The 2018 Porsche 911 Carrera T Is a Lightweight 911 Made for Purists

Feast your eyes on the lightest 911 on sale today.

byChris Tsui|
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Rejoice, fans of simple driving fun. Porsche has doubled down on the purist-pandering with the reveal of another 911 variant: the new Carrera T. As a throwback to the 911 T from 1968, the "T" here stands for Touring, not Turbo. It features many of the back-to-basics ingredients seen in the new 911 GT3 Touring pack and the legendarily overvalued—er, collectible—911 R, albeit applied to the regular Carrera and not the almost-top-shelf GT3. 

As a result, the Carrera T is being billed as the lightest 911 on sale today, is available with a manual, and will cost a relatively economical $102,100. Where do we sign?

Porsche AG

The Carrera T is powered by the same twin-turbo 3.0-liter flat-six found in the base car. It's good for 370 horsepower and 339 lb-ft of torque—but we suspect its intended audience will be more interested in its curb weight of 3,135 pounds. Thanks to lightweight glass used for the side and rear windows, fabric interior door straps instead of handles à la the firm's most hardcore GT offerings, and a deleted infotainment system and rear seats, the T is the skinniest 911 one can buy. Equipment being equal, a regular Carrera weighs 44 pounds more. (The rear seats and infotainment can be added back in at no additional cost, just in case you ever plan on actually using your 911 for anything remotely practical.)

In addition, the Carrera T throws in Porsche's active suspension system, sports exhaust, and Sport Chrono package as standard, while being lower than the base car by 0.8 inches. Rear-axle steering and a PDK transmission can also be had, as optional extras.

Porsche AG

On the cosmetic side, the Carrera T differentiates itself up front with a new front lip. A black-and-gray theme runs throughout the outside of the car, with gray mirrors, gray 20-inch wheels lifted off the Carrera S, gray badging, black exhaust tips, and a black stripe down the side that reads "911 Carrera T." 

Climb inside of the new Carrera T and you'll be greeted by seat centers finished in what Porsche calls "Sport-Tex fabric," the 911 logo sewn onto the headrests, and a shortened shifter with a Carrera T-exclusive, red shift pattern—just like a Type R Honda, more or less.

The 2018 Porsche 911 Carrera T will get from 0-60 miles per hour in 4.3 seconds with the manual, or 4.0 seconds with the Sport Chrono PDK. An exact top speed is yet to be determined, but Porsche says the T will exceed 180 mph with either tranny option. 

Starting at $102,100, look for the Carrera T to deliver motoring nirvana—tearing up a scenic, winding road near you very soon. 

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