The big cover story is our exclusive interview with Michael Mauer, the designer of the all-new Porsche 911. Mauer speaks candidly about the 991 and the responsibility of reinventing the world’s most famous sports car. Our ten-page coverage of the new 911 is essential reading for all Porsche fans.

Also in this issue is:

Complete Guide to the 993 GT2 – one of the wildest and most exciting 911s ever

964 Turbo Package: a super-rare 964 made for the US market in 1993

Classic 911 collection: meet one man and his Porsches (plus a Saab)

997 Carrera GTS Cabriolet: top down and through a tunnel in the best Cab of the bunch

Carrera 3.8RS replica: it looks a million pounds but it’s one of the most affordable 911s we’ve seen

ALMS racecar: the ultimate trackday toy?

993SC vs 993 Turbo: the SC has exactly half the power of the Turbo, but it is half the car?

964 and 993 Cup racecars

996 Carrera 4S on test.

Plus much more. On sale in UK shops now or click here.

Contents include:

The 997 dynasty
- With the current incarnation of the 911 drawing to a close, we look back at the 997′s distinguished life

The next 911
- A first look at the all-new 911, codenamed 991 and due very soon

Nürburgring 24-Hour
- We head to the mighty ’Ring – in a new 997 GT3 and a classic Seventies 911 – to join in the excitement

RSR at the end of the world
- The world was meant to end on the day we drove a devilish RSR replica

Also inside…
- Porsche Club GB 50th anniversary
- Ruf RT12R
- 993RS development car
- 996 Turbo remap
- 964 Turbo 3.3
- 915 gearbox
- Classic racer; the 935
- 911 news and products
- Great roads
- Living the legend
- Letters

So I have nothing else to do but drive the RS 4.0 around the Berkshire, Wiltshire and Oxfordshire B roads, and get lost in the process. Perfect.

The drive starts, by necessity, by a blast down the M4 motorway. Knowing that a white bestriped 911 with a massive rear wing has ‘nick me’ written all over it, I keep the speed down and am surprised at just how civilised the Porsche is. Quiet it is not, with excessive tyre noise (soundproofing is reduced over that in the previous RS), but I am able to listen to the (admittedly basic) radio in this Comfort-spec car. It’s also got air-conditioning (a no-cost but sensible option).

The motorway run also lets me enjoy the 911′s exhaust note. Press the Sport button and the engine howls like an enraged animal. A wonderful, and highly addictive, noise!

But this is a Porsche built for the racetrack and winding roads, so I peel of the motorway into the Wiltshire countryside. Part of me is expecting the RS to be a bit of a handful – more racecar than road car – but it’s anything but. It’s a surprisingly easy car to drive, whether I’m pottering politely through a village or pushing hard on the open road.

The suspension, despite being fitted with rose joints at the rear, is relatively compliant which is perfect for these bumpy rural roads (not to mention my spine). Sure, it’s firm but not so much so it’s jittering me off line every time I hit a bump; although I can have that if I set the PASM to Sport mode, which is only suitable for a smooth racetrack.

Like the 3.8 RS, the steering is wonderfully direct and communicative and does just what I demand of it, with no effort from me. There’s a touch of understeer at times but a dab on the throttle pulls it back on line. Too much of a dab and the back end cheekily hops round on these damp roads – evidence perhaps that the traction control is set to allow you to have a bit of fun (I don’t dare turn it off).

But what of that enlarged engine? The extra capacity plus improvements to the breathing and other tweaks have freed up an additional 50bhp over the 3.8, given an output of 500bhp – an incredible figure for a normally aspirated engine and the same as that of a 997 Turbo. The power delivery is quite different to the Turbo’s, being more linear, and the engine revs remarkably freely to the 8250rpm limiter, howling in protest as it does so. The power is brutal but, again, very controllable and refined; partly because of the massive 460Nm of torque, so you don’t have to work the gears to keep the engine sweet if you don’t want to.

With a 0-62mph time of 3.9 seconds, this is a very quick car, I accelerate hard out of corners then lean on the superb ceramic brakes (a worthwhile option) as I hit the next corner to repeat the process. It’s addictive fun. And even after some hard driving at high revs, the car’s economy gauge is reading a respectable 15mpg.

A racecar for the road? Not at all, this is a Porsche for people who want to pretend they have a racecar but really want a car they can safely and comfortably drive without having to have Senna-like skills.

Any complaints? Only that two hours wasn’t long enough behind the wheel of this wonderful machine!

You can read our full report on the Porsche GT3 RS 4.0 in issue 77 of Total 911, on sale 13th July.

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Our immediate reaction was that the car feels very like the Sport Classic – yet is almost half the price of last year’s limited edition special. That makes sense because, like the Sport Classic, the new GTS is a rear-wheel drive Carrera S with a Powerkit and the wider rear body of the four-wheel drive variants.

Crucially, though, the suspension has been reworked and that’s what really gives the link to the Sport Classic. The ride remains astonishingly compliant yet the handling is improved over that of the standard Carrera S. The steering, in particular, is enhanced and feels sharper and more responsive than ever.

The result is a car that’s great value for money when you consider the standard specification yet remains an exciting and involving driver’s car that you could use every day, with none of the compromises of a GT3.

Porsche predicts that the Carrera GTS will be its most popular 997 variant in 2011, and we can see why. It’s all the 911 you’ll ever need.

Look out for the full story in the next issue of Total 911.

To find out, Total 911 editor, Philip Raby and his son are taking a Porsche 996 on the annual skiing holiday, while his wife and daughter are flying. Both parties will be keeping logs of the journeys and we’ll report on who had the better, less stressful (and more fun) journey.