Background
The Porsche 911 first broke cover in 1963, morphing over the years from the svelte, elfin Audrey Hepburn of the sportscar world into the current Serena Williams-esque ballistic bruiser beloved of city traders, nouveau riche entrepreneurs, and mid-life crisis divorcees.
While the early cars were slow and fragile, the later cars are very fast and almost indestructible, which makes them the model of choice for the discerning enthusiast who cares for about driving than polishing.
While the 996 of 1997 onwards was the first of what many consider to be the ‘new’ 911 it was also the first of the water-cooled models, which leads many to deride it as not being a ‘proper’ 911. This is, of course, utter nonsense.
But the fact remains that the market doesn’t value them as highly as either the older or the newer models like the 997 you see here – and by the time the 997 arrived Porsche had got its eye after eight years of water-cooled production, rattling out the hugely powerful and efficient new engines by the tens of thousands.
The base model Carrera is a great introduction to the range and given its performance - a top speed of 178mph after passing 62mph in 4.9 seconds – it’s no slouch.
The interior is as bombproof as any 911’s, which helps you forgive its sometimes wayward ergonomics. It’s comfortable too, with supportive seats and one of the best driving positions in the business. It even offers four-up motoring, although the rear seat is best occupied by pre-teen children rather than fully fledged adults.
Best of all, as we are reminded every time we drive one, this is a semi-supercar you don’t have to make allowances for.
