Porsche 991 Targa on tour
It had only been ten weeks since our 991 Targa rolled fresh off the factory floor at Zuffenhausen before being added to a Porsche consignment destined for British shores.
Yet there I was, on an early Sunday morning in Blighty, preparing to drive the 911 all the way back to its original point of manufacture (where testing of its replacement has already begun).
Of course, it’s not uncommon for enthusiastic owners to make similar journeys in the other direction after paying the £1,160 premium to collect their new 911 from the factory.
However, driving a Porsche ‘back home’ has a romance to it that brought about giddy excitement as I left the Dorset coastline behind me and pointed the Racing yellow Targa in the direction of London to pick up my photographer for the excursion.
From there, my next meaningful appointment was scheduled for 9.30am the next day at the Museum on Porscheplatz some 600 miles away. This would make for a real-world acid test for Porsche’s reworked Targa concept, where the agenda is as much about grand touring excellence as it is automotive sporting prowess.
After collecting Phil and his plethora of photography bags – all fitting in a generous front luggage compartment devoid of a removable roof canvas, as per the old roll-bar Targas – we made our way towards the Eurotunnel to France.
En route to mainland Europe, we exchanged our respective views of the Targa concept and its place in the 991 line-up. “The recent generations haven’t been a Targa in my mind,” says Phil, former owner of a 993 C4S.
I quite agree with him – and it seems Porsche do too, offering this redesign to alleviate clashing with the large sliding sunroofs now offered on 991 Coupes.
To read more of Lee’s European excursion in the new Porsche 991 Targa 4, pick up a copy of Total 911 issue 117 in store now. Alternatively you can order it online, or download it straight to your digital device for an immediate 911 fix.
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