Carrera spot on

Just take a quick look at the newest 911, codenamed 991, as tested in Life this week. It looks just like before, especially with that iconic frog-like profile.

But the moment you see it on the road, it feels instantly new. The slimmer rear lights, clearer circular headlamps with a row of LED lights below them play to that effect.

It may look like a facelift of the old model, known internally as 997, but truth be told, it is evolution at its best, which is hardly surprising then.

In spite of that familiar shape, the package has been slightly enlarged. The wheelbase, for instance, has grown by 100mm. And if you thought you can now move around another three persons from place to place, think again.

Yes, space up front now feels airier and accommodates people of most sizes.

But the rear perches remain pathetic to sit in: you still sit down with your knees up and try looking for head or legroom which is hardly there. Even children are inclined to complain.

Equally pointless are the backrests that fold down to create a shelf rather than a usable boot _ like before. And speaking of cargo space, the most that can be taken up front is a not-too-big suitcase. That's the 911's usual tradition and its compromise.

The driving environment is all too familiar, as well. The classic panel dial set-up remains intact and the concept of the centre console has been lifted from the Cayenne and Panamera.

Fortunately, the switches in the 911 don't feel as fussily scattered as in those niche-diversifying Porsches, but you still need some lessons in rocket science to truly understand how all of those functions work.

Which naturally means that the 911 isn't free from ergonomic faults. The steering wheel _ even in its highest setting _ slightly obscures some information readouts on the panel. The same goes for the long paddle-shifters for the PDK automatic gearbox.

But all this aside, it's such a nice place to be, the 911. Like with all other Porsches, there's a great sense of bullet-proof quality in the car.

But here's the best bit of the 911 and, perhaps, the part to practically eclipse the 911's flaws entirely and make it a winner against any possible conceivable rival within the 15 million baht bracket of sports cars in Thailand.

It's none other than the driving experience, which isn't surprising again because the 911 was always about that.

The most notable improvements in the Boxer flat-six came with the 997, so Porsche has sat back comfortably and forwarded it into the 991 _ with tweaks in power outputs, of course, to keep potential buyers from moaning.

The basic Carrera, for instance, has a more powerful 350hp (despite a smaller 3.4-litre capacity) and the go-faster Carrera S 400hp (via an unchanged 3.8-litre displacement).

As you all well know now, Porsche's latest engines not only became more powerful but also more frugal, thanks to energy-saving devices like automatic stop/start. Plus, the 991 weighs around 40kg less than the 997.