The Porsche 911 has led an illustrious life for generations, spawning no fewer than 12 variants since its inception. And of all iterations, one of the most iconic is the Targa - a model conceived to provide the thrills of open-top motoring, yet with the comfort and safety of closed-top models.
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The seventh generation Targa is based on the 991 gen 911, and the first to sport an innovative roof concept that integrates the iconic safety bar - a feature that has been absent for the past three generations.
We speak to Grant Larson (GL) - the very man responsible for the design of the new Targa - at the recent local launch of the drop-top 911.
SGCM: What is the most difficult aspect in the design of the new 911 Targa?
GL: One of the challenges was respecting the Porsche heritage, and developing a car that is capable of carrying on the Targa tradition. We were also confronted with technical aspects. It was not an easy project where we simply take the 991 and create a Targa variant out of it. The new roof system, for instance, made it particularly challenging.
In fact, the previous 911, the 997, was used as the concept for the new roof design. But it only came to fruition on the 991 because the cycle plan of the 997 would have run out too early, and by then a replacement model was already in the pipeline.
SGCM: Since the roof system was conceived on the 997 model, were there any changes done to implement it on the 991?
GL: There were a number of changes we had to make. For example, engine accessibility and positioning of filler caps were different in the new model, which in turn presented more challenges in both the design and technical aspects. The steel part of the roof panel also became bigger on the 991.
The project started in 2006, and involved many intricate processes which took years to put together. First, we had to get the basic proportions set up, such as the size of the rear glass window and the roll hoop. When we found that the roll hoop on the concept was too thick, we had to trim it down. With the progress of the project these differences were brought down from centimetres to millimetres, and then down to the exact measurement.
SGCM: Were you allowed to make any amendments to the 911's basic design during the design of the new Targa?
GL: The intention was to focus on the roof section of the 911, and leave the rest of the car as it is. The Targa is based on all-wheel drive variants of the 911, which means the body is slightly wider than the two-wheel drive models. It also has the light band that connects the rear lamps. These are features that we want to retain on the Targa.
SGCM: You were responsible for the 911 Speedster, the 911 Sport Classic and now the 911 Targa. Can we say that you enjoy incorporating 'retro' design elements into new models?
GL: I enjoy, but I wouldn't use the word 'retro' because it boils down to respecting the Porsche heritage. For example, the 911 Sport Classic encompasses the heritage of the 'duck tail' found on the 2.7 RS.
The 911 Speedster, to me, is a simpler version of a drop-top 911 - albeit doing with just two seats. However, other than the two 'humps' at the back, there were few references to the original Speedster.
And these are just two examples of cars which Porsche has done in the past.
But for the other cars which I've worked on, such as the first Boxster (986) and the Carrera GT, they were always looking more into the future. They were evolutionary, sporting modern, contemporary design cues that were ahead of their time.
That said, I do enjoy old cars, as much as the influence from older models from the past.
