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I attended the final press day of the LA Auto Show yesterday. Being a 2017 Targa owner, I hightailed it to the Porsche hall (after grabbing a delicious latte and pastry at the Volvo booth--gotta do those niceties when your big reveal is essentially nothing).
I wish Porsche's big reveal was nothing but unfortunately the 992 exists and stylistically it takes a number of steps backward. Several surfaces and materials seem lower quality, too. Several journalists had similar takeaways and even the Porsche folks seemed subdued. My 5 biggest gripes:
1. Cheap, tacky looking shifter - what a joke this little nub is - awful...something MAYBE Jaguar would conjure up.
2. Mustang-esque toggle switches on dash.
3. Cheap, flimsy door pockets.
4. Squared-off frunk lid.
5. Grotesque 3rd brake light.
All-in-all a big disappointment. Now I know how enthusiasts must have felt when the sliding-roof 993 Targa came out. I will be skipping the next generation.
Note squared off frunk lid. Note the toggle switches above.
Last edited by TJ911; 11-30-2018 at 12:30 PM.
Reason: mispelling in title
This **** is hardly beloved in the 991, but if you look in my 3rd pic above, you can see they've managed to make it even less appealing. Also, the flat glossy surface on the center console where suspension and exhaust mode buttons used to reside looks tacky and will be a fingerprint and scratch magnet. At least there's a cupholder, so it should definitely sell well in the US!
The interior really is the biggest issue for me. Did Porsche really just leave large blank strips next to the "Shifter" or are there some type of lights or controls there that turn on? I just don't get an exciting feeling when looking at that interior. I remember sitting in my 986 and thinking that the curvy lines looked weird but it still flowed. I was still excited to be there. I then sat in my 997 and felt ready to drive. It was purposeful, to the point and task oriented. I sit in my 991 and think it's a better version of the 997. More luxury for the higher price tag. I just don't get that new interior. Frankly it's not as nice as the Panamera or new Cayenne. Those look more cohesive and appropriate. I loved the fact that the cup-holders on prior generations (if they had them) were impossible to use. You know what I did? I stopped bringing drinks in the car and focused on driving.
I definitely have issues with the new wing design and the weird front bumper lines not lining up but the interior is really just not clicking with me.
I hope to get to the LA show as a public viewer in the next week or so..... but overall I was excited to see the 992. Agree that the interior panels surrounding the shifter look like scratches waiting to happen. I wonder how heavily optioned the yellow car was? I'd probably like to see leather where those wide expanses are. I like the rear however I've been a 4S light bar snob and sort of hate to see that differentiation leave.. would likely get a manual, so the PDK shifter isn't a concern for me. Like every generation I've had before, I'll likely wait for the .2 version which is generally a much nicer iteration.
I like the cupholder much better than the ones in my 991. The shifter, wow, that is just butt ugly. The rest of the car I like. not sure about the low quality comment on the materials, I would need to see one. Like the wide rear end, like the light across the rear, don't like the price increase. Looks like PDK is the default transmission on the 992 S and 4S. Price of the Burmiester went down if opt for the one of the packages, still even in the package it's $3900. Overall I like it so far in the pictures I've seen. They have a new blue color Gential Blue metallic, looks good. More interior options choices for leather. And finally, you don't need a key, just in your pocket.
The front is growing on me. The back end is still a mess, from the center brake light that doesn't look well integrated to the shelf over the Porsche letters to the lower half of the rear with it's dark grey plastic and tacky tailpipes.
I don't mind that drive mode **** in my 991.2GTS but on the 992 it looks kind of cheap. I am in the minority on the PDK shifter - I could probably live with it, even though I do prefer to shift using the shifter and not the paddles.
Not a fan of the new door interior - the old interior door handles were a work of art. These look blah.
Sorry to say I am not a fan at all and I wanted to like it as I have like many of the Porsche generations. I am a "big butt" fan after 4 TT's, a 4S and now the TTS but I don't like the roundness of the back end and what appears to be the loss of defined hips. It's "muffin top" like.
Really don't like the center console especially in the black plastic which will be a maintenance nightmare, I assume there are options to remedy this. Not a fan of the "last minute" add of the not so pretty cup holder. Dash looks to spartan and not cool enough to me.
I am not in the market so no great woes but wish it were prettier. Do like the front.
This is arguably the least cohesive 911 ever. It does not flow. It looks like a compartmentalized design (especially the interior, the center console is just plain horrible) with no continuity. The rear (especially with the hideous deployed clam shell spoiler) is hideous. It's official, cars are dead. There is nothing on the market that appeals to me anymore.
11-30-2018, 12:26 PM
My LA Auto Show Review of 992: Less than Meh
