Hot on the heels of the recent announcement of the new 911 GT3 from the prestige German manufacturer Porsche, comes the announcement of yet another new 911; but this time it’s a little different. This one is for the purists and it’s all about concentrating on the essentials.
The focus in this case is on agility, lightweight construction and an emotive sound, as well as, wait for it, a six-speed manual transmission, making this the ideal Carrera for drivers who like total control. Optional equipment packages specially tailored to the Carrera T offer stylish individuality to make the car your very own. Better still, for fresh air aficionados, this new version of the Carrera T is also available as a cabriolet.
The Exterior
Numerous features distinguish the Carrera T from other models in the series. One very small but rather delightful addition is that of a sticker with the shift pattern logo on each of the triangular rear windows. These identify the sports car as a manually-shifting and particularly purist representative of the model line.
The model designations on the rear are in a contrasting colour, namely ‘Vanadium Grey’. The inlays on the rear lid grille, the upper and lower trim of the exterior mirrors, and the machine-polished light alloy wheels are painted in the same colour. Another feature of the Carrera T is the aerodynamically optimised spoiler lip taken from the 911 Carrera GTS. Various other colours are available, some of which carry over to the soft-top version. Otherwise, it’s business as usual when it comes to the design. Viewers at the road side can always recognise that familiar and much loved design.
The Interior
Sporty and black, with contrasting stitching on request as an option, Porsche has given the premium interior of the Carrera T an emphatically, again, purist look that’s typical of the T-model ethos. The eye-catching stopwatch in the standard ‘Sport Chrono Package’ is prominent on the dashboard. A number of special details emphasise the exclusivity of the 911 Carrera T as a manual sports car: the shortened gear lever is topped with an open-pore walnut laminated wood gear knob, which offers a special visual and tactile experience. In front of the gear lever is a badge with the ‘MT’ (Manual Transmission) logo. The shift pattern logo is printed on the passenger side of the dashboard. The list of standard equipment also includes a leather-upholstered and heated GT sports steering wheel, fitted with a mode switch. Alternatively, a more sporting Race-Tex steering wheel is also available. The decorative inlays in the dashboard and the centre console are, again, Vanadium Grey, with the door panel inlays being black brushed aluminium.
Befitting the sporty character of its interior, the Carrera T has black, four-way electrically adjustable sports seats with ‘Sport-Tex’ seat centres as standard. The tartan fabric pattern of the interior is exclusively reserved for the 911 Carrera T. The 911 logo is stitched into the headrests. Customers can order the ‘Adaptive Sports Seats Plus’, which are 18-way adjustable, or particularly light full bucket seats optionally.
The Power And The Glory
The Porsche 911 Carrera T is powered by the familiar 3.0 litre six-cylinder twin-turbo boxer engine of the 911 Carrera. It delivers 389 bhp (394 PS) and develops torque of up to 450 Nm. We have as drivers become used to seeing those small, quick-shifting paddles behind the steering wheel and that’s fine: But just imagine going back in time to a standard six-speed manual transmission, transferring the drive power to the rear axle! Somehow, it just seems right.
When shifting down, as a nice modern touch, there’s an intermediate throttle function ‘auto-blip’ which can be selected to automatically and specifically compensate speed differences between the engine and the gearbox.
With the standard ‘Sport Chrono Package’, the Carrera T Coupé sprints to 62 mph (100 km/h) in a speedy 4.5 seconds (Cabriolet: 4.7 seconds). Its top speed is 183 miles per hour (295 km/h. Cabriolet: 293 km/h). In line with its increased power compared to the preceding version, the Carrera has a bigger braking system with an all-round brake disc diameter of 350 millimetres and six-piston fixed callipers at the front. In combination with the reduced interior insulation and the auto-blip function, the standard sports exhaust system makes for that particularly emotive sound that only a pure Porsche boxer engine can emit.
The Drive
As always, the now obligatory ‘Sport Chrono Package’, which includes a ‘Track Precision’ App, is part of the standard equipment of the 911 Carrera T. Additionally, for the first time Porsche is equipping the model with rear-axle steering as standard in combination with a more direct steering ratio on the front axle, thus significantly optimising handling. Rear-axle steering really does make a big difference to how the car responds in that lateral acceleration is generated faster and the steering responds more directly, while stability is simultaneously increased. The tuning of the rear-axle steering was developed specifically for this model.
The adaptive sports suspension, which is lowered by 10 mm, is also standard and has been given model-specific, sporty tuning to make the Carrera T even better, and even more agile, to drive. The standard rear-axle steering and an aerodynamic balance optimised exclusively for the car have enabled the anti-roll bars on the front and rear axles to be tuned for neutral handling. The Porsche 911 Carrera T has 20/21-inch Carrera S light alloy wheels.
Porsche & MHH International
The name Porsche is now so familiar that it has entered the automotive language as almost the benchmark for driving pleasure. This new variant joins a growing list of prestige models including sports car, saloons and family sized SUV’s and MHH International are proud to offer a wide range of these superb vehicles for export from the UK to countries as far afield as Kenya, Ireland and New Zealand with plenty of other destinations along the way. Is a Porsche your choice for your next car? Get in touch for the latest information and to find out about VAT-free purchases.
