By Elliot Esterman
In 1971, a Car and Driver magazine editor called the 911 Porshe an “ass-engined Nazi slot car”. Created by Ferdinand Porsche, one of the leading car engineers in Nazi Germany, the 911 became one of the best sports cars ever known to man. Over the last 50 years, there has been little competition against such a masterpiece of engineering.
Little has changed in the model’s exterior over the 50 years the 911 has been in production; it is a conservative design with only minor evolutionary changes to its original shape. The 911 still draws its design from the original Volkswagen Beetle which was also designed by Ferdinand Porsche, by order of Hitler. The idea was to make a “people’s car” available to any German citizen, which is exactly what the name ‘Volkswagen’ translates to.
Over the years, the engineers in Zuffenhausen worked on improving their production sport car without the thrills of superficial innovations and fancy detailing. The 2014 Porsche 911 is the newest to date. It is arguable the most civilized Porsche yet with all the amenities of a highway cruiser and the heart of the a true race car.
The base model Carrera starts at $85,250, uses a 3.4L flat 6 cylinder engine with 350 hp @ 7400 rpm and 287 ft-lbs of torque @ 5600 rpm. The flat 6- cylinder engine Porsche uses in all of its 911 models is very famous. It is highly refined and shows just how great the quality of engineering is when it comes to this car.
All 911s have been known for communicative-direct steering, precise handling, effortless acceleration, powerful brakes, and are also highly fuel efficient. The base Carrera has a rating of 19 mpg city and 27 mpg highway. If $85,250 doesn’t lighten your wallet as much as you’d like, Porsche offers a bunch of options for the 911, to upgrade your ride. One option, called the Sport Chrono package, costs $9,000 and equips the car with a lap timer on the dashboard and launch control.
While many may question the need for all the expensive options, for a true Porsche aficionado, the certainty of knowing you own and operate one of the best and well-equipped cars ever made, is answer enough.
