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"         We should all hope to age as gracefully as the Porsche 911. Over four decades and eight presidential administrations, we&amp;#039;ve seen its displacement climb from 2.0 to 3.6 liters, its torsion bars give way to coil springs, its horsepower as much as quadruple, and its primary cooling medium change from air to \u2014 gulp! \u2014 water. But the trademark rear-engine silhouette and driving experience...complete with hackle-raising flat-6 sound and legendary chassis feedback...are faithful to the original concept.   Another key element of the 911&amp;#039;s success has been (and continues to be) its numerous variants \u2014 yesterday, we had the legendary 1973 Carrera RS, the RS America, the Speedster, and the &amp;quot;S,&amp;quot; &amp;quot;T&amp;quot; and &amp;quot;E&amp;quot; suffixes denoting states of tune; today, we can tally up the Cabriolet, Targa, Carrera 2, Carrera 4, Carrera 4S, Turbo, GT2 and GT3. And now, the latest addition to this roster, the Carrera 4S Cabriolet.   Simply put, this new model wraps the wide-body looks and brakes of the Turbo, all-wheel drive and an electrically stowing canvas roof into a neat, $93,200 package. The Cabrio&amp;#039;s rear fenders stretch about 2.4 in. wider than a standard 911&amp;#039;s, and incorporate the horizontal slots aft of the wheels (so necessary on the Turbo to dump the intercoolers&amp;#039; heat), and the Turbo&amp;#039;s sizable dual intakes in the nose, lacking only the crescent-shaped intakes ahead of the rear wheels. Given the 4S Cabrio uses the normally aspirated 3.6-liter flat-6 developing 315 bhp, it&amp;#039;s hard to imagine a scenario where this Porsche would ever overheat!   Inside those widened fenders, there is more Turbo goodness in the form of its braking system, with enormous 4-piston Brembo calipers, framed nicely between the cranked spokes of Turbo-look 18-in. wheels. Tires are equally generous, 225/40ZR-18 front and 295/30ZR-18 rear, reflecting the tail-heavy weight bias.   Carbon-ceramic brakes are optional, but seem to be overkill for anything short of a track day.   This 4S has the most rigid convertible 911 bodyshell ever, notable since the basic structure is so good already.   Double-thick steel in the door sills, and reinforcements at the transition points of both A- and B-pillars (the latter strengthened by steel shafts that are both welded and bonded in place) result in a unit-body that&amp;#039;s 4.5 percent stiffer in torsion and 3 percent stiffer in bending than the standard convertible&amp;#039;s. Its curb weight of 3451 lb. is just 154 lb. more than the 4S Coupe&amp;#039;s, an increase Porsche claims should only pad the Cabrio&amp;#039;s 0-100-km/h (0-62-mph) time by a couple of tenths, from 5.1 seconds to 5.3.   The Cabrio&amp;#039;s electrohydraulic folding roof has been wind-tunnel tested to 209 mph (safe, since Porsche puts this car&amp;#039;s top speed at 174, same as the 4S Coupe&amp;#039;s), but now the 4S Cabrio driver can raise or stow the top while the car is in motion, at speeds up to 31 mph; a red hash mark on the speedometer face reminds you of the threshold. Actuation is one-button simple, and the whole operation takes about 20 seconds as the top performs its Z-bend fan dance, its articulated hard cover moving fore/aft for clearance and finally docking flush with the bodywork.   Our drive in southwestern Austria took place over the famed Silvretta Hochalpenstrasse that clings to the face of the storybook-perfect Tyrolean Alps, precisely the sort of playground the 911 was designed for. Tight hairpins and plunging downhill esses showcased its considerable grip and forgiving nature.   The all-wheel-drive system&amp;#039;s effects are virtually unnoticeable even in fairly aggressive road driving, as its viscous coupling transmits about 5 percent of power to the front wheels when the rears have traction, and up to a maximum of 40 percent when slippage is detected. Likewise, Porsche&amp;#039;s stability control, PSM, can be thought of as more of a safety net than a fun-spoiler \u2014 it intervenes only when you&amp;#039;ve really botched your line or overshot a corner.   It takes a high level of aggression to wrest the rear tires&amp;#039; grip of the asphalt \u2014 good, in that you can enjoy the precision and delicacy of the steering to place the car right where you want it, rather than worrying about being passed by your own taillights. Does the world need another 911 variant? That&amp;#039;d be a yes. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.roadandtrack.com/new-cars/first-drives/reviews/a9667/porsche-911-carrera-4s-cabriolet/>