Road & Track Tries to Break a Porsche 911 Turbo S

Most sports cars now come with the ability to do a dead start with “launch control” – a computer-assisted system that maximizes the car’s acceleration for that run. And the majority of cars limit how many such launches can be performed in a day — usually about two — because of the additional stresses put on the engine and drivetrain. But Porsche engineers have built the 560hp 911 Turbo S to such a high standard that there is no such governor on the vehicle and they claim the top-end launches are not an issue. In fact, one of the pieces of the drivetrain that undergoes the most stress, the clutch, is rated for over 100,000 miles in this car.

So Road & Track fired up a 2014 911 Turbo S and did 50 launches using launch control, achieving 0-to-60 times of close to 2.6 seconds. And the 911 came through like a rockstar, with one launch after another after another. All at top performance and without any problems. Now, if Porsche can just get their 911 GT3 to perform at this same level of reliability, a lot of Porsche owners will be very happy.