What's a Grand Tourer?

[epbrown]

In a recent debate with another Porsche owner, I said that 928 production was dropped in part because the 911 had reached a point where it's power, amenities, and ease of driving made the 928 redundant. A 996 Tiptronic with heated seats, PSM, ABS and the rest of the alphabet is pretty much a luxury cruiser, and the 993/996/997 are a lot closer in comfort, power and performance to the 928GT than my 911SC and 944 are to my 928S. The other Porsche owner was insistent that the 911 remains a hardcore sports car, but his argument mostly seemed to consist of "because Porsche says so." I've noticed that several mags have road-tested the new 911 with GTs like the Bentley or Aston Martin. So, what defines a car as a Grand Tourer? Does the current 911 meet those requirements? I think there are still sporting versions of the current 911, but for the most part I'd say they're GTs.

Emanuel

[id10t]

Think back to the original GTs and Carreras of the 356 era - More Power (and more complexity) in the engine, a larger gas tank, etc. Go fast for a long time/distance, and do it in style.

If your definition of "style" includes lots of comforts, *any* car Porsche has produced since the '80s could meet that definition, compared to the "specifications" of the original GTs. Heck, y'all get ac in the summer, heat in the winter (instead of year 'round), and a radio/tape/cd to listen to. Makes us lowly 356 coupe owners jealous.

[Dantilla]

A Lotus Elise is a sports car.

Not a black and white issue. The 911 is pretty grey.

[epbrown]

That is my thinking as well. Porsche execs have said in various interviews that they've upped the luxury appointments because beyond a certain price point, people start squalling ("Ninety grand and no electric windows or air conditioning? No cup holders?") I'd also say the market is skewing older and they're looking for softer cars. The 911 is still a bit smaller than the last 928s, but I'd say there are other grand tourers in its size range, and it's definitely larger than the original "type 911" cars. The biggest difference I see is that the 911 will never have the payload capacity of the 928 or most other cars classed as grand tourers. But things are definitely getting blurry. The 986 has more sports-car cred, almost.