MANAGING EDITOR ROGER HART: This was my first chance to operate the Doppelkupplung transmission, and I have mixed feelings about it. In automatic mode, it's fine, but it's not spectacular. In choose-your-own-gear mode, I really don't like the wheel-mounted buttons--push forward on either the left or the right button to switch up a gear, pull from behind to go down a gear. Of course, you can use the gearshift lever, and that is what I found myself doing.
I'm not sure the tranny is worth $4,000, especially because I think the steering-wheel interface could be much better. But using the shift lever made it better and more fun, and Porsche certainly needs to have this option on the long list of things from which to choose. And it is way better than any Tiptronic that went before it.
SENIOR EDITOR GRITZINGER: I really love the precision of a Porsche manual shifter and the smooth clutch action, so it's hard to embrace the PDK as long as I still have a leg able to push a clutch pedal. Yes, it's quick and likely smoother than I could ever hope to shift, and I'd vote it the best of this new generation of transmissions so far. But, as with any of these gearboxes, the missing element is knowing the exact point of engagement. I still would prefer to handle that myself, so I know exactly when the engine will brake or when to pour on more power.
All that said, in sport-plus mode, this thing is blindingly quick, slamming through the gears with a bit of a jolt, as though to remind the driver that even with this $4,000 hunk of technology doing the heavy lifting, there's a still a responsibility to grab the wheel and drive.
If dual-clutch trannies are the future, this one makes that future look brighter for enthusiasts, while appealing to luxury-sports-car buyers who'd rather not have to deal with the third pedal. If that allows Porsche to continue to profit and develop ever-better sports cars, I may not love it, but I'll live with it.
MOTORSPORTS EDITOR MAC MORRISON: Don't forget about the new direct-injection engine, either. The latest 3.8-liter flat-six is a great unit that bumps the 911's power up to where it needs to be, and it is quite something to see Porsche keep finding ways to get more out of a six-cylinder. This boxer absolutely sings when you crank it open.
I continue to fail to see why I would ever need AWD in a 911, though. It's overkill, and the price premium for a Carrera 4 makes it largely a silly choice. We had a long-term test Carrera S on which we mounted winter tires, and the car was an absolute sled. For people in regions that get huge amounts of winter snow, the Carrera 4 might make some sense. Otherwise, I'm not seeing it.
The PDK gearbox works very well, as smooth as, if not smoother than, any competitor in automatic mode, and it is right there in manual mode, too. But I agree with Hart: Who decided to substitute steering-wheel-mounted buttons for traditional shift paddles? In my view, the classic Formula One-style system--right paddle shifts up, left shifts down--remains the best and most logical way to go.
2009 Porsche 911 Carrera 4S
IN FLEET: Nov. 7-17
AS-TESTED PRICE: $109,310
DRIVETRAIN: 3.8-liter H6; AWD, seven-speed sequential manual
OUTPUT: 385 hp @ 6,500 rpm, 310 lb-ft @ 4,400 rpm
CURB WEIGHT: 3,329 lb
FUEL ECONOMY (EPA/AW): 21/18.5 mpg
I'm not sure the tranny is worth $4,000, especially because I think the steering-wheel interface could be much better. But using the shift lever made it better and more fun, and Porsche certainly needs to have this option on the long list of things from which to choose. And it is way better than any Tiptronic that went before it.
SENIOR EDITOR GRITZINGER: I really love the precision of a Porsche manual shifter and the smooth clutch action, so it's hard to embrace the PDK as long as I still have a leg able to push a clutch pedal. Yes, it's quick and likely smoother than I could ever hope to shift, and I'd vote it the best of this new generation of transmissions so far. But, as with any of these gearboxes, the missing element is knowing the exact point of engagement. I still would prefer to handle that myself, so I know exactly when the engine will brake or when to pour on more power.
All that said, in sport-plus mode, this thing is blindingly quick, slamming through the gears with a bit of a jolt, as though to remind the driver that even with this $4,000 hunk of technology doing the heavy lifting, there's a still a responsibility to grab the wheel and drive.
If dual-clutch trannies are the future, this one makes that future look brighter for enthusiasts, while appealing to luxury-sports-car buyers who'd rather not have to deal with the third pedal. If that allows Porsche to continue to profit and develop ever-better sports cars, I may not love it, but I'll live with it.
MOTORSPORTS EDITOR MAC MORRISON: Don't forget about the new direct-injection engine, either. The latest 3.8-liter flat-six is a great unit that bumps the 911's power up to where it needs to be, and it is quite something to see Porsche keep finding ways to get more out of a six-cylinder. This boxer absolutely sings when you crank it open.
I continue to fail to see why I would ever need AWD in a 911, though. It's overkill, and the price premium for a Carrera 4 makes it largely a silly choice. We had a long-term test Carrera S on which we mounted winter tires, and the car was an absolute sled. For people in regions that get huge amounts of winter snow, the Carrera 4 might make some sense. Otherwise, I'm not seeing it.
The PDK gearbox works very well, as smooth as, if not smoother than, any competitor in automatic mode, and it is right there in manual mode, too. But I agree with Hart: Who decided to substitute steering-wheel-mounted buttons for traditional shift paddles? In my view, the classic Formula One-style system--right paddle shifts up, left shifts down--remains the best and most logical way to go.
2009 Porsche 911 Carrera 4S
IN FLEET: Nov. 7-17
AS-TESTED PRICE: $109,310
DRIVETRAIN: 3.8-liter H6; AWD, seven-speed sequential manual
OUTPUT: 385 hp @ 6,500 rpm, 310 lb-ft @ 4,400 rpm
CURB WEIGHT: 3,329 lb
FUEL ECONOMY (EPA/AW): 21/18.5 mpg
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