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Porsche Index: 997 Turbo S

History and spec

The Gen2 997 Turbo was an exceptionally accomplished sports car, and we’ve sung its praises many times within these pages. Improving upon such a special recipe was a tall order for the engineers at Zuffenhausen, yet they did exactly that, creating an instant classic.

With just 2,000 made, production amounted to virtually half that of the regular 997.2 Turbo, and those few lucky buyers would have been very impressed with their new purchase.

There was still the same 3.8-litre motor beneath the engine cover, but it had been fettled to produce 530hp and 700Nm of torque – an increase of 30hp and 50Nm respectively. Most of that increase came from turning up the wick on the pair of variable-geometry turbochargers, maximum boost now raised from 1.0 bar to 1.2 bar.

Still directly injected and equipped with VarioCam Plus variable valve timing, the latter had been revised on the intake side and the air intake was fashioned from a carbon weave.

Drive was sent to all four wheels via the seven-speed PDK transmission – Sport Chrono Plus was standard, which meant the addition of launch control – and there was the usual blizzard of driver assistance acronyms in the form of PASM, PTM (Porsche Traction Management) and PTV (Porsche Torque Vectoring).

Despite all of the enticing technology, outright performance wasn’t markedly different from its non-S stablemate, mere fractions of a second shaved from the major benchmarks meaning just modest gains were on offer.

Not that it wasn’t explosively fast as it stood, 0-62mph reeled off in 3.3 seconds and 195mph beckoning if you had the space and nerve. So it had the pace, but reasonably there was a question – one asked in some contemporary road tests – over what buyers were really getting for their additional £17k.

Well, had the buyer ticked the box marked ‘S’ when it came to ordering their 997 Turbo they would have discovered it also came with PCCB brakes as standard, fronted by ‘RS Spyder’ centre-lock wheels. And on top of the already lavish Turbo specification their new purchase boasted the likes of adaptive Sports seats, a six-disc CD/DVD system and a choice of exclusive interior trim colours.

Whether all of that could be viewed as money well spent is open to question, but with the 991 all set to take centre stage this ultimate expression of the 997 Turbo would have been very hard to resist.

For the full 997 Turbo S Porsche Index, including its values history, desirable options, buying checklist and driving assessment, pick up your copy of Total 911 issue 180 in shops now or get it delivered to your door via here. You can also download a digital copy with high definition bonus galleries to any Apple or Android device.

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