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\u00a0By: Denis Droppa in Paderborn, Germany<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Launched almost exactly 50 years to the month after the first-generation Porsche 911 was unveiled to the world at the Frankfurt motor show in September 1963, the latest and greatest version of the iconic sports car \u2013 the 911 Turbo \u2013 has hit the streets.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n For humans, turning 50 can be a fraught affair with the onset of the dreaded middle-age spread and constantly mislaying one\u2019s bifocals. For the 911 Turbo, it\u2019s more a case of middle-age cred. What is arguably the world\u2019s most well-rounded sports car, the new generation 911 Turbo is faster and fitter than ever, with a two second per lap improvement around the Nurburgring racetrack.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n TWO FLAVOURS<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Stuttgart\u2019s street missile is available in two flavours, both of which will be launched in South Africa in October: the standard 911 Turbo, and the 911 Turbo S with added power and racetrack-attacking ability.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The key figures for the \u201cbasic\u201d 911 Turbo are a 3.8-litre flat-six biturbo engine which fires 383kW and 660Nm (710Nm with overboost) to both axles via all-wheel drive and a seven-speed Porsche Duppelkuplung transmission (PDK to you and me). Thus endowed, the rear-engined sports car is capable of a 315km\/h top speed and a 3.4 second 0-100km\/h sprint (3.2 seconds with the optional Sport Chrono package) according to factory figures.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The 911 Turbo S gets 0.2 bar of additional boost pressure to hike outputs to 412kW and 700Nm (750Nm with overboost), presenting the driver with 318km\/h ability and a claimed 0-100 sprint of just 3.1 seconds.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The transmission and all-wheel drive system of the two cars are mechanically identical and both come with Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) with electronically controlled dampers, as well as a controlled rear-locking diff with Porsche Torque Vectoring Plus. The S version gets additional stopping power via ceramic brakes and the body-roll-defeating PDCC (Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control).<\/p>\n <\/p>\n REAR-WHEEL STEERING<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n With a longer wheelbase, wider track and lower centre of gravity than the outgoing 997-generation turbos, the new Porsche 911 Turbo and Turbo S also introduce two new laptime-enhancing features: a variable front spoiler (which is a world first) and rear-wheel steering.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n At speed the front spoiler lip, along with the movable boot spoiler which is a carry-over from the previous generation, both extend to increase downforce by up to 132kg at a speed of 300km\/h. When crawling along or entering driveways, however, the front spoiler retracts to give the sports car better ground clearance.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The rear-wheel-steering system turns the back tyres opposite to the fronts to reduce the turning circle at looking-for-parking speeds; while at higher speeds they turn parallel with the fronts for improved stability in fast direction-changes.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Though based on the 911 Carrera 4, the two 911 Turbo models are recognisable by their puffed-out wheel arches along with distinctive front lights and bumpers.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Filling those arches are 20\u201d mags (with centre wheel nuts for the Turbo S) which have grown from the 19s used in the previous-generation turbo 911s.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The 911 may not have the glamorous styling of a Ferrari or a Lambo, but when it comes to the business of driving, the rear-engined German has its mojo going and needn\u2019t stand aside for any car.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n TRACK CHAMPION<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Last weekend Porsche hosted the car\u2019s media launch at the new Bilster Berg circuit near Paderborn in Germany, a roller coaster of a test track with tricky complexes and major elevation changes, where I put the 911 Turbo S through its paces.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n En route there along public roads, the car displayed the impressively civilised road manners of 911 renown, with a comfortable everyday-commuting ride quality quite out of synch with the concept of a red-blooded track car.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n But once on that track it didn\u2019t take more than a few corners to reconfirm what a supreme driver\u2019s car this is, and why the new 911 Turbo S snipped two seconds off its already very agile predecessor\u2019s Nurburgring laptime.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The car\u2019s grown in size but mass is unchanged due to some lightweight materials being used. The iconic solid feel hasn\u2019t been affected and the 911 still feels like it\u2019s machined from a block of steel.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n