993—last of the air-cooled.
In the mid 90s, Porsche had made the rather controversial decision to veer away from what was likely the single most on-brand aspect of the 911…air-cooled technology. Porsche’s iconic and oversimplified air induced cooling system was to be replaced by the liquid cooled system; introduced at the tail end of ’95 in the first generation Boxster. This new wave would prove to be a bit bumpy for the famed auto-Haus, as the first liquid cooled 911—the 996—was one of the most poorly welcomed 911 generations of all time. But, as they tend to do with the 911, Porsche stuck to their guns and as 996 focus increased, production of the final air-cooled 911 (993) dwindled down.
While the 993 would become the swan song to air-cooled technology, one trim level in-particular would usher in a completely new era of power and performance to the 911 line—the 993 Turbo. For the first time since its inception in 1975, the Turbo would now feature a sequential, twin-turbo setup to offset the lag of its 930—“Widow-Maker”—predecessor, and, for further taming purposes, an all-wheel drive system was implemented to keep all-four wheels firmly planted. With its new daily-drivable personality, the 993 Turbo quickly became one of the most sought after grand-touring cars of its era and still remains so today.
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