Porsche to update 911 for 2008
If we've said it once, we've said it a thousand times: the Porsche 911 is the iconic, staple sports car. So when Stuttgart rolls out a revision, however minor, it's headline news. And the latest reports indicate that the 2008 911 will feature a few revisions, as the current version has been on the market for four years already.
Don't expect anything drastic in the styling department, as the 911's design progression has fallen squarely in the evolutionary, not revolutionary category. And once again, we can forecast that only automotive enthusiasts and Porshephiles with a keen eye will be able to differentiate the new model from the old. Expect a bigger air intake in the front fascia and new tail-lights. Since Porsche designers appear to be hyperconservative when it comes to tinkering with the 911's overall look, that should be about the extent of the visible changes.
Pop the hood and...well, you can never see much under the hood of a 911, anyway, but rest assured there will be changes. We swear. For starters, as backwards as it may seem to derive technology from a sport-ute into a sports-car, the new direct-injection engines that debuted in the latest Cayenne will be turned around and shoehorned into the back of the 911. Porsche is claiming that will net a 10-15% improvement in fuel economy, which of course is the first consideration for most Porsche buyers – read previous with sarcasm – and a power increase of five to twenty-five horsepower across the range. The bigger news is the replacement of the lackluster and outmoded Tiptronic automatic gearbox with a dual-clutch transmission, like its cousins from the VW Group. That should help close the gap between the clutch-full and clutch-less versions, and we'd predict an accompanying spike in sales of auto/Tiptronic/DSG versions as compared to their stick-shift counterparts.
Of course, with so many variations in the 911 line-up, this means we get to look forward to new Carreras, Cabrios, Targas, Turbos, GT3s and a whole lot more.
[Source: Motor Authority]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
carbuzzard 6:42PM (12/25/2006)
The irony of calling the 911 contours iconic is that when the 911 replaced the 356, Porsche purists howled that the new car was homely and didn't look like a Porsche. Somethings, apparently, don't change.
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vectorbug 9:38PM (12/25/2006)
Do I sense a hint of jaded attitude? Or does Noah Joseph just not like Porsches, or even cars in general? Or maybe working on Christmas? Theres just something about this entry that seems less than enthused.
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Brisance 10:00PM (12/25/2006)
>>And the latest reports indicate that the 2008 911 will feature a few revisions, as the current version has been on the market for four years already.
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SOhp101 11:51PM (12/25/2006)
Porsches are nice, but you can be sure that they'll find some excuse to put a $3k+ tag on a DSG transmission which 'mysteriously' costs
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huis 1:01AM (12/26/2006)
Maybe I'm off, but aren't the direct injection engines from the Cayenne a V-6 and a V-8? They're going to put those in a 911??? Not a flat 6?
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Andy 3:50PM (12/26/2006)
I don't expect much when Porsche replaces the 997. The Germans don't have the will to make bold leaps in styling--at least, not often. The new Cooper, anyone? How I long for the cunning design of the 507, 300SL, and 917.
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jon benson 11:13AM (12/26/2006)
So will this be released as the 998? What happens in 2 revisions time to the naming convention?
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Ken 7:52AM (12/27/2006)
#5, I think they mean the Bosch direct injection system, currently used on the Cayenne, will be added to the 911's F-6.
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Carguy 10:02AM (12/26/2006)
I think he means that the direct injection technology of the Cayenne engines will be introduced to the flat 6 engines of the new 2008 911s.
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SwatLax 11:42AM (12/26/2006)
Hate to be that guy, but its not about "the gap between the clutch-full and clutch-less versions" since the technology's generic name is DCT - Dual Clutch Transmission. The manual and DSG both have clutches, but you only have control over it in the manual.
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jon.... 8:04PM (12/26/2006)
I bet the DSG version will be faster to both 60 and the 1/4 then the traditional manual. Why? Uninterupted power delevery....this is asuming it has launch control of some type like the BMW SMG.
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Porsche Boxster 2:43AM (1/07/2007)
Can't wait for this to come out, has there been any estimate in HP gains?
www.boxsterforums.com
Dedicated to the Porsche!
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Carlton Bale 1:34PM (1/10/2007)
Wow, DSG in a Porsche! This is what I've been waiting for. This transmission in a mid-engine Porsche will result in the ultimate track car.
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