RE: The easiest job in the world?

[vixen1700]

tvrolet said:

And I can tell it's a Carrera 3.2 and not an SC

Yeah, couldn't be bothered looking for a 3.0 SC image.

[richb77]

I have to admit that (to me) the last 10 years or so of the 911 they have all looked almost identical and more "facelift" than new model.

That being said I simply CANNOT imagine it looking any other way. Its an iconic style that is deservedly legendary.

Porsche tried to replace the 911 with the 928 and (I love 928's too) it was a bit of a limp squib in the replacement stakes.

Where Porsche are failing horrendously is that ALL of their models look like the 911. the Caymen, Boxter, Cayenne and Panamera all look like stretched, shrunk, pulled and inflated 911 and its more than just styling cues that that are found on other brands (although IMO Audi are guilty of being very unimaginative with styling variations).

My 2p worth

[needham]

Garlick said:

I can tell the difference and I'm not high? Perhaps some can see it and some can't, simple as that.

Some can see the Emperors new clothes and some can't.
Some can see the point of some of the installations in Tate Modern and some can't.
It's all a matter of choice.
I remember when the new 911 came out and thinking how up to date and modern the design was, but that was back in 1963, the same year I was rocking to " I wanna be your man" by that new band The Rolling Stones.
If you look carefully at the Stones and the current crop of 911 variants they're both showing a few old age wrinkles.

[Nick644]

One thing about the 911 is it looks very different from most other cars which tend to resemble square boxes on wheels. When it come to differentiating the various incarnations, the visual difference between the latest 991 compared to the 997, (especially the front), has become quite difficult.

If, like my wife, (who hates the 911 shape by the way!...sacrilege obviously!!), you have no interest in cars, then they are all much the same....though she loves the new Alfa 4C interestingly.

Range Rover, follows much the same design philosophy of the 911, as well as Aston Martin and even BMW/Mercedes. Incremental small improvements. Look at the iPhone or Mac computer. We all expect to be blown away in a similar manner as the first E type or Lambogini Countach or iPhone. Its never going to happen for so many reasons...too many regulations/sharing platforms/parts. Its why cars have become so reliable and continue to make great strives towards ever improving efficiencies.

[Alias218]

To say they all look the same is silly. Sure they are fundamentally similar, but then so are human beings and yet we don't all look the same. Each iteration adds a new edge to a proven formula. It's mechanical evolution! Robo-Darwin would be proud.

FYI, 993 for me!

[TonyHetherington]

Why on earth would you change it? They look great and they have been huge sales successes over the years. So continuing the theme is almost a given. When they start selling poorly - that's when you'll see a radical redesign.

[don logan]

Alias218 said:

To say they all look the same is silly. Sure they are fundamentally similar, but then so are human beings and yet we don't all look the same. Each iteration adds a new edge to a proven formula. It's mechanical evolution! Robo-Darwin would be proud.

FYI, 993 for me!

SOOO true! (though sadly each iteration`s edges seem to be getting further apart)

[MPC09]

Big Fat Fatty said:

But it's the different models on the same chassis that confuse me, you have GT2s, GT3s, Turbos, Carreras and Carrera 4s etc. etc. At a glance it is very hard to tell which is which without walking around the back of one to see what badge it's wearing.

For me, that's the lure of them that a true car nut will recognise a GT2RS from a Turbo to a C2 - whereas others will just see a Porsche.

[Big Fat Fatty]

MPC09 said:

For me, that's the lure of them that a true car Porsche nut will recognise a GT2RS from a Turbo to a C2 - whereas others will just see a Porsche.

I agree, but not quite in such a generalising way

[Grovsie26]

richb77 said:

Where Porsche are failing horrendously is that ALL of their models look like the 911. the Caymen, Boxter, Cayenne and Panamera all look like stretched, shrunk, pulled and inflated 911 and its more than just styling cues that that are found on other brands (although IMO Audi are guilty of being very unimaginative with styling variations).

My 2p worth

Totally agree with this. Nothing wrong with the 911 looking similar, if it ain't broke don't fix it and all that, but come on, the whole range is just an evolution of the 911.

[krallicious]

crofty1984 said:

Norwich? Just by magdalen street?
Can't remember what the pubs called. Ribs of beef maybe?

Wondered why that loked familiar!

[DJRC]

leon9191 said:

Mmmmm... 991 C4S

I really do love 911s, this ones mine!

Gratuitous showing off of my own car not withstanding, I think each model is different enough to have a style and desirability of their own.

Er...I have no idea if that is a 996, 997 or 991.

Sorry.

[CDP]

crofty1984 said:

leon9191 said:

Mmmmm... 991 C4S

I really do love 911s, this ones mine!

Gratuitous showing off of my own car not withstanding, I think each model is different enough to have a style and desirability of their own.

Norwich? Just by magdalen street?
Can't remember what the pubs called. Ribs of beef maybe?

I think you're right.

[Kong]

I don't have a problem with the 911 styling. Yes in regular guise it's conservative but that's the whole point of the 911. Since the switch to water cooled I think the styling has improved with each generation 996<997<991.

[predding]

richb77 said:

...it was a bit of a limp squib in the replacement stakes.

C'mon...Limp wrist or damp squib - you can't have both

I love 'em all and have over 100 - its just that they're all about 5" long in 1/43 scale - so can you tell me the diff between the 3.2 and the SC for an anorak here

[vixen1700]

predding said:

so can you tell me the diff between the 3.2 and the SC for an anorak here

Probably the hardest ones to tell apart IMHO, the steering wheel is the biggest giveaway.

[D.no]

DJRC said:

leon9191 said:

Mmmmm... 991 C4S

I really do love 911s, this ones mine!

Gratuitous showing off of my own car not withstanding, I think each model is different enough to have a style and desirability of their own.

Er...I have no idea if that is a 996, 997 or 991.

Sorry.

For the sake of Pistonheads members everywhere, and my own belief in mankind, I really hope you're not being entirely truthful. Surely it doesn't take countless hours, weeks, or months spent staring at 911's to enable some basic understanding of the differences. If, as someone obviously interested in things of an automotive nature you are honestly not cognisant of the visual differences between a 996, 997, or 991 then I fail to understand how you actually perceive the World on a daily basis.

This perception of the 911 (and cars in general?) could be expected from someone who see's cars as a slightly better alternative to walking and goes a long way to explaining the vast amounts of average dross that clutters our road networks, but I'm worried by your statement.

[weez123]

I dont know why people comment so much on why 911 models all look the same? Of course they will all look the same, this is a Porsche 911, through the years they make improvments on the standard body shape etc (some may say a sporty beetle, so not) . Of course they will never radically change the body shape as this will no longer be a 911.

[plenty]

I realise the headline was written for effect, but far from being the "easiest job in the world", it's actually one of the most difficult.

If each new 911 is simply a re-hash of what's gone before, and the designers' job were easy, why haven't other manufacturers had the same success? (They're all trying...BMW are probably the closest with the 3 series, each successive iteration of which also attracts criticism for looking like its predecessor.)

To come up with a new design that is leading-edge yet which unmistakably channels the past, which satisfies the purists and stays faithful to the rich Porsche 911 legacy yet broadens the model's appeal to new buyers...no, that's not easy. A clean-sheet design is far easier in comparison.

I'll draw an analogy with James Bond. Yes, James Bond (like the 911) benefits from a ready-made audience by dint of the legacy. At the same time, the legacy imposes many constraints against which James Bond's producers, and 911 designers, are forced to operate in order to stay true to their franchise's roots, as well as massive expectations to satisfy, and a huge amount at stake if they get it wrong.

There's a reason why the 911 and James Bond are the longest-lasting franchises of their kind. It's something that can be described as "fresh consistency", and it's devilishly hard to get right.

Edited by plenty on Friday 16th November 17:17

[drivin_me_nuts]

NGK210 said:

Can't buy in to the whole new 911 lookey-likey thing. When ever I see image shots like this, I think the chap is an Architect, has a tall designer clad elegant wife named Astrid, two young kids, drives to 'inspiring' offices in the local city, lives in a house that looks like nothing more than a series of white boxes stuck upon each other, commutes through forests to work and takes holidays in remote places that have Camels and Llamas for transport.

You see, that's ok. In fact, that's not a bad image at all to hold.

It's the UK equivalent that spoils it.

Lives in Surrey, drives through west London down the M4 to offices in Hammersmith. Eats at Subway, takes camping holidays in North Wales and his wife Tracey and the two kids Chlamydia and Speculum are ferried to school in a tdi Sline Toureg.

Pass me an Air cooled in Aegean blue please (yes, you know who you are, you promised it to me. I have NOT forgotten!)

Edited by drivin_me_nuts on Friday 16th November 17:09