[rev]

Porsche will upgrade the 911 this summer, in the latest of a long line of improvements to the 40-year-old sports car. It will be on sale in UK showrooms in autumn 2008 and those evolution-not-revolution looks hide a raft of technical changes including (finally!) a new twin-clutch gearbox.

The 997's engines will get direction injection - as the Cayenne did - to lower emissions, improve fuel consumption and increase power. And that double-clutch gearbox, called PDK in Porsche speak, will allow electric-fast gearchanges and improved economy.

Porsche 911: the engine

The 3.6- and 3.8-litre flat six boxer engines will gain the same direct injection system that the Cayenne received early in 2007. In the controversial SUV that brought a little extra gruffness, but 10-15 percent more power and torque, and a similar reduction in fuel consumption.

PDK transmission

After much delay, Porsche will finally announce its Porsche Doppel Kupplungen gearbox. Its new partners at the VW Group stole a march on the Stuttgart manufacturer with DSG, and only now is Porsche getting its own system. Let's hope it's been worth the wait.

Our spies have grabbed the first shots inside the 911. The main cabin architecture appears to be the same as today's car, but Porsche has tweaked the fiddly centre console and sat-nav system. Gone is the spray-on silver finish, replaced by a darker console with chrome highlights.

A full family of 911s

We’ve snapped the Targa, Cabriolet and Coupe versions, giving us a clear indication of the ‘new’ 911 look. Unsurprisingly, it's very close to today's car. At the front there are new indicators and a reprofiled, curvier front bumper. You'll need a degree in Porsche anorakdom to spot the changes if we're being honest.

The rear is pepped up by curvier light clusters and the third brake lights are now illuminated by LEDs. Engineers at most car companies love light emitting diodes - they're smaller allow designers more flexibility, they last longer than bulbs and they are quicker to react than conventional filaments, warning drivers behind faster. Oh, and they look quite cool, too.

It's all well and good, but when's the next proper new 911?

We hear the next step-change in the 911 saga comes in 2011. Details are shaky at this stage, but it will be codenamed 991 and keep the world's best-known sports car ticking over until 2018. And, yes, it will still be rear-engined.


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[RikfromBelgium]

show the damn care now will ya, don't go all panamera with it

[ree]

Looks great - also the interior with a nice integration of the PCM system! Looks just perfect…

[coolraoul]

The blackened center console is a great improvement, and the buttons are way less looking like a mess.

[Centurion]

Originally Posted by RikfromBelgium

show the damn care now will ya, don't go all panamera with it

It should be unveiled this month at the Leipzig autoshow

[rev]

2009 Porsche 911 facelift [Spied Again]

Spy photographers have once again spotted a prototypes of the next-generation - ONLY REGISTERED AND ACTIVATED USERS CAN SEE ALL LINKS - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER 911 while out testing — this time we've added 16 new images. As our previous spy shots have shown, the 911's update will be more evolutionary rather than revolutionary — which is par for the course for the - ONLY REGISTERED AND ACTIVATED USERS CAN SEE ALL LINKS - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER nameplate.

On the 911's exterior, the front and rear fascia should see a slight revision, including new LED lights, smaller fog lights and a exhaust system.

But under the 911's skin is where the real changes lie. According to Car, the 911's 3.6L and 3.8L Boxer-six engines will receive the same direct-injection system Porsche added to its Cayenne SUV in 2007. In SUV guise, the addition of direct-injection resulted in a 10-15 percent increase in horsepower and torque, and also an increase fuel economy. The changes to the 911's mill should net similar results.

The updated 911 — expected to bow this fall — will finally receive a dual-clutch gearbox. The new system — dubbed Porsche Doppel Kupplungen, or just PDK for short — will be derived from - ONLY REGISTERED AND ACTIVATED USERS CAN SEE ALL LINKS - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER's famed line of DSG gearboxes.

Porsche has yet to give any performance figures on the new car, but an announcement is expected at one of the upcoming auto shows.

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[carmagic]

yep, your eyesights must be better than mine. i just cant see that new fascia clearly.

darkened? organised?
i see more buttons and not the silver bits!!

ill just have to wait for better pictures.

my wish is that the sport pasm switch, and the sport button switch be shifted to the multifunction steering wheel.

i am sure all those who have been using these buttons on the go will agree with me, as our fingers tend to be wandering all over the fascia before we connect with the switch.

....and if the new gears arrive, i hope there will be no paddles. its best to stay with the current 2 ups and 2 downs.

gday all.

[Centurion]

Latest info. PDK will be a tuned version of DSG. 997S will rock 385hp and do 0-100km/h in 4.5 seconds.

[carmagic]

i would love to have a test of it when it appears....after all this waiting.
by what you say, centurion, is that it wont be their own design, but a development on audi's ?

it also seems that VW's recently available version is much better than the 'dsg'

any more info on this, or even to correct my current understanding please.
g'day all.

[Centurion]

Originally Posted by carmagic

i would love to have a test of it when it appears....after all this waiting.
by what you say, centurion, is that it wont be their own design, but a development on audi's ?

it also seems that VW's recently available version is much better than the 'dsg'

any more info on this, or even to correct my current understanding please.
g'day all.

Yes, it will be a derivative from VAG's DSG transmission. Information on the matter is vague at the moment but on Sunday/Monday we'll know everything.


Stuttgart/Beijing. At the automotive exhibition Auto China 2008, which begins in Beijing on Sunday, April 20, 2008, Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, Stuttgart, will be prominently represented by the newest variants over its whole model range. With these exhibits, the sports car manufacturer from Swabia underscores its expansion strategy for its biggest growth market. As well as the newest vehicles from the Boxster, 911 and Cayenne series, the prototype of the Cayenne Hybrid will be on show in Asia for the first time.

With a sales volume now amounting to approximately four per cent of total sales, China has developed within a very short time to become one of Porsche’s most important markets. Deliveries in the business year 2006/07 amounted to 3,105 unit sales, doubling the figure for the previous year in Mainland China. Porsche again expects a growth percentage in high double figures in China in the current business year.

At present, 19 Porsche Centers throughout the country are available to Chinese customers. By the end of the calendar year 2008, it is intended to increase the number to 30. The first Porsche Center in Mainland China was opened in Beijing in 2001.

“China is playing an increasingly significant role and has now become one of Porsche’s most important growth drivers worldwide”, says Klaus Berning, Board Member with responsibility for Sales and Marketing. “With the launch of our four-door Gran Turismo Panamera in 2009, we will again be addressing a completely new group of buyers in China and throughout the world.”