Where the rear-drive Carrera goes, the 4 and Targa follow – and with the 991.2 911 that means teaming turbo torque with traction.

The 911 Carrera 4, Carrera 4S and 911 Targa 4 and Targa 4S all remain with 44mm-wider rear guards compared with the rear-drivers, and the new 3D-effect tail-lights continue indented in the lighting strip for the all-wheel drive variants.

Standard on all models now is Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM), the adaptive dampers of which drop ride height by 10mm. Only the Carrera 4S gets a rear-axle steering option ($5490) pinched from the 911 GT3 and Turbo that assists agility and also cuts turning circle by 0.4 metres.

Porsche 911 Carrera 4 rear

The new turbo 3.0-litre range can now deliver all 272kW and 450Nm (Carrera 4/Targa 4) or 309kW and 500Nm (Carrera 4S/Targa 4S) to the ground without slippage that may afflict the rear-drive versions.

A PDK-equipped Carrera 4 wipes 0.4sec off the 0-100km/h sprint of the old 3.4-litre atmo, and at 4.1 seconds is now a tenth faster than a rear-drive Carrera. The Carrera 4S can comfortably get into the 4s now, a 3.8sec dash also a tenth faster than the Carrera S.

Porsche 911 Carrera 4 interior

A new steering wheel with Sport Response Button allowing a quick twist of different driving modes, and fresh infotainment screen and software, also follows other 991.2 models.

Porsche 911 Carrera 4 side

For the first time, Cabrio and Targa models also join at the pricing hips – previously the soft-top was about $5K cheaper than the quirky retractable metal-and-fabric version.

Porsche 911 Carrera 4 range