Interesting car plus relevant destination equals road trip, right? Meet the Porsche 911 Carrera GTS T-Hybrid, the first-ever roadgoing version of this sports-car icon with electrification. It’s the kind of thing with the potential to intrigue and incense in equal measure.
That probably goes double for the crowd we’re heading to see. We’re taking the new GTS from Auckland to Napier to join in the celebrations for the Porsche Club of New Zealand’s 50th anniversary.
It’s a big deal. A half-century is impressive anyway, but the Kiwi organisation is also an Approved Club of Porsche AG (“Club 54” if you want the finer detail), which means it gets lots of love: the factory is sending former Formula 1 driver, FIA World Endurance Champion and Porsche Ambassador Mark Webber down to join in, as well as brand representatives from Germany and Singapore. NZ distributor Giltrap Group is all-in and there are attendees from all four official Porsche Centres.
The GTS is a big deal, too. There’s a lot of electrification, but perhaps not in the way you might expect. It has two electric motors, but one of them’s in the turbocharger (there’s only one in the GTS, unlike the twin-turbo standard Carrera models) to help it spool it up and banish lag. The 11kW motor can also act as a generator for the electrical system.
The second electric motor is in the new 8-speed dual-clutch gearbox; it can provide 40kW/150Nm extra to the new 357kW/570Nm 3.6-litre flat six engine. Combined outputs are 398kW/610Nm, a handy 45kW/40Nm lift over the previous GTS. The sprint to 100km/h drops from 3.3 to 3.0 seconds.
This is the first-ever roadgoing version of the 911 with electrification. It’s the kind of thing with the potential to intrigue and incense in equal measure.
So yeah… it’s not exactly an eco-hybrid, although it does provide more performance while using a tiny bit less fuel: WLTP CO2 drops slightly from 258g/km to 251g/km. It’s still a greener way to gun your 911 GTS down the road.
The battery is small, at 1.9kWh. All the extra hardware only adds 50kg and weight distribution is virtually unchanged because the new 400-volt battery sits where the 12v unit used to go (that has been moved to under the parcel shelf, where a nook was already available).
The virtual instrument panel is fully customisable and yes, you can still have the classic 'five tube' display.
You can only have the T-Hybrid powertrain in the 911 GTS, which is traditionally the do-it-all 911: it’s supposed to be luxurious and relatively understated, but also totally up for a track day, with lots of power and sportier suspension than a standard Carrera.
The GTS T-Hybrid is part of a revised 911 range anyway, but you can identify it most obviously by the five active cooling flaps on each side of the front bumper; there are also adaptive front diffusers underneath, a first for the 911.
The T-Hybrid two electric motors, but can’t drive in EV mode. It’s a turbo with a lot of electric assistance, but feels like a monstrously strong naturally aspirated performance Porsche.
Inside, it’s pretty much business as usual - with a couple of small-but-significant changes. The instrument panel is now fully digital, which is a bit of a shame because the analogue centre-section used to be a nice heritage touch; but it’s fully customisable and yes, you can still have the classic “five tube” display with the revcounter in the middle. So, you know, progress. Same for the loss of the little twist-starter; there’s now a pushbutton-start to the right of the steering column. Love the cooled phone-charging pad concealed in the centre console, though.
The GTS T-Hybrid is a car of contradictions in some ways. It has two electric motors, but can’t drive in EV mode, so it’s technically a dual-motor mild-hybrid. It’s a turbo with a lot of electric assistance, but what it actually feels like is a monstrously strong and powerful naturally aspirated performance Porsche.
Ah yes, that. Virtually from idle, the powertrain just piles on the performance and apart from the odd whizzy noise (which is soon overwhelmed by that barking flat-six) you probably wouldn’t have any idea that this is a turbo or a hybrid. It’s so linear, and just plain brutal up through the rev range, racing to 7500rpm with ballistic efficiency. Fast, very fast; drive it hard and it feels exhilaratingly raw rather than overtly techy.
There’s plenty of opportunity to discover the car’s powertrain and chassis talents as we head south, especially when a road-closure diverts us right at Putaruru and onto some brilliantly sinewy tarmac towards Old Taupo Road.
The GTS now gets rear-axle steering as standard. In combination with the optional front axle-lifter ($4640) it makes for a truly practical around-town 911, but on the open road (where the rear wheels turn with, not against the front) there’s a whole new level of agility.
A 911 is always a lively car in the corners: the rear end squats and settles just enough under power to make you feel like a brave 1970s factory racing driver; with a massive electronic safety net underneath, of course. The rear-steer adds just enough fluidity to enhance the smoothness and speed when you want it, but not without spoiling the fun.
This is an astonishingly complete performance package. And make no mistake, this is big performance in every respect.
Next day… the show. It starts with an early-morning assembly at Perfume Point in Napier for 120-plus cars. Mark Webber will lead the group in a rare Carrera GT V10 on a parade though the city, towards the display area at the Soundshell.
Plenty of time for chats with serious Porsche people while we gather. Our GT Silver Metallic GTS is almost invisible in the sea of colourful (quite literally) sports car-history that surrounds, and it doesn’t even carry the optional “t-hybrid” decals.
Still, everybody knows what it is and there’s genuine interest. If I had to sum up the morning’s responses to the car in one sentence it would be: “Interesting, but I’m not too sure about it”. My aggregate answer: “If you drove it, you would be”.
The sun’s out and it’s a few kilometres of parading to the Soundshell, where the display-day kicks off. Cool cars, La Marzocco coffee and merch. There’s always merch.
For Webber, piloting the notoriously difficult-to-drive Carrera GT smoothly through town is surely one of the big challenges of his career: “Well, I have some experience,” he says. “That’s a good start, because it gets you through the initial shock. The clutch is renowned for being a bit tricky. But I looked after it, and it looked after me”.
Webber’s presence is clearly a coup for the event: “The factory was very keen for me to do it. Also, the Giltrap family have been tremendous for motorsport globally and Porsche, in what they’ve done for Kiwi drivers; I’ve always had a good relationship with them and so when the factory said to me there’s this important event coming up, we were able to be a bit clever with travel [and make it happen].
“What resonates with me about an event like this is the mix of models and seeing so many kids out there loving the cars.”
Webber knows a thing or two about Porsche hybrids (there’s this racing car called the 919 you might have heard of) and he’s fully versed on the 911 T-Hybrid. Sure, his opinion is that of a Porsche Ambassador, but it’s also the opinion of Mark Webber, which counts for a lot in any context.
“I was nervous when I first heard about it,” he says. “But the power in the bottom end, the torque… the size of the turbo is massive on that car. The way the electric works to get the turbo awake is a very complex system, but Porsche has had the bravery to put it in a road car.
“It’s about getting used to how smart all that tech is. The battery is boosting the engine and the gaps in the power curve have all gone. It pulls hard.”
