Porsche992

This makes financial sense to Porsche but wow its going to be expensive if you want a manual

6sigma

That would be very interesting, and innovative. The only thing that doesn't make sense is that the e-turbo wouldn't reduce CO2 emissions. In fact it might increase CO2. I've got to think that is a goal for the hybrid setup.

Agree. A 'ring time is maybe the best single measurement of a car's overall objective performance. It takes into account all aspects of a car's performance - engine, power, power delivery, handling, suspension, tires, aero, brakes, high speed, low speed, etc.

A 'ring time does not measure the subjective characteristics like driver engagement that we all hold so dear. The subjective characteristics tend to get measured against the current market competitors through comparison tests and YT pundits, but really it takes time to have the contrast with newer cars to know if a car is subjectively good. For example, the 997.2 GT3RS wasn't seen as the ultra high watermark for engagement and feel that it is now without the 991 & 992 to compare it against.

Zoomnbyu

As my BIL likes to tell me about my 992 C4S - 0 to Jail in sub 4 seconds.

ipse dixit

Not if those owners are price sensitive, which many here on RL seem to be.

ipse dixit

Do you really think the hoi polloi care about Ring times?

Or for that matter, even know what the Ring is? Or where it is?

I mean, the folks here on RL do, and auto journalists and Youtubers do, but even most reviewers are not inclined to mention a Porsche's Ring time except for the fact that it's part of the Porsche press materials.

My neighbor has 3 Porsches in her garage currently (a Macan, a 991 911, and a Panamera of some generation), and if you said to her "Nürburgring" her response would most like be "what carat size?"

Wilder

That's not how it works.

People who buy performance cars and don't know anything about driving performance cars, buy them for status... they want to be seen to be like people who drive performance cars.
That's how Porsche sells Cayennes, Macans, Panameras, Taycans, and even 911s to the doctor and lawyer who drive back and forth to the office.
Porsche only cares about convincing those at the top. The ones who do use Porsches as intended. The ones who do the job of convincing the doctors and lawyers. They do care about Ring times.
And let's face it, most people who buy Porsches today are people who buy the brand status and know little about it's history or purpose. You don't have to go far to find them. Plenty in this sub.

Tobeit

As marketing and brand recognition would be that easy. Just ask your neighbor why she has 3 Porsches in the garage and not some others and you may get your answers…they are known to be one of the best if not THE best for sport cars on the road! The ring is a road track, not an oval, not a strip etc..and to be the best on what you claim you proof it and the word will carry all the way to garages like your neighbors. Branding!

pal

Regarding Ring times, I look at the times more as a comparative performance number, for a car's handling and pace, to get a sense for how the current generation of car X, compares to the previous generation. It's useful, but not even close to being sufficient, for the facts I consider for buying a car. Without Ring times, the only comparative number we'd have are straight line speeds, that are even less interesting.

ipse dixit

I don't disagree that people buy Porsche's for their status symbol.

My point was that Porsche's status symbol nowadays has less to do with Ring times (or even performance generally) than they did in years past.

For better or worse, Porsche is now more and more a lifestyle brand, and not an automotive brand.

Tobeit

I beg you different..as @Wilder explained its building brand recognition and reputation that carries far beyond the people who know what the ring is. Multitiered marketing.

Now to your last sentence - I have no idea what that even implies or means for a car manufacturer like Porsche being more of a lifestyle brand vs automotiive brand? They still make cars.

rk-d

It's an odd comparison, I know, but my Defender is an MHEV that has a turbo with a supplemental 48V electric supercharger. It works surprisingly well...for what it is.

shrimp money

If the 992.2 Turbo is rear wheel drive and manual, Sport Classic owners gonna be mad.

“It’s basically a Sport Classic”

CurryPuff

Assuming the .2 turbo is a manual ICE only car; Porsche tested the waters, liked what they saw and made a car for the 'people', albeit without the factory ducktail, so the high cost/exclusivity still remain.

AlfaM5

I don't know if anyone mentioned but I remember reading somewhere a couple years back that the factory tester for the 992.1 GTS said something about getting the 7:25 time without really pushing the car and that there's probably another 10 seconds to shave. Even more reason why N-ring times don't matter at this point other than for ego. And once the car is in the 7 minute range, making it any faster only means that its less and less engaging at slower speeds.

Wilder

But it’s not, in the same way that the 991.2 GT3T is not “basically a 911R”.

The 911R may be the first attempt, accidental or deliberate as it may be, to test appetite for a mass production model using a limited production model first. PAG has already hinted at a Dakar- like model in the permanent lineup.