2010 Porsche 911 - Review

By Lyndon Conrad Bell

Lyndon Conrad Bell

Contributing Writer

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Porsche 911 Carrera GTS

Continuous development is like a law of nature in Stuttgart. One need only to look at Porsche's iconic 911 cars to see the benefits of that philosophy. One of the longest-running models available, the 911's basic design goes all the way back to 1963. And, every time you think you've seen the "ultimate" 911, Porsche goes and does itself one better.

This time, the 385-horsepower 911 Carrera S has evolved into the 403-horsepower 911 Carrera GTS. Perfectly suited to slot into the gap between the 385-horsepower Carrera S and the 435-horsepower GT3, the GTS combines the 44-millimeter wider Carrera 4 body, wider rear track and wheels with rear-wheel drive. You get the uber-muscular look without the weight penalty associated with the all-wheel drive sytem.

The output bump comes courtesy of a revised intake and exhaust system for the 3.8-liter flat six. A new resonance intake manifold uses six vacuum-controlled tuning flaps to switch between power and torque-optimized geometry. The Carrera S, by way of comparison, uses only one tuning flap. This change increases torque in the mid-rev range. While maximum torque of 310 pound-feet remains unchanged, it is now available 200 rpm earlier when compared with the Carrera S. Delivering maximum torque lower in the rev range (at 4200 rpm) makes the car quicker.

The sport exhaust system we've loved the sound of as an option on the Carrera S, comes standard on the GTS. Also standard is a six-speed manual transmission. But if you've grown to love the seven-speed Porsche Doppelkupplungsgetriebe (unless you've masochistic tendencies, just say "PDK") as have we, you'll be happy to learn it too, is available.

Acceleration from zero to 60 is quoted at 4.0 seconds for the GTS Coupe with PDK and Sport Chrono Package Plus. Top track speed is 190 mph, yet the new Carrera GTS will offer fuel economy of up to 19 mpg city and 27 mpg highway.

And yes, there will be a convertible version of the 2011 Porsche 911 Carrera GTS as well.

On sale in early 2011, MSRP will be $103,100 for the coupe and $112,900 for the open model.