Last year, Porsche celebrated its 70th anniversary of building sports cars by showing two 911 Speedster Concept vehicles to the public. Now, the production version is celebrating its North American debut in New York. The 2019 911 Speedster is the first such model developed by the Porsche Motorsport department, but it is still immediately recognizable as a Speedster. The low-cut front windshield and side windows as well as the manually operated lightweight fabric top are characteristic for a Speedster model and make the car stand out immediately. The two streamliners atop the rear decklid made from carbon fiber are another design highlight rooted in the model's history. The interior of the 911 Speedster is characterized by a focus on the essentials of driving. Lightweight door panels with storage nets and door pulls emphasize the dedication to weight reduction. The standard black leather interior can be supplemented with red stitching for the dashboard and the "Speedster" designation in the headrests. With this option, the door pulls are also fitted in red, and the GT Sport steering wheel is decorated with a red 12 o'clock center marker.
The interior trim, which spreads to the gear shift knob as well as the door sill guards with "Speedster" model designation, is carbon fiber. Underscoring its purist focus, extensive measures of lightweight construction help keep the weight of the new 911 Speedster down. The front luggage compartment lid, front fenders and rear decklid are all made from carbon fiber composite material, while the front and rear fasciae consist of lightweight polyurethane. Standard Porsche Ceramic Composite Brakes (PCCB) save about 50 percent from the system weight with grey cast iron rotors. The fabric top does without any automated operation, save for the electrically-operated latch to lock and unlock it. Air conditioning is omitted as standard in the interest of weight savings, but can be added as a no-cost option if the customer desires. Finally, the six-speed manual transmission saves about 9 pounds compared to the seven-speed manual transmission in other 911 Carrera models, and almost 40 pounds compared to a PDK dual clutch unit.
With this clear focus on lightweight construction, the 2019 911 Speedster weighs just 3,230 pounds. The 2019 911 Speedster uses a chassis derived from the 911 GT3 models with a specifically-calibrated rear axle steering system and dynamic engine mounts to deliver a maximum amount of precision, stability and driving pleasure. 20-inch center lock wheels painted in Satin Black are shod with Ultra High Performance (UHP) tires to offer high levels of grip, while standard PCCB (Porsche Ceramic Composite Brake) delivers very powerful and consistent braking performance. By 2010, eight different production and special models bearing the "Speedster" name had been created. Exclusively for owners, Porsche Design has created a 911 Speedster Chronograph timepiece. The high-performance Flyback-Chronograph with Werk 01.200 movement developed in-house features Speedster specific design elements such as a carbon fiber dial, and a rotor modeled after the Speedster center lock wheel in both design and color. Genuine Porsche interior leather and thread are also used for the perforated black leather strap with red stitching.
The GT3 RS 4.0-litre was released as the 鈥榣ast hurrah鈥?of the 997 era, and it lived up to its reputation as one of the finest 911s ever built. Its legacy is protected, too: the 991 GT3 has already ditched the 鈥楳ezger鈥?in favour of a reworked DFI Carrera S unit, perhaps an acceptance from Porsche that the engine had reached its maximum capabilities in RS 4.0 guise. You can quite easily count over 30 different variants of the 997 before getting into difficulty, but don鈥檛 let that put you off the provenance of some variants in the generation. Despite this being the most mass-produced 911 to date, a selection of rare gems were made to keep you on the edge of your seat. Only 356 Speedsters were made courtesy of the Exclusiv department, for example, while only 250 of the brilliantly nostalgic Sport Classic were produced. Meanwhile, all 918 units of the 997 Turbo S 918 Edition were reserved exclusively for those who had paid a deposit on the new Porsche 918 hypercar.