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Daily driven sports cars reveal their true mettle in flashes. A freeway merge that finds you reluctant to un-pin the throttle once you’ve cleared that semi. The occasional jackrabbit start at a stoplight that finds you smirking bigly. A stick in the road prompting a brief, hair-raising evasive maneuver that reminds you that, yeah, this thing can turn. The rest of the time, though, performance machines engineered for daily use are docile, compliant touring cars — easy on both the backside and the ankle. Which is where Porsche shines.
2017 Porsche 911 GTS
Engine: twin-turbo horizontally opposed six-cyclinder
Transmission: seven-speed manual or seven-speed dual-clutch automatic
Horsepower: 450
Torque: 405 lb-ft
0-60: 3.5+ seconds
Top Speed: 193 mph
Base MSRP: $119,000 –
Porsche has long been a master of that sweet spot. The spectrum of sports cars in its lineup covers the gamut from modestly appointed entry level rides up through track-ready monsters (the ones that you wouldn’t, in fact, want to commute in). But its greatest trick has always been pushing performance as far as possible without compromising comfort. The five new 911 GTS variants — bringing Porsche’s total 911 offerings to 25 (!) — walks that fine line more precisely than perhaps any before it. The cars, including rear- and all-wheel-drive models, each with cabriolet options, and a Targa, slot in just below the track stud GT3 RS. This means they’re torqued up as far as they can go, yet still dialed-in and humane enough to be driving pleasures.
The cars, all prominently powered by fine-tuned dual-turbochargers, are all quicker off the line by at least 0.2 seconds than their 911 S subordinates, thanks to 30 extra horsepower and 405 lb-ft of torque, and 0-60 times are 3.9 seconds with manual and 3.5 with the dual-clutch PDK transmission.
