5 Reasons Why Right Now Is the Greatest Porsche Era in History (And 1 Reason It Isn’t)
We need to embrace and appreciate this moment in time as it might be the best Porsche era in the history of the company.
Porsche has been making automobiles for a long time. The 911 alone has been in production for about 60 years, and of course, there was the 356 before that. During that time, the company produced some stunning cars; there is the Carrera GT, the game changing 959, the 1973 Carrera RS and the list goes on. They also racked up an almost unbelievable number of race wins over the years, so picking a single moment in time as the greatest Porsche era in history is not easy. But I am here to tell you that the greatest Porsche era is right now.
Back in 2021, I declared the 2004 model year as the best Porsche model year this century. I stand by that decision as the single best year. But Porsche has been cranking out some amazing vehicles since then. It would not take much arm twisting to change my mind and declare 2023 as the best model year, but what I am doing here is expanding things a bit.
First, I am going all the way back to when the first Porsche was sold in the U.S. Second, I am looking at general eras instead of a specific model year. So, I am comparing the pre-911 era, to the long hood 911 era, to the SC 911 era, and so on. It is a lot of history, but I think we are living in the greatest Porsche era ever right now. Here’s why.
1. Sportscar Performance
A base 911 Carrera in 2023 would embarrass the 959 hypercar in just about every performance metric. That same base Carrera will hit 60 mph in just over 3 seconds and top out over 180 mph. Even the almighty Carrera GT would have a tough time keeping up with a simple base 911 today.
That is to say nothing of the S, GTS and Turbo models. And forget about the GT cars. Even a base 718 Cayman hits 60 mph in about 4.5 seconds and will touch 170 mph. It is impossible to buy a slow Porsche sports car today.
On top of the blistering performance, Porsche still offers many of their sports cars with a real manual transmission and internal combustion engine. The newer cars may be heavier and more complex than the classics. However, the new cars are still engaging to drive, and their performance is more than anyone could reasonably ask for. They are also safer, and more efficient than the older cars. I love the classics as much as anyone, but the current crop of Porsche sportscars are tough to beat.
