The Porsche 911 Carrera T is pretty much the perfect new 911 for the road. It has a manual gearbox, it sits on the entry-side of the range, and it comes with all the performance goodies you could really want. But what if you want to row your own and have a little more power or an interior that isn’t black? Previously, you’d have needed to make the substantial jump up to a GT3, but not anymore. In North America, the 911 Carrera S is once again available with a manual gearbox.
It wasn’t that long ago when you could option a manual gearbox in most Porsche 911 models. Then a great rationalization happened. See, it’s excruciatingly expensive to homologate every mainstream model with a manual gearbox and an automatic gearbox, and with PDK dual-clutch uptake strong, Porsche decided to silo. From 2025 onward, the enthusiast-focused 911 Carrera T and the GT3 would be the only regular production models available with a manual transmission. Everything else would be automatic.
This makes a great deal of sense in Europe, where automatic adoption rates are rising, drive-by noise restrictions are tightening, and fleet average emissions really count. However, North America’s a different place. Here, the manual gearbox isn’t standard; it’s a lifestyle choice. One that many sports car buyers are eager to make. As such, bringing the Carrera T’s six-speed manual over to the Carrera S makes a great deal of sense, especially with the wider Carrera S option list. Throwing in extras? Well, that’s just a bonus.
Let’s start with the headline figure: 473 horsepower, a huge increase over the 388 horsepower on tap in the Carrera T. Even with the natural torque interruption of shifting a manual gearbox without unleashing wrath upon its synchros, that’s a difference you’ll really feel. Especially with the row-your-own Carrera S not weighing a whole lot more than a Carrera T. Even with larger brakes, it only has 11 pounds on its little brother.
At the same time, equipment levels are up. Every stick-shift 2027 911 Carrera S will come with four-wheel steering, sport suspension, the Sport Chrono package, and extra-bolstered seats as standard – and the additions don’t stop there. The center-lock wheels come straight off the 911 Carrera GTS, the Sport Design front fascia and titanium exhaust finishers look brilliant, and you still get the lovely wood shift knob from the Carrera T.
Then there’s the length of the options list. Unlike a Carrera T, you can get a stick-shift 911 Carrera S with a tan interior, or a brown one, or a red one, or blue leather. More wheel options join the menu, along with Carmine Red paint and carbon ceramic brakes, so you can really spec one of these out how you’d like. There’s even a special interior package with plaid seats and white accents.
As you might have expected, the manual 911 Carrera S isn’t cheap. It starts at $169,450, a $10,900 premium over a base automatic Carrera S but a slight relative discount when you comparably equip a two-pedal car. If you add the Sport Design bumper, the rear-axle steering, the sport suspension, the Sport Chrono package, the Sport Seats Plus, and the titanium exhaust finishers to an automatic Carrera S, you’re already paying an extra $180 and can’t even get the GTS alloy wheels. In Canada, the stick-shift Carrera S starts at $180,800, including freight and air-conditioning tax, a $330 Canadian discount over a comparably equipped PDK model.
Ever since the current Carrera T launched, I’ve always thought of it as the 911 to have. It’s massively engaging at a far more approachable price point than a GT3, although it’s always had a few compromises. Limited interior color selection, being locked into grey wheels, the sort of stuff that matters a bit when you’re speccing out a brand new car in the mid-hundred-thousand-dollar range. In the grand scheme of things, the new stick-shift Carrera S doesn’t command an enormous premium over the Carrera T, addresses those quibbles, and adds a shedload of power. The only real tell apart from the GTS wheels and some small stickers is a little red S on the back. Sorry, Germany. The best 911 to actually live with might now only be available in North America.
Top graphic image: Porsche
PLEASE let this pour some cold water on the used Carrera T market. I would die happy to get into one of those – way more than enough for how I drive.
What’s with the weird, chromed strakes on the rear deck, adjacent to the CHMSLs? They look like a mistake to me. I’m sure it’s a great car to drive, but between the cost of entry and maintenance, it’s not for me. It looks so wide, I’m not sure it would make it through the opening for my garage.
The 911 used to be cool. These crossed over into “who fucking cares” territory long ago. The fact that so many of these radically expensive cars exist now is indicative of just how absurd the gap between “haves” and “have nots” has gotten.
I love the purple, but I’ll just keep driving my old 986 Boxster S 6-speed.
Yeah, I’d rather slap an aftermarket wooden shift knob into my 2.5L 986 than spend a fortune on a 2+2 that weighs more than an HR-V.
Great. More manual options are always welcome.
There’s a real trend building. The death of the manual has been predicted (almost willed) by all performance automakers but they either can’t seem to kick the habit (Porsche, BMW) or are bringing it back (Ferrari, in a sense).
All those exclusive hypercars coming with manuals is also a good sign. Hypercar stuff usually trickles down to mainstream models.
The market for manuals is probably small, but it’s vociferous and wealthy.
There’s a certain dealer owner in the US who owned a ton of Porsche stores and told them during a OEM dealer meeting that getting rid of the manual was a bad idea, and that there were enthusiasts out there who would pay MORE for a manual than an automatic and they should be doing that instead. They listened.
Is that the dude with the same name as a rental truck?
Nope
I would spec mine without the 4-wheel steering and the silly centre-lock wheels. And make it purple with blue leather please.
such a lovely purple
damn, 911s are expensive. Even if I had the money, I don’t think I’d spend it on one unless I had lottery money. Another car becomes unobtanium.
Lordy – $170K (aka almost what my current house is worth) to start for a 911 with a stick. Remember when a normally paid middle-manager type could about afford a new 911? I do. Adjusted for inflation, a mid-80s 911 was $100K. Still real money, but a hell of a lot cheaper than today.
And of course, they are combining the stick with lots of other expensive goodies and more useless grunt, so those of us who like our sportscars/GTs minimalist are SOL.
The Carrera T literally exists as your minimalist sports car without the “useless” grunt.
Except the market wants the grunt, so Porsche gave you a manual in the S. What’s the issue with having an additional option?
How many of them will end up back in Germany? Probably some speculators are waiting to sell it to someone in Europe.
I doubt they would ever be legal to drive on the public roads. Without KBA (Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt, federal motor transport authority) type approval, no chance. Part of KBA type approval, the vehicle (at time of manufacturing) must meet Euro 7 emission control regulations from 1 November 2026 onward. If Porsche hasn’t certified it for Euro 7, still no chance.
However, the owner can at least try to get the car certified at his own expense, which can run into thousands of euros. SAAB didn’t certify its last model, 9-5, for EU market before the bankruptcy. The 9-5 owners who bought them from the bankruptcy sales in Sweden or the United States spent lot of money in getting TÜV approval, leading to the KBA type approval.
The issue is with the ridiculous Euro 7 emission control regulations that many manufacturers protested as too excessive and doing little to reduce the pollution. Euro 7 is effectively designed to make ICE very extremely difficult to meet, especially for the smaller and larger displacement engines, without heavier PHEV and complicated turbochargers and emission control systems. This was intended to push the manufacturers into giving up the ICE and switching to BEV in contrary of the market trend and customer preference.
Mercedes-Benz no longer offers the V12 engine in the EU this coming autumn but does offer it in the international markets that don’t mandate Euro 7.
What happened to the manual 7 speed? Did they discontinue it? Or has it been discontinued for a while now?
I think it was harder to use, since the gate spacing was tighter. And having an extra overdrive gear isn’t something most sports car people care about.
I own a 7MT 991 and it’s actually an incredibly easy-to-use transmission. The gate spacing isn’t too tight, the ratios are well-chosen, and the weight and feel are excellent. Basically, it’s wonderful.
That said, it doesn’t need 7th gear. 6th and 7th are both overdrives and while you can comfortably cruise in 7th without lugging, it isn’t necessary unless you truly want to hypermile the car.
My guess is that, because this will realistically be a very low-production car, the potential impact on their corporate average fuel economy will be extremely low so they don’t need the incremental lift of the 7MT.
Thanks for the user info. I’ve personally never even seen, let alone touched a 7 speed. But at least you confirmed my suspicions about another overdrive being meh.
Manual non-GT 991s are surprisingly rare; I’ve never seen official data but owners speculate that it’s 10-15% for the 991.1, slightly lower for the .2, and much lower for the 992.1. And coupes are more likely to be manual relative to other bodystyles.
I’m a convertible guy so mine is a 7MT cabrio and one of my friends has a 7MT S cabrio; both of them took a lot of searching and neither of us has seen a similar car pop up since each bought.
Another car that looks fantastic in purple, especially in the topshot.
engaging at a far more approachable price point than a GT3 If you’re purchasing an airplane, maybe.
You can approach Area 51. About the same distance as this car.
Were I inclined to desire and also able to afford a new Porsche, I think I’d stick with the Carrera T. But even that 911, which is the best/most desirable 911 IMO, is now too heavy, complex, and expensive for me to really lust for it.
I think the current Cayman better captures the traditional Porsche ethos, unless you personally consider extravagance and complexity to be integral parts of that ethos. It’s considerably less than half the price of the Carrera S, just as good looking (some might say even a smidge better), and its performance limits are still high enough to cost you your license on public roads. The main/only downside to the Cayman AFAICT is that it’s only available with Porsche’s ‘automated manual’ transmission, and not a true manual.
Which is why an earlier, gently used Cayman is probably the way to go. 🙂
I’ve said this before on other porsche articles, but I for one am constantly fascinated that in the area I live in, an older Cayman is twice the cost of an identical Boxter, and sometimes more expensive than a similar year 911.
Since it was released years before, the Boxster is more plentiful vs. the Cayman, which probably depresses somewhat the resale value of the former and boosts a bit that of the latter.
JMHO, but the Cayman looks a lot better than the Boxster, and always has (all else being equal). The hardtop roofline sweeping down the backlight, surrounded by those semi-erotic haunches… the Cayman is almost sublime in overall form (I think the ‘regular’ ones look better than the highest-end, souped-up ones, but like everything else, that’s JMHO).
I’m surprised that of the same year and equivalent spec, a Cayman would have retained more value than a 911. Though I’d probably rather have the Cayman, I’d have assumed that most folks would prefer the 911.
Judging by the comments from most of the readers of this site, convertibles are not well liked, and might contribute to the lower prices on the Boxter. I for one, think the only sports car worth getting, is a convertible.
People have long memories of things.
Talk to boomers. To most of them, the idea of a vehicle lasting 100,000 miles was a hilarious idea, because what they had until the mid-80s. My folks think their 2016 CR-V is going to fall apart any day now. What stops them from replacing it is they can’t financially justify pissing money away any more.
Now think about convertibles (in particular) or roadsters. Even today there are a few that aren’t perfectly rigid, and even in the late 90s and early 2000s even a Ferrari wouldn’t perfectly pass the triangle test.
For those older generations, that memory of “how it was” is how they’ll continue to assume how things are, and you’d have to twist arms to get people to give something a fair shake.
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The other is perception vs. reality. A lot of people like the “idea” and “image” of a car, but they don’t like the reality it forces them to deal with. I’ve taken enough normal folks in my cars and most think they’re fine, but some really just want nothing but luxury and comfort, so a great (stock) exhaust with a flat-six revving up into the 7s (or to 9) is WAAAY too much for them. Some actively HATE it. They hate FEELING how fast the car is going. It’s the same people who come up and say I should’ve paid more money for an automatic roof on my Spyder RS. Uh… no, folks. It’s not a Mercedes SL.
Classic example of the previous point is me having to steer many who want a “classic 3 series” towards an E30 325is and not an M3. Not a lot of people actually want an E30 M3. They want to SAY they have one, but not have to rev the balls off of it. The ones I’ve tried to convince otherwise (because I knew them…) ended up hating the M3 every time, and went back to their Mercedes GLE or whatever. Now, there are folks I wouldn’t stop from getting an M3, but they’re the kind of folks who want the experience, not just to say they have one.
I’m in that group of convertible haters. I despise driving roofless cars and I hate the look of soft convertible tops. Hell I even plan to modify my datsun roadster with a custom fastback roof.
Its nothing to do with any “performance” question. Its because for me, top down is miserable, and top up is ugly.
Hey another manual Porsche that I’d love to own but could never afford
I agree with your sentiment and like your avatar. 🙂
It’s 4x my salary, how about you?
More than double mine
It’s a year’s salary for me, but nope, not gonna do it. My Inner Yankee Cheapskate nixed the deal I had in 2019 on a basic Cayman, and that was $100K cheaper than this.
Once again, Porsche is making the right options decisions that even the rest of VAG, much less the entire auto industry, just can’t seem to wrap their head around. And it’s profitable!
I want a hot, 2.3T Mustang with a stick still. Dear Ford, bring back the HPP EB!