Porsche 911 Carrera Cabrio

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Why not just eliminate the speedo altogether, cut the circle count down to four and make the other instruments larger and more generously spaced? Beyond that the center stack (which contained a GPS navigation system on the test vehicle) is still overwhelmed with small buttons and the ventilation controls are still less than intuitive.

Get past the dash though and the 997's interior is spectacular. The hides covering the seats feel as if the cows that once wore them spent their days rolling around in butter; the trim fits together like the slide into a Glock 19; every switch works with distinct precision; the door panels are neatly shaped and solidly constructed; and of course there are airbags strewn about so that short of a Stuka attack the occupants are likely to survive most mishaps. The seats are narrow, but for a car like this you should lose weight.

Like a proper convertible wearing a big price tag, the Cabriolet's canvas top is elegantly stitched, impressively snug and features a heated glass rear window. Of course rearward visibility is compromised somewhat when the top is up and there's more wind noise than in a fixed roof car, but those are expected compromises. And putting the top down is a one-button affair that has the whole thing snugly retracted in just a few seconds and back up in just a few more.

One fine drive

When the 996 superseded the 993 the Carrera lost the edgy, immediate reflexes that made the 911 such a joyously instinctive car to drive. In their stead, the 996 was amazingly stable and composed. The 997 hasn't lost an iota of the 996's manners and brings back some of the 993's immediacy. In short, it's the best driving Porsche yet.

There simply isn't a better steering car on Earth. The variable ratio rack-and-pinion in the 997 is precise and communicative without being heavy; it works great at speed and just as well during parking maneuvers. Porsche has tamed the weight bias so effectively that the off-throttle oversteer that marked earlier 911s can only be induced by turning off the outstanding Porsche Stability Management (PSM) system, running the car up to some insane velocity and then downshifting from sixth to second.

The front suspension is a straightforward set of MacPherson struts while the rear is a more complex mix of five links on either side. This is a stiffly sprung car, but not a harsh one; the ride is always comfortable and the wheels never seem to be anything except squarely and firmly planted on the pavement. Go through a corner once in this car and you feel confident going through it the second time at twice the speed. The third time you want to double that speed again. The fourth time you realize that going any faster is going to land you in prison. In sum, there's no practical way to approach the 997's adhesion limits on the street without risking too much.

And the brakes, benefiting from the weight bias, are awesome too.

Even though the plain Carrera carries the less powerful 3.6-liter version of Porsche's all-aluminum DOHC, 24-valve flat six, the 325 horsepower it produces come out in an even, seamless wave. The combination of variable-length runners in the intake manifold, variable valve timing, advanced engine management and the inherent smoothness of the flat six make for a powerplant that's both easygoing around town and ferocious when it's asked to fly. The standard six-speed transaxle to which it's lashed is dang-near perfect too with well-space ratios and easy shifts.

About the only hiccup in the shifting is that the dead pedal intrudes so close to the clutch that it's easy to bang one's foot into it during shifts. Buy narrower shoes.

Porsche claims the Carrera Cabriolet will rip to 60 in 4.8 seconds and top out at 177 mph. That's quick. Quicker (4.6 seconds to 60 and a 182-mph top end) comes in the form of the Carrera S with 355 horsepower from the 3.8-liter version of the flat six.

Best ever?

As sweet natured as the 997 is, the purists will still point to the air-cooled 911s as the "real" 911. It's tough to say they're wrong. The 997 is the best Porsche ever, but it doesn't feel directly analogous to the rear-engine Porsches of the past. It's the successor to those cars in a way the 996 was not - a true leap beyond them.

It is its own unique and great thing. Maybe it deserves its own name.

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