Porsche lobs swansong 911 Speedster pricing

PORSCHE Cars Australia has announced local pricing for its final 991.2 911 sportscar, with the limited-edition Speedster set to touch down in Australian showrooms in the fourth quarter of this year from $604,800 plus on-road costs.

While its pricetag will put it out of reach for most, the Speedster is still not the most expensive 991.2 911, with that title belonging to the ballistic GT2 RS and its $645,000 asking price.

Only 1948 examples of the Speedster will be built globally, a hark back to Porsche’s original 356 ‘No. 1’ Roadster built in 1948, from which the Speedster draws visual inspiration.

Revealed in production guise at the New York motor show last month, the Speedster borrows much of its mechanics from the track-focused GT3 and GT3 RS, including its normally aspirated 4.0-litre flat-six engine producing 375kW at a dizzying 8400rpm and 470Nm at 6250rpm.

The Speedster wrings 7kW more than the GT3 out of its engine, thanks to redesigned fuel injectors and a modified intake system, while the new stainless-steel sports exhaust reduces weight by 10kg.

Driving the rear wheels only through a six-speed manual transmission, the Speedster lives up to its name with a zero to 100km/h sprint time of 4.0 seconds, on the way to a top speed of 310km/h.

The Speedster rides on the same chassis used in the GT3 RS and 911 R, and features a 25mm drop in ride height over the regular 911, rear-axle steering, Porsche Torque Vectoring, Porsche Stability Management and adaptive damping.

Visually, the 911 Speedster sets itself apart from the rest of the 911 range with its convertible top compartment lid, which harks back to Speedsters of old and features a single piece of carbon-fibre reinforced plastic that Porsche says is the largest and most complex component that the company has used on a road car to date.

The compartment lid with its double-bubble streamliners hides a fabric soft-top roof, which folds behind the front seats in a Z shape.

Weight-saving materials have also been applied to other areas of the car, including the bonnet and wings which are constructed from carbon-fibre composite.

While the car’s front apron has been borrowed from the GT3, the more subtle GT3 Touring has been used as inspiration for the rear apron and spoiler. The front spoiler lip is unique to the Speedster.

Twenty-inch wheels come as standard on the Speedster, with stopping power coming courtesy of ceramic composite brakes with vented and perforated discs.

Australian examples will come as standard with cruise control and the front-axle lift system, which helps the low-slung Speedster overcome obstacles that otherwise might scrape the front spoiler.

Porsche is offering an optional Heritage Design Package for the Speedster, which includes GT Silver Metallic paintwork with contrast white for the front fascia and wings, as well as motorsports decals on the front lid and doors, with customers able to specify their own racing number.

Local order books are now open for the Speedster, which will arrive locally in the fourth quarter of this year.