Porsche 911 Sport Classic review

When I first read those specs, they actually got me thinking about GT2s. Could this be a bit of a wild child? Clearly it’s not a product of the GT department and there are still simple struts in the front arches rather than double wishbones like the latest GT3, but it struck me as a pleasingly potent proposition.

However, the drive down from Stuttgart fairly quickly disabused me of those GT2 thoughts. This is much more of a GT in the grand tourer sense. Some of this feeling comes from the lovely and quite luxurious interior. A melange of materials with lashings of leather, plenty of Pepita, some open pore wood and Alcantara all combine to make it feel distinctly more refined (as well as more retro) than any other current 911 I’ve been in.

Chuck in the almost spooky night tactical-glow of the green dials and the crisp clarity of the Burmester surround-sound system and it feels pretty special.

As soon as you get going, you notice that the steering has a notable heft to it and there is an overall sense of solidly planted grip. With the sport suspension’s 10mm drop in ride height, there is an underlying sense of connection to the road, but wrapped in a package that nonetheless feels tuned for fast and unflustered progress rather than really alert and agile response.

This demeanour is reflected in the powertrain, too. Obviously the gearbox – the Carrera seven-speeder, not the six from the GT3 – means there is a certain cadence of acceleration-pause-acceleration-pause, but as manuals go it is also pretty undemanding, with an easy springing and smoothness to the way the lever travels around the gate.

Three pedals mean that the 3.8-litre engine has been detuned compared to the Turbo, resulting in outputs of 542bhp (just 30bhp down) and 443lb ft of torque (a more significant 110lb ft down). It’s an easy engine to drive off-boost and as a whole the Sport Classic feels like a calm car in which to cover lots of miles.

And I did, because it’s a solid four-and-a-bit hours from Stuttgart down through Austria, across the always-congested Fernpass to the incredible Kaunertal Glacier toll road. A day pass for this amazing bit of tarmac costs €25. The road begins at 1250m above sea level and covers 26km, rising through 29 hairpin bends along the way. A dozen of those switchbacks are packed into one crazy mile, which comes not long after a huge reservoir, held back by the largest rock fill dam in Austria.

Then you’re above the trees and heading for the turquoise coloured (and therefore misleadingly named) Weißsee, which signals the start of the rocky upper portion that leads to the base of the glacier itself. It is truly stunning. A little wilder and narrower than some of the other toll roads in Austria, but every bit as beautiful.

On the way up, the Sport Classic was good company. Punching through the shallow turns next to the reservoir it was beautifully precise and sure-footed. However, notwithstanding the surprisingly lumpy and cracked tarmac, I found I wanted to dial the drive mode up to its most aggressive Sport Plus setting. I just felt like it needed to go that far to inject the amount of edge and control into the car’s setup that I’d expect (and it was still compliant enough). In my experience, that’s quite rare, with Sport Plus usually only necessary or even desirable on a track.

Up through the more acute hairpins the rear-wheel steer was a definite boon. You could detect a smidgen of slip at the rear on the exit of some switchbacks if you were really aggressive, but nothing requiring correction and by and large the huge 315-section rears kept everything neat. The proliferation of tight turns and concomitant low speeds meant there was plenty of opportunity to enjoy the sensation of acceleration.

If you like that demonstrably turbocharged feeling of boost which comes in a lump rather than evenly spread, this is the engine for you. Equally, if you like the von Trapp Family Singers to be drowned out with the sound of a musical flat-six, then this is not the engine for you. Even with the sports exhaust in its louder setting, the familiar baleful noise was more of a demure, distant accompaniment. Which sort of fits with the whole demeanour of the Sport Classic.

Once at the top, I’m not sure quite what to make of the car as a whole. In some ways it’s very desirable and with just 1250 being built it will no doubt be very sought after. But in terms of driving pleasure, I can’t help thinking I’d rather save £100,000 and buy a manual, rear-wheel drive GTS. Perhaps spend some of the savings on a PTS colour. You lose 70bhp and 22lb ft but also save 60kg, so the GTS’s 0-62mph time of 4.1sec is identical to that of the Sport Classic. What’s more, I definitely prefer the smoother, more freely revving and much better sounding nature of the 3-litre flat-six.

Nonetheless, I’m still very much looking forward to the long drive back to Stuttgart. And parked up at the top, next to the highest postbus stop in the country, I’m glad that there is the reassurance of (standard) ceramic brakes for the long 1500m descent back to the start of this amazing glacier road.