Witley
Nr. Godalming
Surrey
GU8 5LP
Tel: +44(0)1428-682277
Fax:+44(0)1428-685252
Last Update: 12:48 Mon 17 Mar 2003
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Crossways Witley Nr. Godalming Surrey GU8 5LP Tel: +44(0)1428-682277 Fax:+44(0)1428-685252 |
Specialists in Rare, Luxury, Sports and Performance Cars
Last Update: 12:48 Mon 17 Mar 2003 |
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I might as well confess it up front. I have never been much of a fan of Porsches. I had a lift in one (do not ask what mark number) from Kirk o' Fields to Bread Street in Edinburgh in 1963, a route that took us just about a mile along dark, narrow, cobbled streets. The journey was terrifying, noisy and uncomfortable. My psyche has been scarred by the experience ever since. Bear in mind that I have since raced a variety of frightening machinery from big bikes through hot cars and stock cars to karts, yet that one-minute ride some forty years ago remains one of my unfavourite memories. There is also Dr. Porsche's irritating habit of referring to them by very similar numbers. How is anyone supposed to know that 964s, 993s, 996s and various other sums are all varieties of 911? There's a danger that they're running out of three digit numbers bigger than the previous model. It's only a matter of time before there's a 999.999 in your local showroom. The only Porsche I've been able to distinguish in the past was the Boxster. And as for these table-sized spoilers, air-cooled Volkswagen engines, ground-scraping air dams... |
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My positive memories of Porsches were their many years of competition success, and in particular the gorgeous Gulf Porsche 917s at le Mans back in 1970 - Steve McQueen and all that. I say all this so you will know that I was not pre-disposed to like the 996, nor to appreciate its finer points, but, what the hell, I was told it was a nice car, so I had a look at it. |
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At first sight, it's a surprisingly unfussy car for a top-of-the-range sports car - no
fins, spoilers, air ducts or power bulges. In fact, it has amazingly clean lines
in a refinement of the classic Porsche shape that began with the 356 back in 1949.
All the lights are carefully faired in with the bodywork, and only the streamlined
mirrors break the outline. Of course, you can buy a big, obtrusive spoiler if you
want, but the mini-spoiler on this one deploys at 75 mph.
In a way, it's a bit of a giveaway to the highway patrol if your spoiler is up. If you are stopped, you have to tell them you pressed the little button (almost invisible in the driver's footwell near the door) to manually deploy it.
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The interior is a little plain for a car of its price. There's no feeling
of being pampered here, though there are front and side airbags for the
front seats.
To match the deluxe +2 image, I suppose they have to provide the extra two seats, and the rear seat accommodation is less spartan than many +2 sports cars. Though if the passenger happens to have legs, he may be in some difficulty. You certainly won't be stopping for any hitch-hikers, but you could cram people in for a short journey, and the area is very handy for a briefcase or for something too big to go under the hood with the spare. |
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True to its heritage, the engine is at the rear, but (and this was news to me)
it's water-cooled! It's only 3.6 litres arranged as a flat 6, with twin Turbo chargers
and it's dry-sumped to stop the oil slopping around in these high G turns.
To me it looks surprisingly small for an engine of around 300 horsepower.
But you want to know how it drives, right? The engine is quiet, unlike most of its predecessors, but it packs quite a punch and feels utterly stable at ordinary speeds. The top speed of this car is around 175 mph, but Mr. Slater doesn't like me driving his cars around Surrey at racing speed, and there's no other way of evaluating its performance, so I've had to rely on others for their experience. Everyone seems to agree that it's much quicker and safer than a 993, particularly in inexpert hands, so while it's probably not safe to let your seventeen year old boy drive it, it's not going to let go on you unless you are very rash, because of the stability management control (traction and braking control). Everyone also agrees that it's a smooth move away from the noisy, sporty Porsche of yesteryear in which you knew all about its hard suspension, lively back-end, and had the minute-to-minute realisation that you are Driving a Sports Car. But that might just sell it to me. The 996 might look and sound a very tame animal compared to most of its predecessors, yet it is both the most comfortable 911 road car ever, and, what's more, people who know tell me it can race the pants off all its forebears, for acceleration, top speed and cornering ability, on road or on track. Why look further for your next car? |
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