911s are expensive cars. The cheapest 911 Carrera you can buy costs $120,100 (including $1,995 for destination), and my press car totalled $148,155. The optional extras included the $2,980 Slate Gray Neo paint, $4,960 Slate Grey/ Chalk leather interior, a $230 extended range fuel tank, the $2,960 Sports Exhaust System, $3,820 for the gorgeous 20/21-inch wheels, $2,400 for the Sport Chrono Package, $3,470 for the 18-way Adaptive Sport Seats Plus, and the $5,200 Premium package that includes surround-view cameras with automated parking, ventilated front seats, Lane Change Assist, an ionizer and a passenger footwell storage net. Of those options, I’d probably forego everything except the Sport Exhaust, endlessly adjustable seats, and Sport Chrono Package.
If you’re one of the people who has saved up their whole life to finally get a taste of Stuttgart’s finest, you’ll be happy to learn that you aren’t missing out on anything by going for the least-expensive version of the Porsche 911. Unless you are a thoroughly experienced performance driver or you plan to take your 911 to the race track frequently, the 911 Carrera is more than enough car for you.
The 911’s limits are pretty mind-bending, but if you’re a poor kid reading this fantasizing about driving a 911 like I was 10 years ago, know that its magic comes from its composure, refinement, and stability. Other cars are more exciting, visceral, rowdy, and boisterous, but the Carrera has so many fans because it’s so easy to get along with. Thrashing one on your favorite road is impressive and you’re able to attack it at speeds you may not have thought possible, but its biggest selling point is being a comfortable, capable, drama-free, and obscenely rapid car.
Garret Donahue
