Harry Metcalfe needs little introduction. Successful farmer, founder of Evo, supercar collector, and an example of someone whose joie de vivre I’d like to emulate when I’m at a ripe old age. The latest addition to his stable: a 992 Turbo S, and as we will see, he thrashes this along some scenic English roads, takes in the little details, and determines why this plush four-wheel drive is a legitimate supercar.
True, the 992 Turbo S is bigger, heavier, more accommodating than its predecessors, but with the largest bump in power output seen in any single step of the 911 Turbo’s lineage, it really can’t be maligned as a GT anymore. If the muscular stance—10mm wider at the rear than the standard 992—doesn’t sway you, the 10-piston calipers now standard, active aero, and the outrageous 3.8-liter engine should. True, it has some luggage space and enough room for a modestly-sized friend in the back seat, but they shouldn’t detract from its purposeful image—they don’t diminish its performance.
Listen to Harry’s groans as he’s thrown into the seat after launching the 992 Turbo S (18:19).
It’s quite porky at 3,525 pounds, but 650 horsepower and 590 lb-ft @ 2,500 rpm means it streaks to 120 miles per hour in 8.4 seconds. It also goes slowly better than most performers in this price range. Significantly quieter than a 992 Carrera S, a reworked gearbox with better ratios for highway cruising, and a suppler suspension setup makes this machine particularly good for mooching around town. Livability is something certain highly-strung supercars leave low on their list of priorities, but the Turbo S is a singular entity in this respect; few cars blend ballistic speed and a refined ride as well as this.
A lot of detail through the wheel gives this 992 an “edge of GT3ness” that hasn’t been present in previous Turbos.
That sophistication and its ability to deploy its performance without heroics, spinning wheels, or a waggling tail might be why this car doesn’t get lumped in with the slightly smaller, lower, and less reasonable supercars that it can out-accelerate. There’s a level of restrained competence that the others aren’t quite interested in mimicking—assuming they can. A supercar in a sleek trenchcoat might be a self-defeating product in some eyes, but underneath the Turbo’s stealthy hide is a bonafide supercar that can run with the best of them, park with some dignity, and do the mundane tasks as well as some SUVs. That’s a list of abilities that is nigh-impossible to fault.
