2009 Porsche 911 Preview

2009 Porsche 911 Preview

New-generation Porsche 911s combine increased performance with better fuel efficiency

2009 Porsche 911 Family. Photos courtesy Porsche.

Four new Porsche models will go on sale in September in North America - the 911 Carrera Coupe, 911 Carrera Cabriolet, 911 Carrera S Coupe, and 911 Carrera S Cabriolet. All offer a higher level of performance thanks to their all-new flat-six engines, which displace 3.6 and 3.8 litres respectively.

New technologies in the new models allow Porsche to boost performance of the 911, yet improve fuel efficiency by up to 13%.

Maximum output of the 911 Carrera with its 3.6-litre engine is up by 20 horsepower to 345. The 911 Carrera S with its 3.8-litre engine up by 30 horsepower to 385. With this extra power, the Carrera S now offers a top speed of 302 km/h.

The new-generation 911 is available for the first time with the new Porsche-Doppelkupplung (PDK), Porsche's double-clutch gearbox. The seven-speed gearbox combines the driving comfort of an automatic transmission with the gearshift capacity of a sequential gearbox used in race cars. Since Porsche's double-clutch also boasts an automatic gearshift function, it replaces the former Porsche Tiptronic S automatic transmission on both the Carrera and Carrera S. PDK improves acceleration while reducing fuel consumption over the previous generation of Tiptronic S equipped 911s through optimized and adaptive gearshifts.

2009 Porsche 911 C2. Photo courtesy Porsche.

Porsche developed this gearshift principle for racing no less than 25 years ago. It features two parallel clutches to eliminate any interruption in power delivery and eliminates even the slightest break between gears. Porsche factory drivers benefiting from this technology were able to accelerate faster than their competitors and keep both hands on the wheel while shifting gears, thus avoiding even the slightest distraction.

The technology gives the new 911 Carrera and Carrera S even better performance. The Carrera equipped with PDK covers 0-96 km/h in 4.5 seconds and the Carrera S reaches the same speed in 4.3 seconds, which is 0.2 seconds faster than with a manual six-speed gearbox.

As an option, PDK can be combined with Porsche's optional Sport Chrono Plus including Launch Control. The result is high-speed acceleration free of wheel spin from a standstill and a racing shift pattern to further boost performance. The Carrera equipped with the Sport Chrono Plus accelerates from 0 to 96 km/h in 4.3 seconds while the Carrera S does it in just 4.1 seconds.

Exterior enhancements of the new 911 include a refined front bumper with has larger air intakes that signal an increase in power, and newly designed dual-arm exterior mirrors that give a larger field of vision to the rear of the car.

LED daytime driving lights and bi-xenon headlights will be standard on all new models, as well as LED tail and brake lights. As a further option, Porsche now also offers Dynamic Cornering Lights on all models. These alterations do not change the drag coefficient of the 911 as it stays at 0.29.

The latest Porsche Communication Management system, PCM 3.0, which includes a new touch screen feature, will be standard on all new 911s. Along with this upgraded system, options such as a hard disk drive navigation system, XM radio with XM NavTraffic capability, Bluetooth connectivity, iPOD port, USB port, and aux jack will be available.

2009 Porsche 911 PDK shifter. Photo courtesy Porsche.

The Canadian pricing for the 2009 911 starts at $94,800 for the Carrera Coupe, $107,600 for the Carrera Cabriolet and the Carrera S Coupe, and the Carrera S Cabriolet is $120,400. The Canadian price increase for the 2009 models is 1.2% below the U.S. increase in response to exchange rate changes over recent months. (Posted June 8, 2021)

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