In a sense, the cockpit shares its basic theme (and look) with the earlier cars. It's a place designed for serious driving. This 911's seating position has long been perfect for most enthusiast drivers, with outstanding visibility in all directions compared to some other high-performance sports cars. Perhaps surprisingly to drivers new to the 911, it has also been a truly comfortable car for traveling long distances. The new design will feel familiar to those who have owned a 911, and the ignition key remains on the left, as it's always been on Porsche's LeMans race cars. Yet beyond functional improvements, this may be the best Porsche interior yet.
In general, there's an improvement in the quality of materials, and specifically, in the feel of plastic surfaces. The 911 still isn't quite up to snuff with the best luxury sedans in its price range, but it now comes much closer to what consumers expect at its price levels. You no longer have to spring for expensive options to get an interior finish that matches the car's overall quality.
The steering wheel has a contemporary three-spoke design, and its leather-wrapped rim is thicker and grippier than ever. As it often is at Porsche, there's more going on here than meets the eye. The steering wheel's core structure is an expensive magnesium alloy, which weighs less than the old steel/aluminum structure. More significantly, the wheel adjusts both up and down and fore and aft for the first time (albeit manually). This is also the first 911 to offer redundant controls on the steering wheel hub that operated the audio and navigation systems or the optional telephone.
The newest Carreras feel a bit roomier than their predecessors, and we suspect more comfortable for larger drivers. The difference is a combination of small things, like the adjustable wheel and a slight repositioning of the pedals toward the front of the car. The front seats, already among the best going, have been redesigned. They have higher bolstering on the bottoms and back, but they actually feel roomier. The width of both cushions seems to have increased, especially near the top of the back around the shoulders. The seats are mounted lower to the floor, creating a bit more headroom.
We found the optional sports seats in the Carrera S fantastic. They are more aggressively bolstered than the standard seats, and a bit firmer under bottom. Still, they remained supremely comfortable during a three-hour stretch at the wheel.
The gauges are spread in a larger pod than before, and the faces themselves are larger. The script and backlighting make them as legible as ever, but the extra space between them makes absorbing the information displayed a little less tedious. The dash vents are larger, and the climate control system seems to move more air at full bore than it did previously. The climate controls are located in the center stack. From an aesthetic point of view, they're the least appealing part of the new interior, but functionally they work fine.
The 911's slickest option could be the Sport Chrono Package. It's most obvious component is almost glaring to anyone familiar with this car: a jewel-like chronograph sprouting from the center of the dash. Flick a switch on the dash, then start or stop the chronograph with a switch on one of the steering wheel stalks, and it will display acceleration or lap times. What you don't see are the adjustments in electronic controls that occur when the chrono is switched on. The electronic throttle switches to its most aggressive mode (meaning the most gas for a given amount of pedal application), and the anti-skid electronics give a driver a lot more rope to get into trouble with. A history of recorded times can be displayed on the nav system screen for comparison. A gimmick? Maybe, but you'll probably want it if you decide to do some lapping, at a Porsche Club of America track event, for example.
Porsche's recent improvement to its audio systems, long anemic compared to the best car stereos, continues with the new 911. The upgrade high-power Bose package is now above average, and more competitive with the best in luxury cars.
The 911 also provides more space to put stuff. Both the glovebox and center-console bin are noticeably larger than before. The glove box now includes storage slots for pens and couple of CDs, while the console has a change holder and an additional 12-volt power point. Porsche claims the front boot is larger than before (4.72 cubic feet), though we notice no practical improvement in its storage capacity.
The 911 is a comfortable car for soaking up the miles, and reasonably well suited for commuting or daily driving. The improvements only emphasize this. Nonetheless, we offer a warning to the uninitiated: This is not a minivan. The rear seats are not fit for human habitation for passengers beyond 10 years old. With the rear seats folded, there's plenty of room for a major grocery run, and you can lay the dry cleaning back there. While you might enjoy driving the 911 cross country, you won't be able to stay long when you get there, unless you're willing to do laundry frequently. You probably won't want to take the Carrera to pick someone up at the airport, either. The trunk might hold a couple of small duffel bags; a Chevy Corvette will allow you to take more. There is a truly useful roof transport system ($400) that allows the 911 coupes to carry lumber and other bulky items. But a couple of trunks on the roof of a 911 screaming past on the Interstate sort of ruin the picture. And who's going to take time to mess with strapping suitcases on top of the car?
