997TT info from August Achleitner
Borrowed from the Telegraph ....
http://www.telegraph.co.uk
Mark Hales examines the technological heart of the new Porsche 911 Turbo, which combines scorching performance with the model's best ride yet
When I mentioned recently to a pub companion that I would be going away for this particular launch, he replied: "What, another Porsche Turbo?" I pointed out that there hadn't been a new one for six years, but he didn't seem very convinced.
Perhaps it is the relentless tide of products rolling out of Stuttgart - 997 Carrera, Carrera S, Cabrio, Cayman S, Cayenne, Cayenne Turbo, Carrera GT3 (as tested last week) - that makes it seem that way, but it is indeed true.
I asked the new car's project leader, August Achleitner, why this was. He is the same slight, restless man who a year ago came up with the nugget about the Cabrio losing 70 per cent of its strength via the open top, the sort of hugely significant detail that rivals try so hard to keep secret. His answer to the question was no less candid.
He said he and his engineers wanted to make sure they had some appropriate "special features" to introduce in a new top-of-the-range model. It was, he added, part of a culture. "You have to show development," he said. "If you communicate that to the customer, he will understand why he has to spend a little more money."
More money it certainly is. The new 911 Turbo will cost very close to Pounds100,000, more if you tick the box for a set of ceramic brakes. As usual, there seems to be no shortage of people prepared to put their money down, even though they can have no idea what the special features might be. If you order a new Turbo now, you will be unlikely to take delivery until well into next year. So much for Achleitner's worthy assertions about communicating development in order to part people from their dosh.
Maybe such contentions help to make Porsche the kind of company it is, one where buyers take development for granted. But for those wanting enlightenment ahead of Turbo purchase, the special features inevitably include more power - 480bhp is delivered more swiftly thanks to variable turbine geometry for the (twin) turbos, not to mention the option of sports-chrono "overboost", an extra that liberates no less than 501lb ft of torque for a maximum of 10 seconds. Doesn't sound like much? I say anything that can't be overtaken within 10 seconds by one of these has no place on public roads.
Such mighty urge reaches the road via a new four-wheel-drive system featuring a multi-plate magnetic clutch rather than a differential to determine how much torque reaches the front wheels. There are new aerodynamics, new lightweight materials for doors and luggage lids, bigger wheels, bigger brakes, new leather interior, more airbags, more loudspeakers - in fact, more of everything.
It is, however, the parts you can't see that Achleitner feels are the most significant, including an extremely sophisticated set of electronics. If power and brakes are the obvious candidates for microchip regulation, it is the damping on the suspension, which is now constantly variable rather than switchable between two rates, that he reckons is the real innovation.
Hi-tech spec: the new 911 has an electronically controlled variable damping system
It goes like this. You accelerate hard through a long corner. Sensors measure how fast you are going, how much accelerator you have trodden, how much lock you have applied, the lateral g-force generated by the tyres and the longitudinal g that they have converted from the power. To deliver that power, the stepper motors will have already adjusted the gas flow within the turbos to suit engine revs and throttle opening, and revised the ignition, fuel delivery and camshaft timing to suit.
If you have the semi-automatic Tiptronic transmission option, they will be talking to the gearbox as well and maybe holding a gear for you rather than shifting up (depending on how quickly you stepped off the accelerator), while at the same time deciding on the amount of assistance to the steering. More sensors will be measuring the rotational speed of each wheel. If they detect a difference between the rears - as in the onset of wheelspin - then rather than cut the power at the engine they will engage the clutch in the driveline, which takes torque from the rear and sends it to the front.
It also works on the brakes. The system adds or subtracts hydraulic pressure according to wheel speed and the weight of your foot on the pedal, and it ensures the driveline's clutch is disengaged so that anything happening at the back doesn't compromise the front - or vice versa. The system can also brake each wheel at a differing rate or brake any number of wheels - even just one. If you are still in trouble, the system will grab a brake or two on whichever side in an attempt to pull the car straight. It is technology that has been seen before, but the man says Porsche has learnt how to do it better relatively recently. And he still insists the suspension damping is the most significant of the lot.
The damping, he explains, is the biggest influence on the relationship between comfort and handling and, without the electronics, you have to choose a compromise. The multitude of sensors can now determine exactly the rate of damping on each corner of the car - it is the controlling effect on the springs that stops them bouncing like Zebedee. The amount of control is constantly variable in both compression and extension and, like all the other sensor-informed functions, reacts in about 100 milliseconds. All of which makes the car's movements safer and more comfortable.
But, will anybody notice this kind of sophistication, especially if they neither knew nor cared that they were about to purchase it? The answer is probably not - although that should be taken as a compliment. If you could feel it working, it wouldn't be - if you see what I mean. For most of the time this one feels less like the traditional 911 than ever before. It rides in a different way, flatter and almost completely without the familiar nodding sensation that has for years defined the breed. Some of this must be down to the more even weight distribution that comes from driven wheels at the front, but some must be down to the electronic damping, which can grab the usual "second bounce" that follows a dip in the road.
Grand plans: Mark Hales, left, talks with August Achietner
Nobody, though, could possibly ignore the simply ballistic acceleration or an engine response so sharp it almost takes you by surprise in the lower gears. The Porsche Turbo is an astonishingly fast car that, like most turbos, feels even more powerful than it is because you don't have to work at the speed. You just plant the accelerator in almost any gear and hang on. The guys claim it is 11 seconds faster around the Nürburgring than its predecessor - and, when fitted with a similar set of sports tyres, quicker even than the track-focused GT3.
It is much less noisy in the process, too, and despite its shattering performance on the track, it imparts a great sense of confidence to non-expert drivers via nicely weighted, easy-to-reach controls. It is also easy to drive smoothly, which is not always the case with powerful cars fitted with manual transmissions. Much effort has been expended on the gearbox internals and the change is now so easy and the clutch so light, you can't believe either could handle the power.
It has an unexpectedly comfortable ride that for most of the time would be acceptable on a large saloon - presumably thanks to the new damping control. Only when cornering hard on bumpy roads do you get the traditional diagonal chop.
The new Porsche Turbo is indeed an impressive piece of engineering, as much for the way it hides its capability until you need it as the way it delivers, and it only sounds expensive until you look at the competition and the amount of technical excellence packed into a small space.
Almost predictably, Achleitner came up with another nugget. Did I realise that, yes, the car is four-wheel drive, but probably for only 10 per cent of the time, maybe even less. The electronics only engage the clutch to power the front end when they detect a loss of traction at the rear and, thanks to the traditional engine weight over the rear wheels, that is not very often. Really, he said, it should be thought of as a traditional two-wheel-drive Porsche, with an extra bit of traction only when it is needed.
I would still be prepared to bet that even if it is only occasional, there will be one or two owners who never know the front wheels are being driven at all.
####
http://www.telegraph.co.uk
Mark Hales examines the technological heart of the new Porsche 911 Turbo, which combines scorching performance with the model's best ride yet
When I mentioned recently to a pub companion that I would be going away for this particular launch, he replied: "What, another Porsche Turbo?" I pointed out that there hadn't been a new one for six years, but he didn't seem very convinced.
Perhaps it is the relentless tide of products rolling out of Stuttgart - 997 Carrera, Carrera S, Cabrio, Cayman S, Cayenne, Cayenne Turbo, Carrera GT3 (as tested last week) - that makes it seem that way, but it is indeed true.
I asked the new car's project leader, August Achleitner, why this was. He is the same slight, restless man who a year ago came up with the nugget about the Cabrio losing 70 per cent of its strength via the open top, the sort of hugely significant detail that rivals try so hard to keep secret. His answer to the question was no less candid.
He said he and his engineers wanted to make sure they had some appropriate "special features" to introduce in a new top-of-the-range model. It was, he added, part of a culture. "You have to show development," he said. "If you communicate that to the customer, he will understand why he has to spend a little more money."
More money it certainly is. The new 911 Turbo will cost very close to Pounds100,000, more if you tick the box for a set of ceramic brakes. As usual, there seems to be no shortage of people prepared to put their money down, even though they can have no idea what the special features might be. If you order a new Turbo now, you will be unlikely to take delivery until well into next year. So much for Achleitner's worthy assertions about communicating development in order to part people from their dosh.
Maybe such contentions help to make Porsche the kind of company it is, one where buyers take development for granted. But for those wanting enlightenment ahead of Turbo purchase, the special features inevitably include more power - 480bhp is delivered more swiftly thanks to variable turbine geometry for the (twin) turbos, not to mention the option of sports-chrono "overboost", an extra that liberates no less than 501lb ft of torque for a maximum of 10 seconds. Doesn't sound like much? I say anything that can't be overtaken within 10 seconds by one of these has no place on public roads.
Such mighty urge reaches the road via a new four-wheel-drive system featuring a multi-plate magnetic clutch rather than a differential to determine how much torque reaches the front wheels. There are new aerodynamics, new lightweight materials for doors and luggage lids, bigger wheels, bigger brakes, new leather interior, more airbags, more loudspeakers - in fact, more of everything.
It is, however, the parts you can't see that Achleitner feels are the most significant, including an extremely sophisticated set of electronics. If power and brakes are the obvious candidates for microchip regulation, it is the damping on the suspension, which is now constantly variable rather than switchable between two rates, that he reckons is the real innovation.
Hi-tech spec: the new 911 has an electronically controlled variable damping system
It goes like this. You accelerate hard through a long corner. Sensors measure how fast you are going, how much accelerator you have trodden, how much lock you have applied, the lateral g-force generated by the tyres and the longitudinal g that they have converted from the power. To deliver that power, the stepper motors will have already adjusted the gas flow within the turbos to suit engine revs and throttle opening, and revised the ignition, fuel delivery and camshaft timing to suit.
If you have the semi-automatic Tiptronic transmission option, they will be talking to the gearbox as well and maybe holding a gear for you rather than shifting up (depending on how quickly you stepped off the accelerator), while at the same time deciding on the amount of assistance to the steering. More sensors will be measuring the rotational speed of each wheel. If they detect a difference between the rears - as in the onset of wheelspin - then rather than cut the power at the engine they will engage the clutch in the driveline, which takes torque from the rear and sends it to the front.
It also works on the brakes. The system adds or subtracts hydraulic pressure according to wheel speed and the weight of your foot on the pedal, and it ensures the driveline's clutch is disengaged so that anything happening at the back doesn't compromise the front - or vice versa. The system can also brake each wheel at a differing rate or brake any number of wheels - even just one. If you are still in trouble, the system will grab a brake or two on whichever side in an attempt to pull the car straight. It is technology that has been seen before, but the man says Porsche has learnt how to do it better relatively recently. And he still insists the suspension damping is the most significant of the lot.
The damping, he explains, is the biggest influence on the relationship between comfort and handling and, without the electronics, you have to choose a compromise. The multitude of sensors can now determine exactly the rate of damping on each corner of the car - it is the controlling effect on the springs that stops them bouncing like Zebedee. The amount of control is constantly variable in both compression and extension and, like all the other sensor-informed functions, reacts in about 100 milliseconds. All of which makes the car's movements safer and more comfortable.
But, will anybody notice this kind of sophistication, especially if they neither knew nor cared that they were about to purchase it? The answer is probably not - although that should be taken as a compliment. If you could feel it working, it wouldn't be - if you see what I mean. For most of the time this one feels less like the traditional 911 than ever before. It rides in a different way, flatter and almost completely without the familiar nodding sensation that has for years defined the breed. Some of this must be down to the more even weight distribution that comes from driven wheels at the front, but some must be down to the electronic damping, which can grab the usual "second bounce" that follows a dip in the road.
Grand plans: Mark Hales, left, talks with August Achietner
Nobody, though, could possibly ignore the simply ballistic acceleration or an engine response so sharp it almost takes you by surprise in the lower gears. The Porsche Turbo is an astonishingly fast car that, like most turbos, feels even more powerful than it is because you don't have to work at the speed. You just plant the accelerator in almost any gear and hang on. The guys claim it is 11 seconds faster around the Nürburgring than its predecessor - and, when fitted with a similar set of sports tyres, quicker even than the track-focused GT3.
It is much less noisy in the process, too, and despite its shattering performance on the track, it imparts a great sense of confidence to non-expert drivers via nicely weighted, easy-to-reach controls. It is also easy to drive smoothly, which is not always the case with powerful cars fitted with manual transmissions. Much effort has been expended on the gearbox internals and the change is now so easy and the clutch so light, you can't believe either could handle the power.
It has an unexpectedly comfortable ride that for most of the time would be acceptable on a large saloon - presumably thanks to the new damping control. Only when cornering hard on bumpy roads do you get the traditional diagonal chop.
The new Porsche Turbo is indeed an impressive piece of engineering, as much for the way it hides its capability until you need it as the way it delivers, and it only sounds expensive until you look at the competition and the amount of technical excellence packed into a small space.
Almost predictably, Achleitner came up with another nugget. Did I realise that, yes, the car is four-wheel drive, but probably for only 10 per cent of the time, maybe even less. The electronics only engage the clutch to power the front end when they detect a loss of traction at the rear and, thanks to the traditional engine weight over the rear wheels, that is not very often. Really, he said, it should be thought of as a traditional two-wheel-drive Porsche, with an extra bit of traction only when it is needed.
I would still be prepared to bet that even if it is only occasional, there will be one or two owners who never know the front wheels are being driven at all.
####
God Bless Porsche 
More details in the new SPORT AUTO, coming next month.
