PDK Is Faster but 7-Speed Stick Makes 992 Cabrio More Fun
To some people, it’s worth sacrificing a few tenths of a second in acceleration time to get a car with a stick that’s more fun and engaging.
It wasn’t all that long ago when manual transmissions performed better than their automatic counterparts. They could get you to 60 mph more quickly and they could even save you a little gas, all while providing a more engaging driving experience. Slushboxes caught up in a hurry, especially once automakers started giving them two clutches. Porsche’s PDK transmission is technologically superior to its manual gearboxes in almost every way, but those advantages don’t necessarily make it the most enjoyable way to change gears.
In one of his most recent videos, popular YouTuber Doug DeMuro tests out a 2020 Porsche 911 Carrera S Cabriolet equipped with the 7-speed manual. With its massive wheels, sleek bodywork and 443-horsepower engine, it looks like a fast way to get through serpentine canyon roads. But it’s certainly not the fastest, in terms of acceleration. According to Porsche’s website, the Carrera S Cabrio with the stick takes 4.2 seconds to hit 60 mph. One equipped with the PDK only needs 3.7 seconds; the available Sport Chrono package drops that figure to 3.5 seconds.
The manual 992 drop top makes up for that shortcoming in its own ways, though. DeMuro says, “If you get the manual, that gives you Porsche’s Sport Chrono feature for free.” On the same car with the PDK, that upgrade and its lap timer and drive mode dial costs $2,790. DeMuro adds, “911s equipped with the manual are lighter in weight than PDK cars. The manual saves about 85 pounds.” Although the 7-speed stick is not as high-tech as the PDK, it is the product of some thoughtful and useful engineering. There’s a lockout that prevents you from shifting into seventh gear unless you’re upshifting from fifth or sixth. And the manual rev-matches downshifts when you have the Sport or Sport+ drive mode engaged.
Then there’s the classic advantage that all manual gearboxes have over autos: a feeling of engagement. You could point that out as a strength of even the worst stick-shifter given the sheer fact that you need both feet to operate its three pedals and both hands to work its steering wheel and shift knob. But the 992 Carrera S Cabrio’s manual turns out to be even better in the real world than in theory.
DeMuro takes the convertible out for a spin and has nothing but praise for its row-your-own setup. The sheer mechanics involved are delightful to him. Porsche’s hardware tuning makes the experience even more of a treat. There’s no feeling of vagueness when DeMuro pushes the shifter into the next gear and the clutch is smooth and easy.
DeMuro puts a fine point on his overall impression of the manual 992. “I don’t really care to lose the 0.5-, 0.7-second 0-60. It doesn’t bother me because I can make that time up by having more fun actually driving the car.”
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