997 opens for business

Newswheel staff :: 10 January 2005 :: Filed under Porsche, Porsche 911,

[Click on an image to view]

Serious drivers, genuine Porschophiles and bargain-hunting Brits need not apply.

 
As sure as deep cavity searches follow ill-advised banter with US airport immigration officials, Porsche has backed up the recent launch of the new tin-top 911 with a 997-based Cabriolet.

Mechanically, there’s little to report. Both drivetrain and suspension are carried over untouched from the fixed-roof 997. But we certainly wouldn’t kick the Carrera’s sublime 3.6 litre, 325bhp flat-six out of bed, much less the even fruitier 3.8 litre lump that powers the Carrera S. Chassis stiffening mods and a pair of roll-over friendly steel tubes in the A-pillars add 85 kg to the already portly kerb weights of the hard-top Carrera and Carrera S models, giving new totals of 1,480 kg and 1,505 kg respectively . Still, it would have been worse if Porsche had jumped on the folding hard-top wagon rather than sticking with a conventional soft-top.

In the name of style

Whatever, the Cabriolet’s remit in the 911 range is style, not pointy driving dynamics. There’s no doubting the new model looks beefier than the outgoing 996 thanks to the 997’s wider track and flared wheel arches. If you go for the 997’s deja vu styling (and as a matter of record, we don’t) it’s a tidy enough conversion overall. We recommend adding Tiptronic and a perma-tan for the full southern-California effect. Just don’t dwell on the price premium you’re paying for that wind-in-the-hair rush. Or the fact that the mechanically very similar Boxster S also offers a folding top but costs 40% less. UK pricing starts at £65,260 for the Carrera Cabriolet, moving to £72,230 for the S. On the continent entry to the open-air club kicks off at  €73,300. Stateside, meanwhile, you’re looking at a painfully reasonable $79,100  (word of advice to erstwhile Brits - don’t do the exchange rate sums, it will only have you in tears).