2017 Porsche 911 Targa 4 GTS PDK Automatic

Before you buy a new Porsche 911 Targa 4 GTS, you need to know a few things: 1) Drive it on a freeway in Los Angeles, and every dweeb in a lowered Honda Civic will want to race you; 2) The guy on the Pacific Coast Highway in his new black Ferrari F12tdf won’t even acknowledge your presence; 3) Porsche lies about the car’s performance. With the PDK dual-clutch automatic transmission (a $3720 option), the company says the all-wheel-drive Targa 4 GTS can accelerate from zero to 60 mph in 3.5 seconds. Hogwash. Our test car did it in 3.1.

The list of available Porsche 911 variations is now somewhere in the zillions, and the Targa 4 GTS falls into the upper third of the range. With a base price of $139,250 and packing 450 horsepower, it’s the most expensive and powerful 911 available short of the Turbo models and the manic GT3, GT3 RS, and GT2 RS. It’s also one of the quickest and best-performing Porsches we have ever tested, quicker even than the lighter and more powerful 2004 Carrera GT and the legendary 1987 Porsche 959, which it also outhandles.

Hard to believe, but true. Thanks to its all-wheel-drive system, massive 20-inch Pirelli P Zero tires, and launch-control feature, the 911 Targa 4 GTS easily outaccelerates those iconic supercars—incredible when you consider that the Targa 4 GTS, at 3654 pounds, weighs hundreds of pounds more.

GTS Adds Speed and Style

The Targa’s signature features are its removable roof panel (now automated) and wraparound rear glass, and all modern Targas are all-wheel drive. In Porsche-speak, GTS means hot rod, as in more power and performance. GTS models get the broader bodywork and wider tracks of all-wheel-drive 911s, although the wider stance already is standard on the regular Targa 4. There are larger air intakes in the front bumper for additional cooling, and every GTS gets satin-black center-lock wheels from the 911 Turbo as well as gloss-black tailpipes; the Targa 4 GTS also features a black targa bar for easy spotting. It’s a compelling combination, one that blends the additional speed of the GTS with the Targa’s unique take on open-air driving. The example we tested was a 2017 model still hanging around in Porsche’s fleet, but the Targa 4 GTS is unchanged for 2018 save for a $1700 price hike.

With 450 horsepower, the GTS is 30 ponies stronger than a regular Targa 4S. The increase in power is the work of new turbochargers with turbines that are 3 millimeters larger and a compressor that is increased in size by 4 mm. Boost is up from 16.0 psi on Carrera S models to 18.1 psi here, while the power peak remains at 6500 rpm; the 7500-rpm fuel cutoff also is unchanged.

Use the 911’s launch-control system, which lets you automatically hold the revs and drop the hammer at 6000 rpm, and the additional power shaves 0.2 second from the zero-to-60-mph time of a Targa 4S with PDK. Typical for 911s, this car is quicker with the PDK than it is with the standard seven-speed manual. With three pedals, the Targa 4 GTS hits 60 mph in 3.5 seconds versus the PDK’s 3.1. However, the rear-wheel-drive GTS coupe with PDK is 0.1 second quicker than this Targa, which carries an additional 319 pounds. The Targa 4 GTS PDK also weighs 63 pounds more than the manual-equipped version.

Twist the Key

With an as-tested price of $154,045, you’d think our Targa 4 GTS would have keyless ignition, but it doesn’t. Just as Ferdinand, Ferry, and Butzi asked of their customers, you slide the key in—to the left of the steering wheel, of course—and twist. The direct-injected six snarls to life, jumps to 2200 rpm, and then quickly settles into a steady idle with a pleasant burble.

In Comfort mode, the engine is quieter than you might expect. You can hear it, but Porsche is not pumping artificial engine sounds inside the cabin like other manufacturers. All GTS models come with the sport exhaust system as standard, which opens valves in the muffler at higher engine loads to increase the sound; the first cracks open at 1800 rpm and the second at 3300 rpm. In Sport or Sport+ modes both valves are constantly activated, and the flat-six howls like Steve McQueen’s 917. It also pops, bangs, and crackles on overrun, which can be a bit much on Main Street.

Sport and Sport+ modes also deactivate the engine’s stop/start feature, which we’d prefer to be smoother. The twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter is torquey on the bottom of its rev range, strong in the middle, and intoxicating above 4000 rpm. In various driving environments, including two runs through the mountains, we averaged 17 mpg during our week with the car.

We have long praised Porsche’s PDK dual-clutch automatic for its sublime smoothness and deft shifting. The seven-speed transmission is perfectly geared for the Santa Monica Mountains. At the top of third gear, the Targa 4 GTS is traveling just over 100 mph, so its second- and third-gear ratios are perfect for roads like Stunt and Mulholland, keeping the twin-turbo six above 4000 rpm and in the heart of its powerband.

Magic in the Mountains

Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) also is standard on GTS models. The ride quality is firm, but it doesn’t crash over most road irregularities, and the rough edges are rounded off most chassis shocks. In Sport+ mode, which stiffens the suspension further, the Targa 4 GTS generated 1.03 g’s of lateral acceleration on our 300-foot skidpad, and its pace in the hills will leave most anything for dead. (Our test car also had the $2090 rear-wheel-steering system.) There undoubtedly are faster cars on large, long racetracks, but the Targa 4 GTS is breathtakingly swift on a tight mountain road, where it feels small, and its forgiving chassis and seemingly endless amounts of grip make it extremely easy to drive at a ferocious clip as you sprint from corner to corner. However, when you’re choosing your line, it is important to remember that the rear of the car is wider than the front.

It will push mildly in tighter bends if you overcook the entry, but just for a moment. Then the stability control will fix your mistake. The all-wheel-drive system and electronically controlled limited-slip rear differential work in harmony with Porsche’s brake-based torque vectoring, which will selectively brake an inside rear wheel to tighten your radius. Grip is quickly restored, no speed is lost, and the 911 is charging toward the next bend. Even boneheaded moves like a midcorner lift are shrugged off.

But the best part is that you don’t feel the car doing any of it for you. These systems all work in the background. You simply feel like a driving god with the car control of Parnelli, the focus of Senna, and the smooth inputs of Sir Jackie.

GTS models uses the larger brake pads and front discs from the Turbo models, with cross-drilled rotors and six-piston front and four-piston rear calipers, and the setup is impervious to fade. At the test track, the Targa 4 GTS stopped from 70 mph in 148 feet, and its braking distances slightly improved throughout the six successive runs. The brakes, which get red calipers on GTS models, are a little grabby in less frantic urban traffic, making smooth stops difficult. In the hills, you can smell them after a hard run, but there’s no fade even in fast downhill sections, and the 911 always has a firm pedal.

The Best All-Around 911?

Flaws in the 2017 Porsche 911 Targa 4 GTS are hard to find, but there are a few. With the Targa’s roof panel stowed, rough roads send a minor shimmy through the body. And with the top up, there’s the occasional creak and groan. The flex is extremely minor, but this is the first current-generation 911 we’ve ever driven that didn’t feel like a bank vault. Wind control with the top retracted also is imperfect, with some buffeting behind the driver’s head. The 911’s lack of equipment at its price point also can surprise. Our test car’s lack of keyless ignition and keyless entry were disappointing at this price point; some may even balk at the steering wheel’s audio-control-free layout.

Yet in many ways the Targa 4 GTS with the PDK is the best all-around 911, offering serious speed, style, and, when compared to the far more expensive Turbo models, value. And don’t let the dweebs in lowered Civics trouble you; they’re just jealous.

Specifications >

VEHICLE TYPE: rear-engine, all-wheel-drive, 2+2-passenger, 2-door targa

PRICE AS TESTED: $154,045 (base price: $142,970)

ENGINE TYPE: twin-turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 24-valve flat-6, aluminum block and heads, direct fuel injection

Displacement: 182 cu in, 2981 cc
Power: 450 hp @ 6500 rpm
Torque: 405 lb-ft @ 2150 rpm

TRANSMISSION: 7-speed dual-clutch automatic with manual shifting mode

DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 96.5 in
Length: 178.3 in
Width: 72.9 in Height: 50.8 in
Passenger volume: 70 cu ft
Cargo volume: 4 cu ft
Curb weight: 3654 lb

C/D TEST RESULTS:
Zero to 60 mph: 3.1 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 7.5 sec
Zero to 130 mph: 12.8 sec
Zero to 150 mph: 18.6 sec
Rolling start, 5–60 mph: 4.4 sec
Top gear, 30–50 mph: 2.4 sec
Top gear, 50–70 mph: 2.5 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 11.4 sec @ 123 mph
Top speed (drag limited, mfr’s claim): 190 mph
Braking, 70–0 mph: 148 ft
Roadholding, 300-ft-dia skidpad: 1.03 g

C/D FUEL ECONOMY:
Observed: 17 mpg

EPA FUEL ECONOMY:
Combined/city/highway driving: 22/20/26 mpg