The redesigned 2012 Porsche 911 Cabriolet goes on sale this spring and the 2012 Detroit Auto Show was our first chance to see the model in the flesh.
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The new model is now composed entirely out of lightweight aluminum-steel composite. You can see the difference between the new and old model just by looking at the taillamps.
The all-new 2012 Porsche 911 Carrera Cabriolet nails the trifecta of convertible design by looking good with the top up or down and maintaining its coupe counterpart’s sleekness. Like the 2012 911 Carrera coupe we saw at the 2011 L.A. Auto Show, the 2012 Cabriolet (available in Carrera and Carrera S) shares the same chassis and powertrain updates.
Like most German makes, Porsche is known for having just a few models that come in what seems like a limitless number of models and trim levels.
The options are beginning to grow rapidly for the all-new seventh generation 2012 Porsche 911. The model was first shown this summer in base Carrera and Carrera S trims. While there wasn’t much doubt, we now know there will be convertible options for each – known as the Carrera Cabriolet and Carrera S Cabriolet. The convertibles will arrive at dealerships just a few short months after the coupe variants go on sale in February.
Besides the addition of the power droptop, most of the features are the same as the coupe.
The 2012 Porsche 911 may not look significantly different than previous generations to all but 911 loyalists, but underneath there's an all-new chassis and wider stance.
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Most notable changes on the outside include new taillights, while the inside is redesigned with a touch of influence from Porsche's Panamera sedan. Despite the subtle update it will likely draw huge crowds during the public show.
Porsche brought the latest 911 — the "991" 911, if you're an enthusiast — to the L.A. Auto Show for its U.S. debut. The automaker introduced the car at the Frankfurt Motor Show last September. The Panamera and Cayenne overshadow the 911 in sales these days, but it still outstrips other high-end coupes — the Jaguar XK, BMW 6 Series and Mercedes' dinosaur of an SL — in part by offering a gazillion (OK, 18) variants. Count on the 991 doing the same.
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Photos suggest a similar car as the "997" 911, but differences are easy to pick out in person — especially in back, or the view other drivers on the road will get. For starters, every 911 now says "911 Carerra," not simply "Carrera," a moniker that made a lot of casual observers wonder if the Carrera and 911 were, in fact, separate cars.
Fall should mean only one thing to attentive auto enthusiasts: a new auto show season is upon us.
With the 2011 L.A. Auto Show less than a month away, we have a pretty good understanding of what to expect, though there still looks to be a few surprises. Like in previous years, the show will be a heavy mix of luxury car debuts intertwined with some fuel efficient, green options.
There will be at least 21 all-new releases at the show, and 25 vehicles that will make their North American debuts (about the same as last year). This fresh new clutch of vehicles will be shown to the media, and subsequently to you on KickingTires, Nov. 16 and 17.
The everyday car shopper should keep tabs on the redesigned Ford Escape, Honda CR-V and Hyundai Azera, all of which will debut at the show.
It may not look like it, but the 2012 Porsche 911 is totally new, including a new chassis, body, interior and more fuel-efficient powertrains.
We would say the appearance is updated, too, but only a die-hard Porsche enthusiast would tell the difference between the 2012 model and its predecessor. The biggest give-away is the rear end — featuring flatter vertical taillamps — that gives the new 911 a bit of an Aston Martin feel. The car looks more mature, mostly because the increased front track broadens the front-end face by pushing out the wheel arches, and the side mirrors are pushed farther back on the doors rather than on the A-pillars. Overall, this 911 looks less bug-eyed than the 2011 model.
Porsche is recalling 1,702 two-door coupes from the 2010 and 2011 model years due to faulty hub and wheel assemblies. The hubs can wear prematurely, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The 2010-11 models in the recall are high performance models including the 911 GT2 RS, 911 GT3, 911 GT3 RS, 911 Turbo and 911 Turbo S. They were built between May 18, 2009, and Sept. 17, 2010. You can check the build date on a sticker on the driver-side doorjamb.
In the affected vehicles, which are equipped with center locking hub and wheel assemblies, as the hubs wear, the wheels could loosen, increasing the risk of a crash.
Dealers will replace the center locking hubs and wheels with an improved design for free. Owners can call Porsche at 800-767-7243 or NHTSA’s vehicle safety hotline at 888-327-4236.
When Cars.com’s editor-in-chief, Patrick Olsen, got behind the wheel of a Porsche 911 a few years back, he knew he found a new love. (So long, Mini Cooper.) Even with some time apart, the love affair is apparently still kindling. The 2011 Porsche 911 Turbo Cabriolet is the perfect midlife crisis machine for those who can afford it, or those who are willing to tap their children’s college funds, according to Olsen.
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