Purists rejoice: Porsche 911 T returns solely with a manual gearbox

Porsche has continued the updated 992.2 generation 911’s roll-out with the revival of the T moniker as a step-up from the conventional Carrera.

The effective replacement for the Carrera S that, for the moment, doesn’t form part of the 992.2 range, the T now slots-in below the GTS as exclusively fitted with the close-ratio six-speed manual gearbox and as either a coupe or the first-time, a cabriolet.

Small outside changes

An option the now hybrid assisted 992.2 dropped at its unveiling in May, the officially titled 911 Carrera T loses the electric hardware completely as a result of not only the ‘box, but also the need to save weight.

Revived for the 991 six years ago before morphing into the 992.1 in 2022, the 992.2 Carrera T carries over the same aesthetic as the standard models, but with the addition of machine polished Vanadium Grey Metallic 20-inch at the front and 21-inch at the rear alloy wheels, an H-pattern manual gearbox decal on the rear windows and Vanadium Grey detailing.

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Along with a black stainless sport exhaust system, Porsche has made the lip spoiler from the GTS standard and fitted thinner glass as a further means of reducing the T’s kerb mass.

As an option, the exterior design pack includes gloss black detailing, black mirror caps and a new colour option called Gentian Blue.

In total, 11 other colours can be selected from; black, white, Crayon, Lugano Blue, Guards Red, GT Silver Metallic, Jet Black Metallic, Ice Grey Metallic, Cartagena Yellow Metallic, Shade Green Metallic and Slate Grey Neo.

Opting for the cabriolet meanwhile comes with four colours for the roof; black, red, blue and brown.

Manual shifting

Inside, the Carrera T’s main difference involves the gear lever for the six-speed manual ‘box as opposed to the toggle switch operating the eight-speed PDK.

Derived from but not taken directly from the Carrera GT, the lever sports an open-pore laminated wood knob with the shifter itself being shorter than on the 992.1.

Elsewhere, the manual transmission touches continue in the form of a shift pattern decal on the dashboard, a redesigned centre console and an MT badge behind the lever.

Carried over as a combination from the Carrera and GTS is the GT steering wheel finished in Race-Tex, Vanadium Grey and brushed black aluminium decorative inserts, the sports seats trimmed in Sport-Tex tartan fabric and the Sport Chrono Package.

While still resplendent with the 10.9-inch and 12.6-inch infotainment system and instrument cluster, buyers can specify the adaptive Sport Seat Plus with expanded electric adjustment as an option.

As with the exterior, the 911 Carrera T’s optional interior pack mainly comprises Gentian Blue inserts in the form of stitching, contrasting stripes and the outline of the 911 badge embroidered onto the front headrests.

Power and dynamics

Dynamically, Porsche has refrained from keeping the 911 Carrera T standard and as such, equipped it with the rear-axle steering system, the Porsche Active Suspension Management system that drops the overall ride height by 10 mm, new anti-roll bars and a revised torque vectoring system.

Finally, the Carrera T gets uprated brakes, recalibrated steering and an automatic rev function that blips the throttle on downshifts.

Residing at the rear, the hybrid-lacking 3.0-litre turbocharged Boxer flat-six produces seven kilowatts more than the 992.1 for a total of 290 kW, the same as the base 992.2 Carrera, with torque remaining as is at 450 Nm.

In terms of performance, the coupe will get from 0-100 km/h in 4.5 seconds and reach a top speed of 295 km/h, while the cabriolet takes 0.2 second longer before topping out at 293 km/h.

As with the 992.1, the 992.2 Carrera T’s amount of twist goes to the rear axle only. At 1 478 kg, the coupe ticks the scales at 40 kg less than the standard Carrera with the optional carbon fibre bucket seats included.

Price

Now available for ordering, the 911 Carrera T has been approved for South Africa in coupe and cabriolet forms with a three-year/100 000 km maintenance being included with each’s sticker price.

• 911 Carrera T – R2 735 000
• 911 Carrera T Cabriolet – R3 019 000

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