The Complete Classic – Porsche 911 RS America
LESS IS MORE. To Robert Browning, who penned them, the words were pure poetry. To architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, whose Spar tan structures dot the skylines of the world’s major cities, they were words to live by. More than a century after Browning and a bit more than two decades after Mies van der Rohe, Porsche Cars North America has taken this axiom to heart and applied it to its latest niche-mobile, the RS America. “A pure-protein Porsche 911” and “A new 911 that redefines the pure fun of driving a high-spirited sports car” is how Porsche wordsmiths describe it. Pretty poetic stuff, guys. But why not just tell everyone that the best news about the 911 RS America is that it costs $10,000 less than the Carrera 2?
Before you reach for your American Express Gold Card, be aware that the RS America is not cheap. Base price is a sobering $53,900, which can escalate to nearly $60,000 as options are added.
Options? On a 911? Isn’t nearly everything in a Carrera standard equipment? Yes. But this is the RS America, a back-to-basics 911 that some might call a “delete option” automobile. You see, in order to trim 10 grand off the expensive, it is also sportier than the price tag and about 80 lb. off the overall Carrera 2. “It feels very mechanical, weight, Zuffenhausen has left out not rubbery,” said our Road Test Edi power-assisted steering, sound deaden- tor who called the RS “a real machine.” ing, armrests with built-in door cubbies PCNA’s new boss, Frederick Schwab, and rear seats-while including (at no says the company’s goal was to make extra cost) sports suspension with over- the road car feel a lot like the Carrera size wheels and tires, unique badges, Cup 911 race car, which became a car without a series when Porsche pulled out of the American championship
Those who find all of this vaguely reminiscent of the ill-fated 911 Club The American Cup car was pat Sport of 1988 should rest assured: This turned after the European Carrera Cup time PCNA has done it right. Not only racer, which has been thrilling race-go is the reduced-content RS America lessers for more than two years. And serves as the inspiration (or vice versa) for a road-going version called the Carrera RS. This homologation special is not sold in North America because it meets neither safety nor emissions standards. Too bad, because not only is it some 340 lb. lighter than the normal Carrera 2 (no airbags, door beams or power assists here), it’s also a tad more powerful (256 versus 247 bhp). And thus, a lot more, well, everything.
Nor does Porsche Cars North America have any plans to sell the model that served as the basis for its U.S. Carrera Cup racer. Stripped of all insulation and undercoating and most of its interior and fitted with an aluminium front decklid, this sang Porsche is some
200 lb. lighter than the Carrera 2.What’s more, its engine, which uses a different Motronic chip, develops 10 to
20 more horsepower than the Carrera (depending on whose dynamometer figures you believe). And yet, because the car has airbags, door beams and a , catalytic converter (the feds wouldn’t
permit PCNA to import European race ,: cars because the y could easily be ,,• : turned into road cars), this 911 is street 1I ‘ legal. Alas, it’s also more expensive because it has reinforced body welds and Turbo front brakes, among other things. That explains, in part, why PCNA chose not to sell it as a road car. But rather than brood over that let’s concentrate on what you can, namely, the RS America.
Available in only five exterior colours (red, white, black, silver metallic and midnight-blue metallic), it can be distinguished from the Carrera 2 by its RS logos and fixed whale-tail spoiler. Those with a keen eye might notice the 1 7-in.-diameter wheels. An inch wider up front, the pressure-cast alloys wear low-profile 205/50ZR-17 front and 255/40ZR:17 rear tires. Standard on the RS America, these beauties are a $1352 option on the Carrera 2.
Likewise, as a Carrera 2 buyer you’d be shelling out $620 for the sports chassis package that’s standard on the RS. It
includes a larger-diameter (22-versus 20-mm) front anti-roll bar, stiffer front and rear shocks, plus stiffer springs (911 Turbo-type up front, progressive rate sports-type at the rear). Our test car was equipped with a limited-slip differential, an $895 option on all Carreras as well as on the RS America. And, need I add, highly recommended on any sporting automobile.
What the RS America buyer doesn’t pay for is power-assisted steering, standard on both the Carrera 2 and 4. Porsche left it off the RS, not only to reduce weight (15.4 lb.), but to impart a more direct feel to the steering. So rather than the 18.5:1 fixed-ratio Carrera steering rack, the RS America uses the European Carrera RS and Carrera Cup Car’s non-assisted rack whose ratio varies from 19:1 (on center) to 24:1. It certainly is a different experience, but more about this later. Perhaps the most noticeable difference is the RS America’s interior, which is best described as businesslike. Although the seats are the same partially power-assisted buckets used in the Carrera (federal safety regulations prevent Porsche from fitting the lightweight, manually adjustable European seats), there are no rear jump seats in the RS America. Instead, there’s a large box whose two trap doors allow access to a small storage area.
Surprisingly (to us, but not to Porsche), the RS America retains the Carrera’s electric window lifts. Seems that the windows, the airbag-equipped steering wheel and the seats all play a part in the federal safety certification process. So they can’t be changed. However, Porsche has legally deleted the standard door panels, and what we find in their place are plain covers with no armrests or map pockets. And pull straps to unlatch the doors. These are a sporty touch and really do a lot to impart a Euro-racer flavour to the interior.
At a glance, the RS America dashboard looks identical to the Carrera’s dash: same big gauges ( among the best anywhere), large vents, conveniently located heating/ventilation controls and (optional) radio. Missing are rocker switches that control the power sideview mirrors and other accessories.
Also missing from the base RS America is air conditioning (it’s a $26 7 3 option). The control panel closely resembles the Carrera’s (which does have standard-equipment air conditioning), except that there’s no compressor actuation button. If you live in Duluth, you may never notice this omission, but in Southern California, you figure this out in a hurry. Although European Porsche owners may like it hot, do yourself a fa- vor. Buy the a/c and really enjoy all the RS America has to offer.
That includes spirited performance delivered by the same 247-bhp engine and 5-speed gearbox used in the Carrera 2 and 4. Although our test numbers tell us that the RS America is only 0.1 second quicker from O to 60 mph and 0.2 sec. quicker in the quarter mile than the Carrera 2, the slight reduction in vehicle weight makes the RS feel more lively. This perception is heightened by the sports suspension that gives the RS America a firmer ride and crisper handling, and by its unassisted steering whose directness and feel make driver and car seem as one with the road. One thing though: Unassisted steering certainly separates sedentary man from Nordic Tracker, especially when park-ing. It takes a fair amount of muscle to turn the steering wheel. But once under underway, steering effort lessens and at speed the lack of power assist is practically unnoticeable. In keeping with the RS America’s muscle-building steering, this Porsche also displays a firm ride. Let’s note, however, that it’s not jarring and, most important, it’s the one concession you make to sporty handling. Actually, one quickly becomes accustomed to the firmness of the RS Amer’ica’s ride, which is not as severe as that of, say, the new Mazda RX-7 or even the Nissan 300ZX Turbo. In fact, it’s not the tautness of the suspension you feel, but the stiffness of the sidewalls of those low-profile tires, which have a slight tendency to drum, especially noticeable when traversing California’s ubiquitous Botts Dots.
But to a Porsche 911 lover, even that sound (a kind of brrump) is reassuring. “It reminds you,” said the Art Director, “of how solid these cars are, like they’re carved out of a steel billet.”
Because of the RS America’s sports suspension, we expected go-kart-like handling that exacerbated that typical 911 trait: trailing-throttle oversteer. But, thanks to nearly 30 years of chassis tuning and big, sticky tires, you have to provoke this 911 to do anything unto-ward. And even if you do try to induce oversteer by letting off the throttle while turning, the car quickly regains its composure-unless you are far beyond the normal limits of adhesion. Only in severe transitioning maneuvers in the slalom, for example-does trailing-throttle oversteer become a bother. “There’s still a great big engine in the back,” our Roa bother. There he reminded us. “You have to pay attention and be prepared to abandon the run ataxy sign of instability. What can we learn from this? Simply that, although under most conditions the modern 911 suffers fools gladly, at its very high limits the RS America re- minds you that it’s still a 911.
Oversteer was common on the skid- pad (where the RS America managed a respectable 0. 90g) whenever the throttle was suddenly slammed shut or after the car struck a bump that upset its balance. But the Porsche quickly found its footing, once the appropriate steering wheel and/or throttle corrections were made.
Because most of us don’t spend our days pushing the envelope, pure numbers and on-track handling don’t mean all that much when you ‘re tootling through the tulips in one of the world’s best sports cars, the 911. In RS America trim, the car is even more exciting. And certainly a lot more distinctive, not just because of its appearance, but because thus far only 283 examples have been built. That should put it at the top of the collector’s list along with other Porsche niche cars such as the 1998 911 Speedster. But a mothballed classic is not what the RS America is meant to be. Spirited, even frisky, this 911 is a thorough bred designed to do one thing really well: run like a Preakness winner. For a lot less hay.