2007 Porsche 911 Turbo (997)

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This is coming a little late, considering the new 997 Porsche 911 Turbo was launched a month ago in Malaysia on the 21st of July 2006, but then again I don’t think many of you are in a rush to go out and buy this fine piece of engineering in the form of a supercar, are you? Even if you wanted to. Sniff. Anyway. Let’s have a look at what new technological goodies are packed into the new 997 2007 Porsche 911 Turbo.

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The new Porsche 997 Turbo‘s main highlight is the new engine that comes with Variable Turbine Geometry. The 3.6 litre flat-6 engine is twin turbocharged with two VTG turbines on each bank of cylinders, as well as two intercoolers. The result is 480hp at 6,000rpm and 620Nm of torque between 1,950rpm to 5,000rpm. Fantastic torque curve. For more information on how VTG works, check out my previous blog post “How Does Variable Turbine Geometry work?

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All that torque is put to the ground with the aid of an improved all-wheel drive system which benefited from Porsche’s dabbling in SUVs. The experience Porsche gained from the Porsche Cayenne results in Porsche Traction Management, which uses an electromagnetic multi-plate clutch to distribute power between the front and rear wheels. Porsche Traction Management responds within fractions of a second to changing road conditions. For the manual transmission, there is an optional Limited Slip Differential for the rear axle which helps with rear axle traction on variable grip surfaces.

This is one of the few cars I know where the automatic transmission is rated to have a faster acceleration speed than the manual transmission. The 911 Turbo equipped with the automatic Porsche Tiptronic S transmission goes from 0-100km/h in just 3.7 seconds, while the six-speed manual gearbox version takes 3.9 seconds. It must be hard shifting fast enough on a manual transmission with that crazy amount of torque available across the rev range. Top speed is a good 310km/h.

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997t_sportsbutton.jpgThere’s also this very arcade-like overboost button if you get the Porsche Sports Chrono Package Turbo. This package adds an OverBoost feature, where pressing a Sports button increases turbo boost up by 0.2 bar to 1.2 bar for the low to mid rev ranges, increasing maximum torque in those ranges to 680Nm, after of which it drops back to 1.0 bar of boost producing 620Nm. OverBoost is available for 10 seconds only. Other than that, the Sports button sets the Porsche Active Suspension Management system to a sportier mode. More on PASM later.

997t_tiptronic.jpgThe optional Tiptronic S transmission allows you to control the shifts from buttons mounted on the steering wheel, as seen on the photo on the left. If there is no manual input for 8 seconds, the system reverts to automatic mode. Even in fully automatic mode, the Tiptronic S is intelligent enough for track use, for example the Fast-Off function that prevents the transmission from automatically shifting up a gear when the driver eases on the gas pedal. This ensures you can maintain optimum throttle control while staying in the right gear. This ensures no disruptive upshifting and downshifting during a corner which causes changes in load, this might cause instability.

The car rides on the Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) system. PASM uses sensors to monitor car body movement under acceleration, braking or uneven services. This sensor data is used to adjust individual damping forces. Other than that, there is two preset modes – Normal and Sport. The Sport mode is harder, however if bumpy roads are detected, the dampers are set to a softer value but still within the sports range of settings. This setting reverts to the harder setting once road conditions improve.

997t_brakes.jpgSafety features include 6 air bags – 2 front, 2 head and 2 side airbags, antilock brakes and four-channel ABS. Although the stock 350mm crossdrilled discs with six-piston calipers at the front and four-pistons at the back, there is an option for Porsche Ceramic Composite Brakes (PCCB), which enlarges the front discs to 380mm. The PCCB front and rear discs are also made from a specially treated carbon-fibre compound – a material harder than metal and more resistant to heat. But the key feature of PCCB is weight reduction of approximately 50% – 17kgs lighter! To accomodate those huge brakes, front wheel dimensions are 8.5J x 19 with 235/35/ZR19
tyres. Rear wheel size is 11J x 19 with 305/30/ZR19 tyres.

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Drag coefficient is 0.31 cD, as a comparison the Proton Satria Neo‘s drag coefficient is 0.35 cD. The Toyota Prius has a drag coefficient of 0.26. The Mercedes Benz bio car that looks like a fish has a drag coefficient of 0.19, looks like fishes ARE aerodynamic after all. Lower numbers are better. For high speeds, a contoured split wing increases downforce at the rear.

997t_xenon.jpgWhen it’s not a track weekend, you’re ensured you can cruise around the KL nightlife with clarity – the new 997 Porsche 911 Turbo comes with Bi-Xenon gas-discharge headlamps. Front indicator lights as well as the rear apron third brake light use LED diodes.

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The interior is fully customisable with a variety of colours, you have single tone colours, two tone colours. The customisability even affects dashboard dial backgrounds. I’ve sat in the car before, and I have to say the seats are pretty comfortable. And it’s been a really long time since I’ve actually felt really nice plastics used to make a car’s dashboard. Hard to find that in new cars these days.

You can either pick standard seats or sports seats. The standard seats offer full electric adjustments of fore/aft position, height, backrest angle, squab angle and lumbar support. You can have the sports seats at a no cost option, which offers firmer upholstery and higher side bolsters. If you want something better, there’s adaptive sports seats, a paid option which offers electric adjustment of almost everything including the side bolsters. The rear seats are really tiny, but they serve their purpose in case you really need to stuff more than two people including yourself into the car. Fold them up and you gain an extra 190 litres of luggage space. There is also a 105 litre trunk at the front of the car.

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The in-car entertainment system is integrated into the Porsche Communication Management (PCM) system. The PCM system includes radio, CD, satellite navigation and on-board computer controls. There’s also an optional telephony, logbook and CD changer modules. The on-board computer calculates average fuel consumption, average speed, range until empty, journey time and external temperature. It also provides readings from the optional Tyre Pressure Monitoring sensors. The audio system is a BOSE Surround Sound System, which comprises of a 7-channel MOST digital amplifier. MOST is a fibre optic bus network. This is hooked up to a 13 speaker system, which includes an active subwoofer and a centerspeaker.

Not very likely to get a test drive of this beauty, but I did get to sit in it and I got to hear the engine revving when they started it to let the guest of honour rev it a little. It was orgasmic. Whoever has RM1.5 million to part with for this baby is very lucky indeed. For the rest of us, we’ll just look at more photos!

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One of the many colour combinations for the interior.

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Blue arrows indicate cool air, hot arrows indicate hot air. Notice the triple radiators.

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Paul Tan

After dabbling for years in the IT industry, Paul Tan initially began this site as a general blog covering various topics of personal interest. With an increasing number of readers paying rapt attention to the motoring stories, one thing led to another and the rest, as they say, is history.

 

Comments

  • malayman (Member) on Aug 21, 2006 at 9:44 am

    yahoo!!! i am the first to drool on this baby!

    *drooling*(keyboard spoil….)

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  • silverfish (Member) on Aug 21, 2006 at 10:17 am

    On normal everyday roads, with normal drivers, fews things will be faster than the 997 911 Turbo.

    Not one for the purists though.

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  • SatriaGuy (Member) on Aug 21, 2006 at 12:51 pm

    RM1,500,000. That's how much the 911 Turbo cost here. By comparison, the Gallardo (sweet, sweet supercar) costs RM1,800,000. Does RM400,000 make any difference to the richest guy out there I wonder?

    (I'd go for the Lambo purely for the chicks, VTG or not)

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  • SatriaGuy (Member) on Aug 21, 2006 at 12:52 pm

    RM300k that is

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  • kelvinlym (Member) on Aug 21, 2006 at 1:11 pm

    Thanks for the info Paul.

    The Ceramic Brakes cost nearly €8500!

    By the way, for comparison: €133k for manual €136k for Tiptronic (incl. VAT). Both with basic accessories. (Full leather interior option included)

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  • kelvinlym (Member) on Aug 21, 2006 at 1:12 pm

    Prices in Germany.

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  • v0ices (Member) on Aug 21, 2006 at 2:57 pm

    SatriaGuy,

    Give me a Porsche anyday anytime. I will choose it over a Maserati or even Ferrari. Super cars? I want a driver's car

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  • 4G63T DSM (Member) on Aug 21, 2006 at 4:42 pm

    SatriaGuy said,

    August 21, 2006 @ 4:51 am

    RM1,500,000. That’s how much the 911 Turbo cost here. By comparison, the Gallardo (sweet, sweet supercar) costs RM1,800,000. Does RM400,000 make any difference to the richest guy out there I wonder?

    (I’d go for the Lambo purely for the chicks, VTG or not)

    I'm not so sure about that…..

    The turbo is the top of the line flagship (now that the Carrera GT is dead), while the Gallardo is a "budget" baby lambo…suffers from a bit of "low end" stigma….

    Drive a 911 turbo and you pull up besides another 911 (even another turbo), you get respect or envy. Pull up in a Gallardo next to the Big Brother Murcielago, and you'd wish you weren't.

    If you can afford a 1.5million car, you shouldn't need to worry about girls..hahah.

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  • mycar_stolen (Member) on Aug 21, 2006 at 5:16 pm

    If you can afford a 1.5million car, you shouldn’t need to worry about girls..hahah.

    that is why it is call a SUPERCAR buy one free 10++ hot girls..or bimbos la..just believe it…:-) :-) :-)

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  • Akazamabamaboo (Member) on Aug 21, 2006 at 6:11 pm

    Nice! Now this is what I'd call a clean design – not too simple but not overstyled. :D For me it's one of the most beautiful Porsches ever built, alongside with the Carrera GT. :)

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  • Hikaru (Member) on Aug 21, 2006 at 8:44 pm

    Then it should make the outgoing 996 Turbo a bargain at a smidget under RM1 Million. I believe Euro Autokar would still have stock. ( I know someone recently rejected his 996 turbo)

    Also, for pure posing (and not also for a lot of grunt) few can touch the Gallardo Spyder (Aston DB9 converitble, Pagani Convertible(?), Ferrari F430 Spyder, Murcielago Convertible) , just watch BBC world Top Gear and see Jeremy Clarkson drool over the Gallardo.

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  • craziqbal (Member) on Aug 21, 2006 at 10:48 pm

    if i can afford it..i'll choose the porsche over the gallardo anyday…

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  • rexis (Member) on Aug 22, 2006 at 12:29 am

    If i can affort it i will not buy a car anymore…

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  • narrowband (Member) on Aug 22, 2006 at 4:59 am

    If I can afford it, Porsche over Lambo or Ferrari anytime.

    But I heard the GT3 is actually cheaper than this Turbo. I find the GT3 very sexy too.

    The triple-spokes rims take a little getting used to… TechArt's rims are a beauty.

    Can't wait for TechArt to soup this monster up.

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  • It's me! (Member) on Aug 22, 2006 at 5:16 am

    Hoho,i wish i have this beauty everybody….it's a driver car(agree with vOices),ferrari,lambo…etc…im scared to drive it,the cars are too low,lagipun our country's road bump so high ler.I like porsche!and Love it!

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  • szw (Member) on Aug 22, 2006 at 5:20 am

    its still a porsche .

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  • DAN (Member) on Aug 22, 2006 at 5:48 am

    Malaysia gov make Malaysians like a stupid like there own.

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  • drifting4eva (Member) on Aug 22, 2006 at 8:39 am

    This car is suitable for drifting (after some minor modifications). It gets two thumbs up for me :)

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  • topgunthang (Member) on Aug 22, 2006 at 8:51 am

    gallardo or porsche turbo? tough choice.

    if u like round shapes….go for turbo….if u like sharp edges….get the lambo. if u want somewhere in between get the f430.

    gota admit that gallardo spyder really makes me wanna cry. the porsche is the most sensible choice besides being the fastest and safest and economical (as all porsche's somehow are in terms of fuel consumption) . but my pick would be the f430.

    watever the choice, you'll be ecstatic with any of these cars provided can afford it.

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  • mitlanevo (Member) on Aug 22, 2006 at 9:08 am

    Porsche 997 or Lamborghini Gallardo or Ferrari F430??????? Which one is better?

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  • armandd (Member) on Aug 22, 2006 at 10:17 am

    i always wonder why all porsches have long front overhangs… looks ugly lah, why cant they make it shorter since their cars are RWD and AWD.

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  • xXx (Member) on Aug 23, 2006 at 7:35 am

    I've got a rare chance the other day to see, touch and feel a 997 911 Carrera. Though just a 'plain' vanilla 911, that car totally rocks! The built quality is totally amazing…And what more, is RED in colour!! Man i tell you i was standing there drooling like a 5 year old over a packet of jellybeans. The 997 era's dashboard design is also more intergrated than that of the 996's. Really like it… Now i just can't wait to see the 997 Turbo…

    To me, personally, the F430 and the Gallardo are just a poser's car..(Nothing about their mechanicals though. Both are brutally wondrous.) Non of them offer the usability any Porsche offers. And with our heretic tropical weather, thunderstorms that just pop out of nowhere anytime, the Turbo new 4-wheel drive system will provide the much needed reassurance. Try driving the 997 Turbo, the F430 and the Gallardo in a thunderstorm with heart monitors. My heart will be the north of 180bpm were i driving the Italians.

    The Porsche's design also appeals greatly to me. It offers the subtlety the Italians can never match. Unlike the Italians that literally screams for attention, the 997 looks somewhat, just like another 911. It's immense appeal lies is it's ability to feel normal.

    For me, at least, the Turbo is the definitive supercar. Eeriely dependable and utterly usable…nothing matches it. For it's asking price, no car is faster.

    To think that the 996 was so mighty and yet thay still managed to improve it, i can scarely only imagine how the next generation Turbo will be like…

    Viva la Porsche!

    Till the next time.

    Peace.

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  • E s s h i g e (Member) on Aug 23, 2006 at 7:36 am

    i dono but id get the smallest n most nimble modern jet

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  • raybrig85 (Member) on Aug 24, 2006 at 2:17 am

    4 me…ferraris ang pagani alwiz in my heart…say no to porsche…the laziest dsg studio in d world…

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  • xXx (Member) on Aug 24, 2006 at 8:09 am

    hehehe yeah raybrig85, you're not the first person to say so…you won't be the last either…

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  • xXx (Member) on Aug 24, 2006 at 8:10 am

    For me only Porsche will suffice.

    Ferrari's ok but Pagani? You could do better man….

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  • topgunthang (Member) on Aug 24, 2006 at 1:15 pm

    xXx…..i can agree with you on that one…..everyday useable supercar thats fastest for its price. however i feel the ferrari simply has just about the right size, right shape (clean and sleek opening up to a wide muscular tall rear) and right power and the right power/torque delivery. and most important its light on its feet.

    only thing to go wrong with it is that you have some boyband singer wearing baseball hats or some rapper having the same car (if u have one) and somehow that ruins it a bit for me. oh…and ferrari's only look good in red and yellow. the black and blue color just dont seem right.

    porsches stay black (though they look good in all the colors ive seen) and gallardo stays yellow but the grey roadster one reviewed by clarkson seems so sleek and discreet.

    zondas are not comfortable enough. just slimmed downed murcielagos.

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  • kimmy (Member) on Aug 24, 2006 at 8:09 pm

    Some how the new turbo doesn't grab my heart. Sure it may have all the technology to power a space shuttle but its only half the time its put to full use on the road. Don't get me wrong, the porsche is a great car.

    Heck, I used to own one, it was a 1980 911 Turbo, one of the most difficult cars i've ever driven. The clutch was heavy, the pedals were offset to the left, no power steering, changing gear required arm wrestling strength. But the worst of all because it was the first porsche to be fitted with a turbo, there was monsterous turbo lag. The turbo would all of a sudden without warning burst alive at around 4000rpm. After that, all of hell breaks loose. And yet I always enjoyed driving it. Yes, the steering was heavy and yes it was too powerfull. But that was what made the car so special. It didn't have all the electronic toys such as ABS, PCM, EBD, AWD or traction control to keep you safe. It was basic, relying only on driver skill and mechanical grip to keep the car from ending up in a hedge.

    In opinion, if you want a practical and user friendly car get a Honda or a Mercedes. Supercars should be wacky and crazy. The lunacy is what makes a supercar a supercar….

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  • raybrig85 (Member) on Aug 24, 2006 at 9:31 pm

    yup…i agree with some of u saying dat porsche is suited 4 everyday use…but…4 me…porsche is not a real supercar xcept for carrera gt(if u can afford one)…and…4 me…ferrari and pagani is the best choice if u want a real supercar nowaday…prior is ferrari 4 me…pagani???i think it is not suited with most of our road…

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  • topgunthang (Member) on Aug 25, 2006 at 12:28 am

    i think there is two different category of supercars. one is sensible supercars….which i would like to call sportscars. and lunatic and wacky ones i would call them supercars. nowadays sportscars are focusing on comfort and performance at least for these marques.

    porsche and ferrari compete in the same category. but for the price of an entry ferrari you can get top of the line porsche. of which the posche turbo can also function as a GT and sportscar at the same time. ferrari you would need to look at the 599gtb and that cannot compare to f430 and porsche turbo 997 in the handling department.

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  • VNT Man on Oct 13, 2009 at 9:08 am

    Correction, This turbo was first used on a petrol engine in 1989 on the Dodge CSX. In 1990 this turbo was used on the Dodge Shadow, Dodge Daytona, and Chrysler Lebaron. The article is wrong.

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