REWIRED

Porsche has hybridized the flagship 911, and brought it back to life in the process, creating a thrillingly usable new performance car

- Story: James Dennison Photography: Olgun Kordal

HAVE WE FALLEN OUT OF LOVE WITH the 911 Turbo S? As I prod the starter button for the first time in this latest 992.2 version, it is a question I am seriously considering. Back in the 1990s and 2000s, the 911 Turbo/Turbo S had an air of invincibility about it. The infallible all-rounder, the supercar slayer, the Top Trumps hero.

In recent years, however, there has been a shift. Turbochargers are not as exotic any more. Most cars with an engine have them, and Porsche is not averse to using Turbo as a badge on cars without an engine, let alone a turbocharger. In 2025, it is all about natural aspiration. The screaming 4.0-litre in the GT3 and GT3 RS has well and truly stolen our hearts, and for good reason. Who knows how long Porsche can continue to produce such wonders as the regulatory net closes in.

All of which may well have contributed to Porsche feeling it had to do something extra special with this new 992.2 version of the Turbo S. Rather than the usual evolutionary approach to developing the outgoing version, this £199,100 (Rs 2.33 crore) newcomer comes accompanied by some on-paper figures that look pretty revolutionary. Over 700 hp of peak output, for a start, and a Nürburgring lap-time 14 seconds faster—14 seconds—than its predecessor. Deeply impressive, but does it come at the cost of everyday usability, the cornerstone of the Turbo S?

That I will find out in a few hours. But my time with the car starts at the Ascari circuit in the Andalusian mountains. Its wide-open tarmac turns bathed in endlessly reliable sun mean this feels a long way from the Nürburgring, but there is ample scope for discovering exactly how the newly hybridized Turbo S handles the track element of its wide-ranging brief.