Porsche 911 Carrera (993) Review

Porsche was in trouble when the 993 arrived. Its front-engined transaxle models were being wound down, and by Porsche's own account the new 911 at times had to carry the business single-handedly. The company spent around 400 million marks and four years developing it, showed it at the Frankfurt motor show in September 1993 and priced the 1994 model year coupe at 125,760 marks in Germany. American deliveries began in the summer of 1994 as 1995 models, at just under $60,000. Tony Hatter drew the body: lower, wider front wings, flatter ellipsoid headlights and integrated bumpers, with the roofline practically the only thing carried over from the 964.

Under it, the M64 flat-six gained a stiffer crankshaft, lighter connecting rods and pistons and hydraulic valve lifters, and made 272 PS at 6,100 rpm, rising to 285 PS for 1996 with the VarioRam variable intake. It was the first 911 with a six-speed manual as standard, and the Tiptronic automatic stayed on the list. The bigger change was at the back: a multi-link rear axle on an aluminium subframe, developed from the stillborn 989 saloon, which took the sting out of the old 911's lift-off oversteer and improved the ride and cabin noise at the same time. Porsche quoted 5.6 seconds to 100 km/h and 270 km/h. The car still steers, sounds and sits like a 911, with the engine hung out behind, but it rides and grips like a modern one and is far easier to drive quickly than the 964 it replaced.

Specialists rate the M64 engines in both forms as remarkably durable, and most of what goes wrong now is age: the plastic cam covers begin to leak after fifteen or twenty years, VarioRam valves can stick on cars left standing, and the rubber in the suspension perishes. Stuttcars puts annual running costs at $5,000 to $12,000 or more depending on condition and use, which is old Porsche money rather than supercar money. The market has moved well past the sticker price: RM Sotheby's sold a 1995 Carrera coupe for $103,600 at Amelia Island in 2023, and the wide-bodied Carrera S and 4S cost more again.

The 993 would be collectable simply for being the last air-cooled 911, since the 996 that replaced it moved to water cooling. The better reason to want one is that it keeps the old car's driving position, sound and steering while fixing its handling and most of its discomfort. The cabin is a lightly revised 964's, the early cars lack VarioRam's midrange, and running costs are those of an old Porsche; none of that stops it being the air-cooled 911 to recommend first.