German sportscar maker Porsche is giving a host of 911 models a very hefty 30hp boost for the new model year.
It means that from this spring when ordering a 911 S – be it a two- or four-wheel-drive Carrera or a Targa S – if you decide to put a tick in the Porsche Exclusive Kit option box, the car's output will be raised from its current 420hp to 450hp. That increase might not sound so big, but it will make your new 911 as powerful as the current GTS model.
When Porsche finally added turbochargers to the flat-six engine at the very rear of the standard 911 in September 2015, a number of purists (many of whom were still complaining about the adoption of water-cooled engine blocks back in 1998) were up in arms.
Turbocharging can mean a lag between dropping the accelerator pedal and the scenery going from static to a blur as the turbines can't start spinning and forcing air into the engine until exhaust gases have started leaving the already-running engine.
However, it is an incredibly effective way of significantly upping power without burning more fuel or increasing the engine's cubic capacity. And, crucially in the case of this latest update, if the engine wasn't already turbocharged, Porsche wouldn't be able to offer this new power increase.
The upgrade will cost €10,139 but as well as adding very slightly larger turbos, the kit gives the car all of the elements usually found in the Sports Chrono Package – dynamic engine mounts, an improved exhaust system and better brake cooling so that drivers really can use this extra boost.
And, even with this extra outlay, the resulting car will still be several thousand euros cheaper than an equally potent 911 GTS.
But perhaps the best thing about the new kit is that from this June, anyone who already has a 911 S model built within the last 18 months can take their car back to Porsche and have the kit retrofitted as an ex-factory option.
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