Road Test: Porsche 911 2dr

It's generally acknowledged that the new water-cooled 911, or type 996 as it is known in Porsche circles, is in almost all respects a superior car to the old air-cooled '993'. However, there are still some qualities about the old which endow it, perhaps slightly irrationally, with huge appeal. And in the long history of the air-cooled 911 few display those charms better than this final model, the Turbo S.

But before you fishtail along to your nearest dealer with £129,950 concealed about your person I should inform you that just 33 of these are coming to the UK in right-hand-drive form and they're all already spoken for.

So what have you missed? Quite a lot actually. In the company's words, 'Everything Porsche has developed and learned in 35 years of the air-cooled 911 is brought together in the last of its type - the 911 Turbo S'. Essentially the S has the twin-turbo, 450bhp, 3.6-litre air-cooled flat-six engine from the rear-wheel-drive 911 GT2 mated to the superlight active 4WD system from the last 911 Turbo. It's active because it automatically varies power to each wheel for optimum traction. Plus there's the six-speed gearbox and third generation ABS linked to an automatic brake differential system which detects wheel slip and transfers torque as required. Amazingly, the brakes can deliver the equivalent of over 1,940bhp of stopping power. God knows how they work that out, but who am I to argue?

It's true, there is a more powerful road-going 911 - the £550,000, 544bhp GT1. And there was also the similarly unaffordable and powerful, (though less torquey) 959 of 1987, but rarely (if ever) has so much technology been thrown at a 911 before. There's more, much more, but let's leave the classroom and go for a drive.

First thing to notice are this car's shameless embellishments. The huge rear wing, yellow brake calipers, carbon-fibre interior trim and white-faced alloy dials all come as standard but the amazing paint job, yellow seat belts, sports seats with painted backs, tinted glass, sunroof and a few other bits 'n' bobs all helped hike the price of this particular one up to about £135,000.

Push the needle past 3,500rpm, though, and justification for the wedge spent becomes clear. To put it straight: Bloody hell, this car's got some grunt. And it's got grip too, in all four corners, so string the two together and the net result can border on the physically brutal. Your torso's held in place by the seat, but limbs and head need real muscle to keep them from flailing about inside like litter in a storm.

I drove the awesome GT1 less than a year ago and I clearly remember that it suffered from mid-range turbo lag and required plenty of revs before the real action started. Not so the Turbo S where serious power kicks in, lag free, at around 3,000rpm and all hell breaks loose just 500rpm later. I don't recall a car better able to overtake than this. Forget driving along with the motor buzzing in a low gear waiting for a suitable opportunity. You just see a gap, hit the gas in pretty much any gear and the deed is done in an instant.

Unfortunately we didn't get to strap our test gear on to this car and Porsche hasn't released its own acceleration figures, but if it didn't sprint to 60 in three point something seconds and hit 100mph in well under 10 I'd be dumbfounded. The company does, however, claim a max of 186.5mph, a speed which I'm sure most normal humans would find exhilarating.

The ride is firm but the brakes, at ordinary speeds, feel just a bit wooden. Like the GT1 this car can jump off-line over bumps, and like previous '993s' the clutch isn't terribly friendly in traffic and yes the stereo is almost out of the driver's reach. But this doesn't prevent it from being the best air-cooled, 12-valve road Porsche ever. A brand-new turbo '996' should be with us in a couple of years and it's bound to be stunning, but I wouldn't mind betting that it's the Turbo S which attracts the collectors' attentions during the next millennium

Tom Stewart