2026 Porsche 911 Turbo S First Drive Review: Faster, More Comfortable and Somehow Even Easier to Drive

• A 3.6-liter twin turbo engine and hybrid powertrain make 701 horsepower.
• All-wheel drive, carbon-ceramic brakes and rear-axle steering are standard.
• It's ridiculously fast, somehow still practical and can be had as a convertible.

Turbo with a capital T

The Turbo S' engine is based on the 3.6-liter flat-six in the 911 GTS, but it forgoes the former's single-turbo setup for a pair of two smaller turbochargers instead. Electric motors help the turbochargers spin up for quicker throttle response, eliminating so-called turbo lag. These motors also recuperate energy that can be sent to the battery pack. Something else worth noting: Because the Turbo's turbos are smaller, and therefore have less inertia, they can spin even faster than the one in the GTS. How much faster? 20,000 rpm faster, up to 145,000 rpm. 

The result of the new turbos, plus a lower compression ratio, new throttle bodies, a redesigned intake manifold, and myriad other tweaks is 630 horsepower at 6,500 rpm. If you think that's impressive from just 3.6 liters, Porsche quotes the torque output of this engine at 560 lb-ft from just 2,750 to 5,000 rpm. That ensures instant shove as soon as you lay into the throttle.

Getting all this power to the ground is a standard all-wheel-drive system matched to an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission. This is the same transmission, right down to the gear ratios, as the one in the GTS. The transmission's integrated electric motor produces a peak output of 80 hp and 138 lb-ft of torque. All in, the 911 Turbo S has 701 hp and 590 lb-ft that's ready to go at less than a moment's notice.

Keeping the Turbo S fresh

The Turbo adopts the new 911's all-in-one headlights (they house the daytime running lights, headlights and turn signals) and shares the GTS' somewhat controversial "gills" in its front bumper. The Turbo S has active aerodynamics at the front and rear and gets a nifty active front diffuser to further manage airflow under the car. Of course, there are new wheel designs, an optional aero kit and a new trim color, which Porsche calls Turbonite. 

Inside, the Turbo is better equipped than most other 911s. It's important to remember that Porsche considers the Turbo to be a luxury 911, so things like 18-way power-adjustable seats and a 12-speaker Bose audio system are standard. But this is still an outrageous performance car, so rear-wheel steering and huge carbon-ceramic brakes are standard hardware too.

The Turbo also comes with Porsche's ehPDCC, or electro-hydraulically controlled Porsche Dynamic Chassis Control (I prefer the acronym, too). This tech uses an electrically operated pump to push hydraulic fluid to the front and rear anti-roll bars, allowing them to stiffen or relax depending on your drive mode. This gives the Turbo S more compliance on the road yet nearly eliminates body roll during hard cornering on a racetrack. As a side benefit, this system also operates the optional front nose lift, which is quicker to activate than the old system, and a must-have on any 911. 

No leap of faith required

Pushing a Turbo S to its limits on anything but a racetrack would be ill-advised. So, Porsche arranged for the Circuito Ascari to be my playground to help me better understand what the new 911 Turbo S will, won't, can and can't do. Spoiler alert: It can do pretty much anything.

My everlasting impression is that the Turbo S is fast everywhere. Simply getting on the throttle as I exit pit lane serves as notice that the Turbo S is always ready to accelerate, and accelerate hard. This immediacy is the result of those electric motors integrated into the turbochargers. As soon as you hit the gas, the turbos are already spinning at the perfect speed to deliver maximum boost. 

My next impression is the sound, or to be more accurate, the noise the Turbo S creates for you in the cabin. It's not the evocative howl you hear in a 911 GT3, or even the mechanical melange you hear in the GTS. Instead, the Turbo S produces an intense and somewhat spooky mix of rushing air and undetermined industrial machinery. The sound is all business, but it does make the engine's proximity to redline difficult to figure out.

Equal to the Turbo's speed is its stability under brakes, hard throttle and everywhere in between. Its all-wheel-drive system is instrumental in this stability. Despite its speed, this makes the Turbo S feel approachable and forgiving. The standard carbon-ceramic brakes deliver immense and repeatable stopping power, and the Turbo S can be braked very, very late into a corner. Any rotation you detect won't last for long, and if you want to cancel it out even sooner, a gentle squeeze of the gas pedal allows the front wheels to pull the Turbo S neatly through and out of the corner. Of course, with 701 hp at the ready, you can kick the 911 Turbo S into a drift, but the all-wheel drive will sort the 911 out without much steering effort on your end. In short, the handling on the Turbo S is nearly self-correcting. While it's not the most nimble Porsche, it is arguably the easiest to drive very, very fast.

But after just half a lap of Ascari at full speed, it's clear the Turbo S' tires are paying a huge price. The forces the Turbo S inflicts on its tires are almost too much for those Pirelli P Zero Rs to take. They easily last the duration of a short track session like mine, but don't expect the Turbo S to be light and easy on any consumables, especially tires. 

Top down, speed up

Somewhat surprisingly, since I never see them, 35% of all Turbo S models sold are Cabriolets. While a drop-top is not an ideal start for a car you'd take to a racetrack, it does make one of the best platforms for enjoying a warm day and a great road. For me, the roads in question are along the Costa del Sol in southern Spain. These roads are, at times, diabolically slippery but also far smoother than the good roads with broken pavement I live with at home in Southern California.  

With the top up, the Turbo S is a bit loud inside. Even on a smooth road, there's a not insignificant amount of road and tire noise that fills the cabin. Traversing through one of the coastal cities in the region, the Turbo S proves stiff and doesn't quite feel like the luxury car Porsche claims it to be. But once I remember what this car is capable of, the noise and firm ride seem like only a mild trade-off.

Though not any wider than its predecessor, the new 911 Turbo S knows how to fill a lane. But thanks to some of the best steering of any car today, you can position the Turbo S in the lane, at any speed, with surgical accuracy, but it's still best not to glance in the mirrors to see just how close you got to that city bus or the rock wall. 

Breaking out of the city, the Turbo S can finally be unleashed, preferably with the top down. The weather is warm, the roads are smooth, the corners are flowing, and I am going fast with very little effort. Like I found on the track, the Turbo S is incredibly stable, friendly and predictable. The rear-axle steering helps bend the car around the tightest of hairpins, while the all-wheel drive does its best to keep things from getting squirrely. As devastatingly quick as this car is, it is still a little playful and is happy to indulge my inner rally driver on these pretty perfect roads. Passing slower-moving trucks is nothing for the Turbo S, and the longer I drive the Turbo S, the more confident I am in both myself and it. 

Knowing that this car can be driven in all weather conditions, in and out of city centers and then set loose on a racetrack makes its starting price of $273,000 seem a bit more reasonable. Opting for the Cabrolet bumps that up to just over $286K. Of course, even with the added standard equipment, Porsche does allow you to configure the car to your liking. Porsche sees exclusivity as a feature, so if you're able to get in the door and snag one of these cars, expect that price to climb by another $50K in individual options at least.

For many people, the Turbo S represents a perfect one-car solution, and I think it's safe to say that it is, at last, a supercar. It's just a shame that it's so far out of reach for most enthusiasts.