Porsche 911 Carrera 4S Cabrio 2013 Review

Price Guide (recommended price before statutory & delivery charges): $281,900
?Options fitted to test car (not included in above price): Ceramic brakes $19,690; PDK transmission $5950; Sports exhaust $5890; Sport Chrono $4790
Crash rating: N/A
?Fuel: 95 RON PULP?
Claimed fuel economy (L/100km): 9.2?
CO2 emissions (g/km): 217?
Also consider: Aston Martin V8 Vantage S Roadster (from $280,600); Audi R8 4.2 quattro ($308,400); BMW M6 Convertible (from $308,500); Maserati GranCabrio ($328,000)

If you are serious, a Porsche 911 coupe has always been the preferred choice over the cabriolet. Lighter, stiffer and more purposeful, it is the iconic driver’s car.

But now, in an era when enjoying more than the merest hint of the 911’s performance attributes is impossible away from the racetrack, maybe the pendulum has swung.

Because if owning a 911 is more about making a statement than an apex these days, then we can’t imagine anything will do it much more effectively than cruising in a bright yellow cabrio with its roof lowered. After a week with the all-wheel drive 911 Carrera 4S we can assure you, we know.

This is four-wheeled eye candy. On the freeway people ogle and take photos, park in the street and they’ll come up and run their fingers along its hips. Talk about reflected glory. Mind you given the Aussie disdain for obvious displays of wealth (a complete illusion in this case of course), regard for the owner won’t be as high as for the car!

Ah well, the price of fame, which in this case has been discounted from $315,000 at the March launch down to $281,900 as part of a widely publicised price adjustment of the entire 911 range. It’s still a lot more than almost anyone will ever pay for a car, but as you can see from the list of competitors it’s very competitive.

It still couldn’t be called good value, but it is still much more than just a good car. It’s a great car.

And that’s the perhaps the unexpected upside of all this. Yes, the Cabrio is not quite as dexterous as its fixed roof relation, and neither all-wheel drive iteration makes quite the same direct, exacting contact as the rear-wheel drive 911.

But this remains a deeply, wonderfully, complete car to drive. Its 3.8-litre flat six engine barks away behind you, transforming from basso growl to demented shriek as the tacho needle races around the centre-mounted analogue dial towards 7000rpm. Of course, you’ve only punched through first and into second gear in the seven speed PDK (dual clutch) gearbox and already doing 120km/h… whoops, back it down NOW.

The Cabrio’s envelope of performance has barely been addressed, let alone opened. This is an engine that produces 294kW and 440Nm in a car that weighs a relatively lithe 1535kg. So it rips from 0-100km/h in 4.5 seconds, 0-160km/h in 9.6 seconds, 80-120km/h in 2.7 seconds and has a top speed of 294km/h.

Yet it also offers a combined fuel consumption claim of 9.2L/100km, although our average spat out at a less impressive 11.4L/100km. Porsche claims the PDK, which includes a coasting mode, is a fair whack more economical than the seven-speed manual at 10.0L/100km. Both transmissions include idle stop-start, which is a bit graunchy when it refires.

While not quite as smooth shifting as the latest ZF torque converter autos, the PDK is a slick and quick shifter at speed and far smoother at low speed than earlier iterations. The steering wheel-mounted manual shift buttons (which you can accidentally operate mid-corner with the palm of your hand) are ergonomic rubbish, so go with the shift paddles instead (although you lose steering wheel multi-functionality if you do). Also, quite incongruously for a sporting car, the gear lever shifts back to change down in manual mode.

The brutality of engine and shift do vary as you dial up through the modes, including the suspension-adjusting PASM, which also drops the ride height 10mm. Mind you; the car is incredibly fast and capable in even its most benign setting.

With optional Sport Chrono (as fitted this one) it goes to 11 (in the immortal words of Spinal Tap’s Nigel Tufnel), setting the drivetrain, chassis (including torque vectoring on the rear axle) and even exhaust at their most aggressive. Oh yeah, there’s an analogue clock too.

While such elements of the Carrera 4 as the electro-mechanical steering and 100mm extended wheelbase are carried over from the 991 series 911 rear-wheel drive, the rear end grows by 44mm (but the track only 10mm) and most importantly of course, the front wheels also engages via the Porsche Traction Management system.

PTM is an active electronically-controlled multi-plate clutch that can theoretically shift drive from 100 per cent rear to 100 per cent front and any combination in between. The new C4 PTM is based on the system of the 997 911 Turbo, albeit with updated software coding that improves economy and is also meant to reduce the propensity for understeer/oversteer transitions on the limit (can’t vouch for that on public roads, sorry).

The end result is something that is not only sizzlingly fast but also very confidence inspiring. That’s less apparent on a dry day, but when the going gets slippery and mucky the C4S feels planted and communicative. This grip and accuracy is so high it actually makes the road feel wider. Cornering speeds that would have other ‘performance’ vehicles twisting in knots are no challenge. Optional ceramic brakes are gob-stoppingly good. Brilliant sports seat grip almost as well.

No doubt the swap to EPS (electric power steering) has dulled off-centre feel compared to the 997 911, but it’s still an outstanding system. While looking at old versus new, there is no doubt this is a quieter car than its noisy predecessor and it also rides better, albeit still somewhat toughly on 20-inch low-profile rubber. The cabin presentation is vastly improved thanks to the partition inspired by the Panamera/Cayenne. But storage is limited and the two rear seats are almost non-existent.

Standard equipment is more generous than that, but Porsche hasn’t got carried away. Front and front-side airbags, bi-xenon headlights, rear park-assist, partial leather trim, dual-zone climate control, power reach and rake steering and seating, satellite-navigation and Bluetooth are among the highlights. New options include adaptive cruise control and PAS (Porsche Active Safety), which will brake independently of the driver to prevent rear-ending another car. This feature is only available with PDK.

The cloth roof provides refinement in place but makes it hard to see rearward via the small portal, or check to the left because of the large ‘C-pillar’. When it is lowered -- in just 13 secs at speeds up to 50km/h -- the world opens up to you. The auto windblocker combined with windows up does a great job of keeping turbulence to a minimum.

That means you can be very cosy and happy cruising in the 911 Carrera 4S Cabrio… while the world looks on just a bit enviously.

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