2015 Porsche Carrera 4S Targa
In the half-century since Porsche unveiled the first 911 Targa, the world has changed almost beyond recognition. Yet this open-top sports car has retained the vast majority of the qualities that have made it such a singular experience to drive.
A Targa was the first open-top 911 and was named after the epically dangerous Targa Florio, a race that had over 300 corners and traversed tight, unforgiving public roads in Sicily with almost no crowd control. Porsche won the event, which ran from 1907 to 1977, more times than any other make of car.
This latest model has an engine that’s almost twice as large as the originals and produces—at 400hp—over three times as much power. It takes less than half the time, at 4 seconds, to hit 60 miles per hour. Yet it’s still a 911 in the way it sounds, in its compact size and responsiveness, and in its practicality—something enhanced by the standard all-wheel drive, a light and super-responsive new system that works with the multistage stability control, active torque vectoring and adjustable damping to make this Carrera almost unstoppable no matter road conditions. Porsche will even store a second set of wheels and tires to make sure it is equipped for any season.
The Targa may be best expression yet of this latest, 991-generation Carrera, its brushed metal roll hoop emphasizing the voluptuous hips, and adding to rigidity and quietness. This means that—roof-up—the Targa has the stiffness and quietness of the coupe, while allowing for more interaction with the environment when the top stows itself after a 19-second mechanical ballet. This also emphasizes the traits that make the Carrera such an amazing sports car: electric throttle response, perfect shifts from the PDK twin clutch gearbox, epic brakes. Yes, the steering has lost some feel compared to earlier generations, but the chassis it controls has improved by a staggering amount.
The Targa’s handling is astonishing; Porsche moved the engine forward within this generation’s longer wheelbase, meaning it feels almost as neutral as a mid-engine machine, decreasing unwanted weight transfers and making the 4S more transparent to drive near the limit. Equally as amazing is the Targa’s ride quality, which, thanks to slightly softer springing and re-engineered active shocks, negotiates crater-strewn paths without sending shivers through the structure.
The Targa Florio demanded more of the car—and driver—than almost any other race ever run; this Porsche inherits its spirit: it will do anything its pilot might ask, no matter the road conditions or weather. The 4S Targa is truly a one-car solution.
EPA ratings: 18/25mpg
Price as tested: $147,010
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