Open-Air Twins
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911 Carrera/Carrera S CabrioletPorsche offers the aficionado of sports car motoring the choice not only of the Carrera Coupé, but also the Carrera Cabriolet powered by a 239 kW (325 bhp) 3.6-litre Boxer engine as well as the 911 Carrera S Cabriolet featuring a 3.8-litre 261 kW (355 bhp) power unit, which entered the market in spring 2005.
Lightweight Construction for Extra Performance Not only the powerful and fast-revving engines guarantee supreme driving dynamics. Rather, outstanding lightweight concepts serve the same purpose, the Carrera Cabriolet weighing in at only 1480 kg or 3263 lb dry weight, the open-air Carrera S being only slightly heavier at 1505 kg or 3318 lb. In conjunction with the very good power-to-weight ratio achieved as a result and the chassis and suspension with all the features of a genuine Porsche, the two convertibles combine out-standing agility with dynamic handling in bends. The open-air Carrera S benefits even more in this case from PASM Porsche Active Suspension Management featured as standard and available as an option in the 3.6-litre model. Supreme Aerodynamics Both models have exactly the same top speed as their Coupé counterparts, thus clearly pro-ving their supreme aerodynamic qualities. The drag coefficient (Cd) of 0.29 with the roof closed is the same as on the Carrera S Coupé, setting a supreme standard against international competition. This superiority is provided by the very good integration of the soft roof into the car's all-round aerodynamic concept also featuring a complete, all-round cover on the underfloor. The rear spoiler extending out 20 millimetres or 0.79" further than on the Coupé is yet another specific feature of this open-air model. Together with other streamlining elements, the spoiler helps to minimise lift forces both front and rear even at very high speeds, maxi-mising the car's driving safety in the process. Roof Further Optimised The roof of the open-air 911 opens and closes fully automatically at the touch of a button in just 20 seconds, folding in Z-configuration into the roof compartment to keep the outside of the roof facing up to the top and thus protecting the heated rear window made of glass. As a particularly convenient amenity, the roof may be opened and closed while driving up to a speed of 50 km/h or 31 mph. New water ducts above the doors prevent rainwater from dripping down and instead guide the flow of water into a specially developed door seal drain in the A-pillar. Together with the wind deflector featured as standard, therefore, both models offer excellent driving comfort also with the roof down. Saving weight on the roof opening and closing components, the entire roof system weighs a mere 42 kilos or 93 lb. This is far less than half the weight of a comparable collapsible metal roof, significantly lowering the car's centre of gravity and providing a further improvement of driving dynamics. High Standard of Passive Safety
First Active Suspension in the 911 Cabriolet Like the Coupé versions, the Carrera Cabriolet comes with a conventional chassis and sus-pension enhanced to an even higher standard, and the open Carrera S features Porsche's new, active PASM system. Both cars are however somewhat more comfort-oriented in their setup, electronic damper control available as an option in the Carrera offering a more sporting but comfortable damper setup in the Normal mode, a firmer and tauter damping effect than the conventional suspension in the Sports mode. Both of these PASM set-ups come with their own control maps perfectly adjusting at all times to the respective driving situation and road surface. To minimise vibrations obviously of great significance in an open-air car both the conventional and the active suspension, as well as the various component mounts, have been specially geared to the requirements of these new models. Like the 911 Carrera Coupé, the new Cabriolet now also comes with rack-and-pinion steering featuring a variable steering transmission becoming increasingly direct with a steering wheel lock of more than roughly 30o. The Carrera Cabriolet runs on 18-inch wheels with 235/40 ZR tyres at the front and 265/40 ZR tyres at the rear. The open-air Carrera S, in turn, features 19-inch wheels running on 235/35 ZR tyres up front and 295/30 ZR tyres at the rear. Extra Brake Power for Extra Engine Power
Enhanced Agility with the Sports Chrono Package Plus Porsche's Sports Chrono Package Plus is simply ideal for the really sporting, ambitious driver. Activated by pressing the sports button, this very special feature modifies the engine manage-ment and, where appropriate, the control functions of both Tiptronic S and PSM Porsche Stability Management as well as PASM Porsche Active Suspension Management. Together with other modifications, this ensures an even more direct response to the gas pedal, PSM allowing more wheel slip as well as a wider drift and yaw angle. And on cars equipped with PASM, the management and control system, depending on road surface con-ditions, switches over to harder dampers. Available as an option, Sports Chrono Package Plus also comprises an analogue/digital stopwatch complete with an interface to Porsche Communication Management for recording, saving and evaluating lap times. Further Refinement of the Interior and Equipment Both the interior and the equipment of the 911 Carrera Cabriolet offer that unique ambience so typical of Porsche, now with even clearer and more convincing design language. All of the materials used are top-quality and of the highest standard right down to the last detail. The seats even more generous than before offer the occupants even greater comfort and individual control than on the former model. No less than four seat variants with a significant improvement of side support fulfil virtually all standards from superior comfort all the way to individual, sporting style ensured by indi-vidual adjustment of the side elements on both the seats themselves and the backrests. Both Cabriolets come as standard with automatic air conditioning, an alarm system, PCM Porsche Communication Management, as well as Porsche's Sound Package Plus (CD radio with nine loudspeakers). And as an option the sound experience may be further enhanced by the new BOSE Surround Sound System with 12 loudspeakers and overall output of 325 W.
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Like the Coupé models, the
convertibles come with an even wider range of standard equip-ment comprising,
to mention just some examples, larger wheels, PSM Porsche Stability Management
and PCM Porsche Communication Management including Porsche Sound Package
Plus (a CD radio with nine loudspeakers) as well as a wind deflector. Top
speed is 285 km/h or 177 mph in the open-air Carrera, and 293 km/h (182 mph)
in the S model. Acceleration is equally impressive, the open-air Carrera
reaching 100 km/h in 5.2, the Carrera S Cabriolet in an even quicker 4.9
seconds. Both models come with a six-speed manual gearbox conveying power
to the rear wheels, with five-speed Tiptronic S available as an option.
The body structures of both the Coupé
and Cabriolet were developed side-by-side in a simultaneous process. This
allowed Porsche's engineers to provide convertible-specific reinforcements
right from the start where they are really needed, even where such reinforcements
were not required on the Coupé. Thanks to this parallel process of
development, the body-in-white of the Cabriolet is only about 7 kg or 15.4
lb heavier than the body structure of the Coupé. Torsional stiffness
of the body-in-white is up by 5 per cent, static flexural stiffness is 9
per cent better than before. Clearly, qualities of this kind serve to fulfil
the strict safety requirements imposed in both Europe and the USA. The rollover
safety system featured in the Carrera Cabriolet comes with two high-strength
steel tubes in the A-pillars and two rollbars automatically moving up behind
the rear seats. A new rollover sensor integrated in the airbag control unit
right in the middle of the car opens up the arrest locks on both rollbars
in the event of a rollover, the rollbars then moving up within fractions
of a second under spring pressure. And at the same time the occupants are
held firmly in their seats by automatic activation of the belt latch tensioners.
Following the 911 Coupé and the Boxster, the 911 Carrera Cabriolet
is also fitted with Por-sche's new POSIP (Porsche Side Impact Protection)
system largely built around two head airbags: Shaped like flat cushions,
the airbags are housed in the doorsill at the lower edge of the side windows,
inflating upwards from top to bottom in a side-on collision. The result is
very good head protection also in the open-air Carrera. A thorax airbag on
the outside of the front seat backrests, two full-size frontal airbags, as
well as three-point seat belts with belt latch tensioners and belt force
limiters on the front seats round off the high standard of occupant safety.
Matching the extra power of the engines,
brake performance on both of Porsche's Carrera Cabriolets has been upgraded
accordingly over the previous model: The four-piston swing-calliper brakes
are operated by brake assistance now up 17 per cent. Brake disc diameter
on the Carrera Cabriolet to be recognised by its black eloxy-plated brake
callipers measures 318 millimetres or 12.52" at the front and 299 millimetres
or 11.77" at the rear. The extra power and performance of the Carrera S Cabriolet
is likewise matched by even more powerful brakes, the brake discs measuring
330 millimetres or 13.00" in diameter front and rear coming with larger,
reinforced brake callipers finished in red as a particular sign of distinction.
As an option both Cabriolets may be equipped with PCCB Porsche Ceramic Composite
Brakes, in which case the brake callipers are painted yellow. These composite
ceramic brake discs build up a high frictional coefficient even faster and
more consistently than the regular brakes, reduce unsprung masses and brake
wear in everyday motoring, and therefore offer significant benefits over
standard metal brake discs. And at the same time they are not affec-ted in
any way by corrosion.