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Porsche 911 Carrera GTS PDK
28 Oct 2011
Born to race: With a all the power and poise you expect of a Porsche, is the Carrera GTS a fitting 911 send-off? |
There’s a good reason why the Carrera name, meaning ‘race’ in Spanish and initially adopted in tribute to Porsche’s spectacular performances in the Carrera Panamericana road races of the 1950s, is applied these days to the ‘mainstream’ models in the 911 range. All Porsches benefit from the company’s racing activities, so all 911s are special, providing their owners with levels of handling and performance perfected on the track.
But, since the adoption of Carrera as a ‘series’ name in the mid-’80s, the need has often arisen to add some extra lettering to denote some ‘extra-special’ Carreras. So we get models denoted as 4S, RS, RSR,Turbolook and so on. Now, in a last hurrah for the ‘Type 997’ Carrera, due to be superseded for the 2012 model year, there’s a special ‘wide-body’ adaptation of the two-wheel drive Carrera S, dubbed the Carrera GTS. Of course that tag also has a particular resonance for Porsche fans, harking back to the 904GTS of the early ’60s...
But back to this latest 911: it’s a spectacular-looking machine, with a wide stance courtesy of the Carrera 4 body, 44mm wider than the normal Carrera 2 shell. Those large wheel wells are filled with 19-inch RS Spyder centre-mount wheels finished in black. Among the other unique GTS styling features are a SportDesign front apron with spoiler edge painted in black, black sideskirts and Carrera GTS script on the doors and engine lid. The interior is trimmed in black, much of the trim in lighter-than-leather Alcantara, the dark upholstery contrasting quite dramatically with the pearlescent white of our test car. The sports seats are also finished in black Alcantara, and the same material covers the rim of the three- spoke SportDesign wheel and the handles of the handbrake and gearlever.
As in all modern 911s, PCM covers onboard information and the sound system. The GTS comes with the Sound Package Plus, which has nine speakers and an output of 235 watts.
Look over your shoulder and you’ll see a flat load surface: rear seats are omitted, which means that the GTS weighs five kilograms less than the Carrera S despite the wider body and massive rear wheels. Oh, and you can also specify a 90-litre fuel tank at no extra cost.
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