Porsche unleashes sub-3-seconds 911 Turbo and Turbo S at Detroit

Sure, Porsche may have boosted the price by $5,400 for the Turbo S and by an even more painful $8,100 for the Turbo, but the mid-cycle revamp brings plenty of tech goodies to talk about.

For 2016, Porsche has updated its range topping 911 Turbo and 911 Turbo S models with a mild refresh and even more power.

“When we see the 911 we see the plug-in hybrid as a performance vehicle – it will always be for performance”.

While last year Porsche brought the Targa GTS and the 8-minute (Nurburgring) Cayenne Turbo S to Cobo Hall, this year’s story is all about the most powerful incarnations of the Neunelfer.

Porsche has no intention of slowing down, but is looking to eventually start offering energy efficiency at the same time, said Posche Chairman Oliver Blume at the annual Cobo Center auto exhibition. Torque has also been increased to 553 lb-ft and the redline jumps from 7,000 to 7,200rpm. Mated to Porsche’s revered all-wheel-drive system, the flat-six cylinder engine can propel the Turbo to 96 kmph from a standstill in just 2.9 seconds and on to a top speed nearly nudging 320 kmph.

Both the 911 Turbo and Turbo S will also feature upgraded aerodynamics, improved traction system as well as a revised engine computer programming to increase fuel economy.

It will be interesting to see if Porsche is able to continue its trend in sales, as numbers were up for previous year by 19 percent compared to 2014, but releasing new models like the 2017 Porsche 911 Turbo and Turbo S should help.

You can get both the Turbo and the Turbo S as a convertible as well. We suspect this will work in a similar fashion to the MDM ( M Dynamic mode) in BMW’s M cars that allows some sideways movement before the system cuts in to straighten things out.

The 911 Turbo and Turbo S are easily recognizable, with unique front and rear fasciae, angular quadruple tail-lights, and 20-inch wheels. The new Porsche Communication Management (PCM) offers a 7-inch touchscreen display with features such as handwriting recognition and Wi-Fi connectivity. With these two new introductions, the current 911 lineup now consist of a staggering 21 models.