The Man Behind Porsche鈥檚 Greatest Modern Car
At the beginning of April, August Achleitner retired after 36 years at Porsche. He worked first at the chassis department, in the 1980s, then on packaging for the first-generation Boxster and 996-generation 911 in the 1990s. He helped bring the Carrera GT to life. But his most important role at Porsche was as chief engineer for the 911, the car that defines the company. An Austrian who grew up in Munich, Achleitner took over the 911 program in 2001, inheriting the car internally known as 996 during the launch of its second-generation refresh. He oversaw three new generations of 911鈥?97, 991 and 992鈥攅ach one bringing profound changes to one of the world's favorite sports cars. We didn鈥檛 talk about the 996 too much. The first job was fixing the looks. A few older 911 design cues returned, as did a familiar badge: Carrera S. The revived sub-model featured a larger engine, a 355-hp 3.8-liter in place of the old car鈥檚 325-hp 3.6, and a host of chassis and interior upgrades. The 991, introduced in 2011, wasn't vastly larger than the 997 it replaced, but it grew in significant ways.
Length increased by 2.2 inches, but the greater change was in wheelbase鈥攁 3.9-inch increase, one of the largest in 911 history. This served to move the rear axle three inches aft in the chassis, increasing cockpit room and high-speed stability but also making the car a little less rear-engined than it had been. The 991鈥檚 flat-six was carried over from the 997, but it received a few upgrades for more power. And for cost and efficiency reasons, rather than use a six-speed manual gearbox, Porsche chose to adapt its PDK transaxle to work with a clutch pedal, in the process creating the world's first seven-speed manual. But one of the most important changes brought by the 991 was the switch from hydraulic to electric power-assist steering. This was done partly in the interest of fuel efficiency鈥攅liminating an engine-driven hydraulic power-steering pump reduces parasitic horsepower loss鈥攂ut primarily for reasons of packaging. The move caused trepidation among enthusiasts, who feared the switch to electric assistance would rob the 911 of its famously textured steering feel. Achleitner wasn鈥檛 worried. "We did not have much discussion about the steering systems," he said.
If you look at most other companies, their turbocharged engines stop revving at about 6000 rpm, or even less鈥?A sports-car engine doesn't just move the car, it has to be fun. This is, in my opinion, one of the best sports cars ever," he said. "It's a really fast car, but completely easy to drive. I think you will not find the correct answer, because drivers are different," he said. "If I look at all our customers, really experienced drivers, or guys who go on the race track, they are the minority. For, say, 95 to 98 percent of our customers, the good drivability, this easy handling without any problems, is the right way. We offer variants that require a little bit more knowledge and driving skill. For these guys, we have a GTS, a GT3, or even a GT2 or a GT3 RS. Carrera S and GT3. And, let me say, even a little bit closer to the GT3 than the Carrera S. And then, I got a phone call from my Austrian colleagues. They said to me, 'Oh, Mr. Achleitner, you made a beautiful car with the GTS, but you forgot us.
Porsche's customer magazine, Christophorus, once called Achleitner the "keeper of the grail." The more I spoke with him, the more that title made sense. In his time as head of the 911, he accomplished the seemingly contradictory鈥攈e broadened the car鈥檚 appeal and practicality, while still keeping much of the model's character alive. The 911 is now more of a luxury/GT car than it once was, but it remains a sporting benchmark in the industry. Achleitner retires having just debuted the 992, the 991鈥檚 successor. The car is a refinement and soft evolution of established principles. Track widths and rear-wheel sizes have increased in the name of comfort and handling, and a new electric architecture allows for more driver aids and assistance systems. The 3.0-liter twin-turbo of the outgoing car has also been reworked, and the PDK gearbox now has eight forward ratios. Accommodations have even been made for a hybrid drivetrain, though Achleitner told me at our last meeting that no decision has been made regarding putting such a model into production. Now that he's retired, Achleitner has handed the reigns of Porsche鈥檚 most famous car to Dr. Frank-Steffen Walliser, formerly the head of Porsche Motorsport and the man behind the 918 Spyder. As for Achleitner, he plans to stay active with skiing and mountain biking. He鈥檚 also a motorcycle enthusiast: His Ducati V4 Panigale, he tells me happily, will pull wheelies in fourth gear.