gota911

Targe 4 starts at $101,600 + $995 Destination charge
Targe 4S starts at $116,200 + $995 Destination charge

The Targa 4S will go a lot faster than the Targe 4 because your wallet will be that much lighter.

makemann

Jalopnik listed the following on price: "When the '14 Targa goes on sale this summer, it will be available as the Targa 4 for a $101,600 starting price, or the Targa 4S that kicks off at $116,200. Both are excellent values considering the wizardry going on with the roof."

MessyMarvin

Not bad, that means they are about $1-2K lower than the Cabrio if they come equipped the same.

If I were in the Market for a 991 this would probably be my choice.

sandwedge

Well, you have to think there will be the usual inexpensive variations to what you don't like available on the options menu. About 10K should fix the cloth roof, paint to sample of the roll bar no more than 5K and greenhouse glass delete maybe another 5K. Just guesses of course but I think I'm close...

Minok

I would say the "Targa" is a Porsche sports car model specification. The first one had manually removable panels. That doesn't mean the must all have manually removable panels. The "Targa" is what Porsche says it is, and they can change it over time.

In my mind, its a midpoint between a convertable(cabrio) with a fully retracting top (be it hard or soft), and a coupe with a solid roof. Once you put a sunroof in the coupe, then when does it become a targa? I'll leave that up to Porsche. But I consider the targa models with the full width sliding glass roofs to be just as valid a Targa as the old manual panels versions and the new articulated self-stowing panels. The key is, after the 'roof cover' is removed, the rear and rear/side areas are still enclosed and solid. A convertible can have a roll bar, but the back end is not enclosed.. hence not a targa.

One man's definition.

Edgy01

Since the days of the newest cabriolets the cars have come with pop up roll bars behind the two front seats--I wonder if the targa top on these models is really functional, or merely a visual roll back to the 1980s...

MessyMarvin

According to the Porsche USA Website it is Functional.

Ryan M Hartman

It's interesting - but there a few things that I'm not so sure about.

The good: I love the head nod to the Targa of the past. I like the incredibly engineered top and retracting system. Many of us love P-cars because of the engineering that goes into them, and the top is very much Porsche.

The bad: One of the things I love about wide body Porsches is the hips...the smooth curves from the roof to the rear bumper are really sexy. This new Targa ruins it with the seam in the middle of it. And, no glass top? The 997 Targa with a full glass top meant you felt like you were in a Targa all the time...even on rainy days in the PNW!

P0rsch3F113

Here you go...courtesy of wc11 (thanks, Will):

"So I did some research. To be fair I only compared 4's since that's all you can get.
From the German 991 models so take it for what it is. Quite surprising

Targa 4S
1555 kg DIN curb weight
1630 kg EC curb weight
0-100 kph 4.8 sec 7-spd
0-100 kph 4.6 sec PDK

Targa 4
1540 kg DIN curb weight
1615 kg EC curb weight
0-100 kph 5.2 sec 7-spd
0-100 kph 5.0 sec PDK

Cab 4S
1515 kg DIN curb weight
1590 kg EC curb weight
0-100 kph 4.7 sec 7-spd
0-100 kph 4.5 sec PDK

Cab 4
1500 kg DIN curb weight
1595 kg EC curb weight
0-100 kph 5.1 sec 7-spd
0-100 kph 4.9 sec PDK"

shyamvenky

If you look at the official videos and the one posted in this thread, there does seem to be a rollbar behind the seats. So this is a convertible that Porsche wants to sell using the Targa name.
I can see where Minok is going with his view, and I can take that for an explanation. If this is the way Porsche wants to evolve the Targa, then so be it. And if many people like it, then so be it. 20 years down the line, there may be people who would consider this as the benchmark for a Targa - and at that point who knows what Porsche would call a Targa.

Zeus993

Agreed 100% Tom. I've not warmed up to the 991 until I saw the Targa. Never a fan before either. Stunning IMO.

Z356

The first one had one (singular) removable top panel (which accordions into a smaller shape stored in the front boot) and a zippered rear plastic 'window'.

I am guessing you are referring to the visual Targa roll bar and not the 'cloth' top. The latter does have two titanium panels for structural stiffness & lightness, but that is not your question I think. The visual Targa roll bar probably does perform an actual safety function in case of a roll-over. That I think is what you were getting at. However, it is not a complete solid metal 'loop' like the one on my 1970 911E Targa. You can see in the 991 version where the two small brackets pop up to allow the top mechanism brackets to move the fabric top over the Targa bar and into its storage position (see photo sequence below). So it's not a continuous metal 'loop'. But I bet Porsche engineered enough reinforced strength on the Targa 'roll bar' that it will act as a 'functional' safety device should the Targa experience an actual roll over in case of an accident.

As an aside, my first Porsche was a 1968 912 Soft-Rear Targa back in 1973 (right after I graduated from college). It looked like the early A chassis 911 Targa in the photo below. All early 911/912 Targas looked like this until 1969, when the first glass-rear Targas was introduced (final photo is of my current 1970 911E Targa). Sharp eyes will remember that Porsche also introduced a design modification of the roll bar at the time - which was the three slits above the Targa badge. This was to provide ventilation & air exit points out of the cabin! That feature is carried over to the 991 Targa design introduced in Detroit this week!

At the time, we were told the reason for the glass back change was to make sure nobody could fall out from the back of the Targa in case of an accident. The story (rumor) was that a factory employee in Germany had been driving with his wife and kids on a pre-1969 soft-rear Targa and had rolled over in an accident. Unfortunately, the Targa bar decapitated both kids traveling in the rear as they fell out of their seats & into the path of the Targa roll bar. That was the story circulated at the time. Initially the factory removed the rear seats on the Targa and put storage shelves back there to discourage the rear area of the Targa from being used for passengers. That is what I had on the MY1968 Soft-Rear Targa I first owned. In 1969, they introduced the fixed rear glass and included once again the rear seats (which is what I have on my MY1970).

By the way, the factory allowed certain customers to order a soft rear 911 Targa into the early 1970's. I know of at least one MY1971 factory original 911 Targa with a soft-rear back. This is particular odd when you realize that most of us that owned soft-rear Targas at the time generally disliked the fact that the rear plastic window would cloud up/burn from the sun exposure, rendering rear visibility a dangerous issue for us to deal with on a daily basis. In addition, the Soft-Rear also tended to leak on occasion, which allow many Targas to experience pre-mature rust issues. All of the time I owned the 1968 Soft-Rear Targa I wished it had the 'new' glass back! Of course, today it's just the opposite. Soft-Rear Targas are considered more desirable and valuable to collectors - simply because they are so unusual & rare. Just a bit of Targa history, which I hope you don't mind reading.

As a lover of Targas, I have appreciated the evolution of the Targa concept into the 993 to 997 versions. But as venerable oldtimer, I love the design of this new 991 Targa. It does true justice to the traditional concept of the Targa - a visual roll back not only to the 1980's as Edgy pointed out...but to the mid 1960's in its actual long history at Porsche!

Saludos,
Eduardo
Currently in Scottsdale for the Auctions

PS Some of you will find interesting comparing this thread to the discussion we have been having over at the 991 forum:

https://rennlist.com/forums/991/7920...ry-2014-a.html

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Z356

Is this what you are talking about? It really acts like a 'defined' storage space for the Targa top behind the rear seats. It is not a roll bar, as such. Also, should you place something there (e.g. a bag) when traveling with top up, the system will recognize an obstacle in the path of storing the top there and prevent the Targa top from opening at all.

Saludos,
Eduardo

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rodsky

I think it looks great. My first 911 was an 85 Carrera Targa. This takes you back to that form of Targa vs. the 996/997 style. I prefer the 991 and the older original take on the Targa.

tomc66

Not my cup of tea. It looks too 1970es to me.