Why five stars when the raw numbers are no better than its predecessor’s? Because this 3.8-litre flat six ranks as one of the finest engines on sale anywhere.
You’d never tire of its distinctive metallic yowl. It’ll pull from under 1000rpm but the real action starts with the crank spinning at three times that speed. There’s another lunge forward at 5500rpm and yet another at 6500rpm before the final trip to the red line. Sixty mph flashes by in the same 4.6sec we recorded for the 996 and 100mph in 10.8sec, up from 10.1sec, but drive one and you’d never feel short-changed. Porsche claims the S will hit 182mph just shy of the 7300rpm limiter in sixth, something we weren’t able to verify.
One highly contentious issue threatens to sour proceedings. We like to think of the steering column as a mechanical umbilical chord; without its dialogue you’re deprived of information vital to the driving experience.
Fortunately, the 911’s is still a great helm: beautifully weighted, crisp and accurate. But only when traversing more challenging roads does the wheel come alive, gently tugging at your wrists and streaming details back through your fingertips.
What the slightly muted feel does, is create a far more relaxed environment for those occasions when you’d prefer to saunter. That’s a theme that seems to pervade throughout. The 911 still flows wonderfully over longer undulations, but no recent version has ridden smaller bumps with such ease.
But there’s a caveat. We’re referring to the car’s behaviour with the PASM adaptable dampers set to normal. Switch to sport on British roads and though body roll diminishes and the eagerness to change tack improves, the ride falls apart. It’s best reserved for track use.
On public roads traction is staggering, even in the wet with the standard PSM stability system switched off. In the dry only the truly committed will set the tail wagging, understeer being the predominant handling characteristic.