TURBO, CHARGED

13th March 2025

Porsche hands the (keyless) keys to Ben Barry for a taste of the 911 GTS’s electrified switch-up.

Each time Porsche’s cultish 911 has to adapt to new legislation, diehard fans, well, die a little inside. Some still even bristle over the switch from air- to water-cooled engines a quarter of a century ago.

Now the updated 911 is navigating another legislative speed bump – the introduction of Porsche’s T-Hybrid technology, news of which has been worrying the faithful since Porsche revealed its new model earlier this year.

They needn’t have fretted, because the new 911 Carrera GTS – Porsche’s first T-Hybrid model and the pinnacle of the Carrera range – doesn’t just seamlessly blend hybridisation into the 911 experience, it makes it better.

Driving the Carrera GTS out of Stuttgart’s city limits, I’m instantly struck by its synaptic throttle response, mid-range thump and the urgency of its top end, where two electric motors give the delivery a manic rush, like performance is being fast-forwarded. It’s so much stronger than before.

In fact, the new GTS reminds me of the 1974 911 Turbo in how it harnesses new technology and adds gobs of power while staying faithful to Porsche’s driver-centric values.
Then again, the Carrera GTS is not your typical hybrid – there is no zero-emissions mode, no plug-in capability and circa 26mpg represents only the tiniest of improvements. Rather T-Hybrid (for ‘turbocharged hybrid’) is all about massively increasing performance versus the previous GTS without negatively affecting fuel economy (which officially is 25.7-26.9mpg).

Towering total output of 534bhp is fully 60bhp up on the previous model, while torque – the pulling power you feel from low down – swells by an even greater percentage, rising 111lb ft.

Despite Porsche’s fuel-saving mission, the turbocharged flat-six engine actually increases in displacement from 3.0 to 3.6-litres, while the 1.9kWh battery over the front axle is about a quarter of the size – and therefore lighter – than the already small batteries Ferrari and McLaren deploy in their hybrid supercars.

To that, Porsche adds one electric motor nestled in the single turbocharger to eliminate lag and increase performance by 15bhp, and another tucked away in the paddleshift gearbox to chip in an extra 53bhp. ‘Gills’ either side of the front bumper and badging are the only obvious giveaways externally.

There are traces of hybridness in the very subtle /ba-zeew/ noises you sometimes hear on deceleration, and in how the turbocharged engine cuts out early and coasts to a silent stop at traffic lights if left in default Normal mode.

But select Sport with a little twist on the dial on the steering wheel and the flat six is an ever-present companion, chuntering away charismatically and mechanically like a 911 always has.

Just stroking it around town I notice the instant muscle, plus there’s real intensity when I wind it up on the autobahn and, well, performance simply everywhere – a sensation amplified by instant shifts from the dual-clutch gearbox.

If anything it needs more stretch at the top end, because when it hits 7500rpm it’s like someone just flicked the lights on at the disco, despite it feeling happy to pull more revs.

Maybe that’s a ploy to leave Porsche’s high-revving 911 GT3 with some breathing room.

Overall, though, this new T-Hybrid set-up is incredibly impressive, even more so because there are so few compromises. The entire kit weighs just 40kg, doesn’t eat into luggage space like similar systems can and is packed down so low that Porsche claims no significant alteration in weight distribution.

Indeed, this 911’s handling remains as special as ever. Snuggled down low in its perfect driving position, the GTS feels wide and stable at typical road speeds, its chassis a lovely fusion of control, compliance and precision steering.

Grip limits are sky high, but there’s agility if you dig deeper, partly thanks to standard-fit rear-wheel steering and a playful balance when driven more aggressively through tighter turns.

Not once do I notice our car’s extra weight, though this particular example does benefit from an optional carbon roof and carbon-ceramic brakes that both trim kilos, and it only provides seating for two occupants – the 911’s plus-two rear seats are a no-cost option these days, though it seems perverse not to tick that box seeing as this is such a rounded sort of sports car.
So the Carrera GTS is a very Porsche sort of hybrid, but if you really can’t stomach an electrified 911, you could always plump for the base Carrera, which sticks with an evolution of the previous 3.0-litre twin-turbo motor. It also narrowly ducks under £100k where the GTS soars to £135,834, which is over £20k more expensive than before.

No question my pick would be the Carrera GTS T-Hybrid though. I feared it might be a 911 with a Toyota Prius complex, but it turns out to be a Porsche through and through.

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