The 2010 Porsche 911 Turbo: pass the tissues

This may be difficult to write, because of drool on the keyboard, but here goes… the 2010 Porsche 911 Turbo has been revealed.

It features a new 3.8-liter flat six engine with direct fuel injection and variable turbine geometry (VTG) for its twin blowers, the combination being a Porsche first. Oh, and it has the same intake manifold as the GT2 which uses air expansion to cool hot intake charge. We all remember Boyle’s Law right?

So, when kitted out with the Sport Chrono Package and PDK, the numbers run like this: 500 hp (20 more than the previous model) and 516 lb-ft of torque (up from 501). Zero to 60 mph is dispatched in a mere 3.2 seconds and top speed is 194 mph.

PDK, or Porsche-Doppelkupplung, is the twin-clutch seven-speed transmission and there’s some good news on this front too: optional shifter paddles instead of those annoying little steering wheel-mounted buttons. By including this, it seems that Porsche has listened to the gripes. Don’t be surprised if paddles soon trickle down to lesser models. Yes, there’s Launch Control and Sport/Sport Plus modes.

And the goodies keep coming in the form of magnetic engine mounts (à la GT3) that adjust automatically for comfort or sport, Porsche Torque Vectoring to enhance the all-wheel drive system, traction and stability controls, and the option of a mechanical limited-slip differential. If anyone was wondering, carbon dioxide emissions are lower than the previous model by almost 18 percent. It means less guilt when blasting past a Prius. The company also claims lower fuel consumption, but have yet to release any figures. It will be interesting to compare weights too.

Porsche normally drags out the process of introducing new variants, but on this occasion has decided to release both the tin top and Cabriolet simultaneously. The cars will go on show at the Frankfurt bash this September and hit American showrooms from January 2010. The coupe starts at $132,800, while the cabrio starts at $143,800. Bring on the economic recovery.

Gut Reaction(Febbo): The internet forums are already groaning that the “facelift” doesn’t look any different. Porsche is not like most companies that throw on new bumpers and expect the public to be excited. They instead focus on huge mechanical improvements to make news. This new Turbo is no different.

Direct injection is the biggest innovation in production engines since variable valve timing. The edition of DFI to this engine, coupled with the expansion intake manifold and VTG turbos, means this will be the most linear Porsche turbo ever in terms of power delivery. We can’t wait to get one these on a dyno, the meager 20hp bump seems conservative.

The dual clutch gear box will mean faster more consistent acceleration numbers, and thank god, they figured out how to control that gearbox. No more repurposed window switches or the horrendous push-pulls like in previous cars.

This turbo will be leaner, meaner and surprisingly, even greener.