Here is the New 992 generation Targa 4S
Here is the Targa of the new 992 generation of #911, as the left field choice for Porsche aficionados! Perhaps one of the most bizarre stories isn’t he automotive world, the Targa was born out of fear of auto regulations. In the previous 356 gen to the 901, the convertible Porsche was a big seller particularly in the USA. But with the 911, Porsche feared the NHTSA would ban the sales of convertibles. Thus they created a drop top with a permanent steel roll bar: the targa. “Targa” – shield in Italian – came from the Targa Florio sports car road race in Sicily, in which Porsche had scored seven victories.
From 1967 to 1982, this was the only way to get a convertible 911, until the cabriolet eventually debuted. So the First Targa set the style in 1967 by way of the stainless steel clad roll bar, but later from 993 onwards the Targa saw a big departure in its form, much to its detriment. It turned into essentially a panoramic roof with sliding top, it didn’t look distinctive vs the coupe, and the centre of gravity was higher thanks to the mechanism. It wasn’t till 991 that the Targa regained it’s desirability and returned to the aesthetics of the original Targa, with a hugely complex two piece folding system. One that carries through into our car today.
It consists of two parts, front soft top and rear glass, which has been further weight optimised. It takes only 19 seconds to open and close, and must be done at standstill. And it looks incredible, especially with the new satin black option on our car today! So how different is the 992 Targa 4S to the standard 992 4S? It still has 450BHP, 530NM and the 0-60 is an impressive 3.4 seconds on launch, which is the same as the cabriolet. But how much does the targa add or detract from the experience?
