciting, but this isn’t the case. 911’s are more exciting than ever, but because the principle has been honed to perfection any developments between models are often negligible.
So what’s the solution? What if the past was able to jump into the 21st century? A classic design with all the techno-wizardry of amodern Porsche. It sounds perfect, and it is… World meet the Porsche 911 Sport Classic, a limited run of 250 cars each sculpted to be modern yet carry over the design genes of their forefathers including thatrather attractive duck-tail spoiler. The engine sits above the rear axle and the car still favours rear-wheel-drive, yet the refinements of the modern 911 lay deep beneath the body. This car has been 47 years in the making, so how does it fair?
Let’s start with the numbers… The Sport Classics 3.8 litre flat-six produced 408BHP, that’s 23 more than the Carrera S that it’s based on. As a result 0-62MPH goes by at 4.6 seconds and the car won’t stop until the classically styled dash reads 187MPH. The cost for this performance is £140,000 which to be honest isn’t a colossal amount for a car as rare as this. Exclusivity will be ample as with many cars, the majority of these will hide away in a private collection. And that’s a great shame because the best bit about this car by far, it the way it moves!
The throaty warble of the 3.8 is extremely pleasant for the listener as it funnels out of the all new sports exhaust. One of the cars subtleties is the double-bubble on the roof, look closely and you will see the faint bulges that were originally designed to give racing drivers extra head room when wearing helmets. In this case it channels a stream of air down to that classic duck-tail to provide extra down force. The result is phenomenal cornering speeds and the ability to really push this car to its limits. Another ace up this cars sleeve is its carbon-ceramic breaks that have the potential to tear your face off. Hitting the breaks firmly results in your internal organs becoming nailed to the tastefully upholstered dashboard. They really do stop the car with the ferocity of a kick to the chest from a horse.
Despite the cars capability of being a terror to society, it also manages to simultaneously be the most refined 911 I have ever reviewed. The cabin is comfortable and even more charming with its hints to the past. All of today’s toys can be found within this sanctuary of its performance orientated style.
The Sport Classic is a fantastic edition to the Porsche family and I hope to see similar reincarnations in the future, as for me this car represents pure Porsche. It’s not built to be the fastest or most powerful, but to be the embodiment of the 911 legacy itself. Motoring passion, not the town run around for bank managers.
In days of old Porsche were a company that only traded in performance machines, products that defined the breed of the sports car. Today if look around the showroom every vehicle is one of high performance, but the model range no longer walks the path of its forefathers. Porsche have diluted themselves with 4X4’s and luxury barges of late, the result of this may well be a raised profit margin but also a by-product of maturity. Now that’s all well and good but it doesn’t help the man who wants those brown trouser moments for the same price as the toilet roll he will use later. The baby of Porsche’s range, the Boxster, would be the solution if it didn’t have its current reputation of being the hairdresser’s run-about. And that’s a shame because secretly I quite like the car, the ideal resolution would be a manlier Boxster.
Here it is, the Boxster Spyder, think of it as the stylish stiletto heel but made of iron and mud. The first noticeable difference is the lack of a proper rag-top. Instead this car has the motoring equivalent of a two man tent in order to cater for that extended boot lid. The outcome is a sleeker profile, plus the added fuss and frustration when the weather decides to change. This however works in our favour as women are less likely to buy this if they have to break a nail whilst constructing the thing. To be honest the roof isn’t as much of a trouble as what I’m making out; just don’t tell the ladies that.
With the roof stowed in its cubbyhole the car takes on the charm and characteristics of an old 550 spyder but with all the modern day creature comforts. Well by that I mean it has seats and carpet, but just about everything else in an optional extra. By removing what the customer could do without, including proper door handles, it becomes the lightest car the manufacturer produces. With an added 10BHP to the 3.4 litre flat-six, it should make for a tantalising package by the standards of the thrill seeker on a budget.
On the road this car is much like the base model, comfortable and really rather good at clinging to the tarmac no matter how fast the corner. Steering is sharp just like the original, the throttle response is almost instant just like the original, in fact the entire car is much like the original. This is no bad thing as the standard Boxster was a riot to drive, however the absence of creature comforts such as air conditioning and a CD player may make the car lighter, but it certainly makes it no place for a journey over 20 miles. The wind against the cars delicate roof at anything over 50MPH is near unbearable as the canvas flaps about like a fish out of water. This then is the perfect excuse to store tent and go all out for the cars top speed of 166MPH.
So the Boxster Spyder may not be the car you desire for the motorway, but on a good B-road it can certainly induce a raised heart rate. The fact that this car weighs about the same as a sugar cube means that acceleration is an event to throw you back into your seat, and deceleration something that will impale you on the wheel. The car dances through corners with near perfect balance thanks to new dampers, springs and anti-roll bars that aid the car in being needle sharp in its responses from the driver.
All in all does it quench the thrust of the average man looking for a cheap thrill? The answer is yes and no. Yes it does press all the right buttons when you feel the need for excitement but no it does not make for a suitable companion on anything other than the weekend. The Spyder may have broken free from the grip of female entrapment but in doing so has lost the more complete package that the standard Boxter is. At £46,387 it can’t even be argued that its value for money, as the BMW Z4 is just as adequate yet more refined for a more reasonable price. I’m not condemning this car, but at the same time neither am I going to present it with a medal of honour.
Porsche for the past 60 years have been best known for their sports cars. Their stubbornness to stick to a rear mounted flat-six has been an iconic trait for the company, and eventually led to the success of the 911. However when Porsche strayed from their tried and tested formula they came back with what can only be described as Frankenstein’s monster. The Cayenne may well be the world’s fastest 4X4 and be able to manage 60MPH on most terrains, but it certainly wasn’t a looker! The latest incarnation is a thorough improvement, but that is for another time.
So when the brand announced that they were making a four door saloon we did question if it would be a good idea to diversify from what they are truly good at. Regardless, it’s our job to review it and review it we did. This is the Porsche Panamera Turbo and its appearance very quickly became a source argument within the office. Some said it was too bland and is undeserving of the badge, others stated that it was just ugly and much like the Cayenne it shall remain to be an ugly relation of the Porsche range. Personally I rather like the way it looks. It’s under stated yet has an air of importance about it. The precise lines, the slight bulge in the bonnet all shoutperformance but in a very civilized manner.
This refined styling continues in the cabin with its centre console that extends through to the rear seats. This architecture helps break down the barrier we so often see between the front and back rows of seating. The seats themselves are pleasant and even the rear seats getting the bolstered treatment. Of course no luxury saloon would be complete without an array of gizmos such as heated seats, sim-card reader and the like. But the most impressive technology lays beneath the cars perfectly formed bonnet. A 4.8 litre V8 that is supplemented by two turbo’s is the cause for this cars 492BHP effect. 0-62MPH is dealt with in 4.2 seconds and it won’t stop until it reaches 188MPH! On paper this car looks less like a luxury limo and more like a super car.
On the move the power is transferred to the tarmac with magic, or as I was later told Porsches new all-wheel-drive system. At low speed the car is quiet and everything else you want your £100,000 super-sedan to be, but when you crank this thing up to 11, it really goes for it. It’s pure Porsche with its very precise turn in and effortless acceleration. A spoiler deploys like something from a Bond film to increase down force! What other car in this class even had the words “down force” mentioned in its design specification?
Despite what epic fun this car is I must say that there are a few drawbacks. You have just spent a lot of money on a car that provides its occupants a thrill (check), and also comfort on a long journey (ah, hang on). The purpose of this car it to seat four, and I must say it does, but not in a manner that would be suitable for long distances. The snug feel in the back is fine when you need to be held in your seat due to the G-force generated, but when you have a 3 hour trip ahead of you it’s not where you want to be.
Porsche have done well with the Panamera and I’m sure the entire Chelsea mob will be falling over each other in an attempt to get one, but for me that would be yet another contributing factor not to buy one. Fantastic car spoilt by a few fatal flaws.
