New Porsche 911 Carrera S Named 2012 Motor Trend Best Driver's Car

Motor Trend award for most engaging and rewarding driving experience

ATLANTA--Aug. 23. 2012: Motor Trend has chosen the Porsche 911 Carrera S as its Best Driver's Car for 2012.  The Best Driver's Car honor is decided after a yearly competition among the best new or improved performance cars available in the U.S. market. 

"'Best Driver's Car' is the highest honor Motor Trend gives to a performance vehicle, which is the main reason it is so coveted across the industry," said Ed Loh, Editor-in-Chief of Motor Trend.  "Congratulations to Porsche and its 911 Carrera S for beating out such a diverse, yet uniformly excellent field this year."

"Being named 'Motor Trend Best Driver's Car' is a testament to the work of the men and women in Weissach and Zuffenhausen who are so passionate about designing and building our sports cars," said Detlev von Platen, President and CEO of Porsche Cars North America. "This accomplishment shows that the 911 still has the same magic it's had for nearly 50 years, as it continues to be both a great car to drive everyday on the road and on the track."

Motor Trend editors choose the car that most makes them want to head out to their favorite road and drive.  To achieve this, each contender is run through a battery of  dynamic tests, a 500-mile road trip, hard canyon driving on a closed course and finally, evaluation at the hands of professional driver Randy Pobst at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.  All of that information is then distilled down by seven judges, and after careful consideration, a winner is declared.

The test aims to go beyond the numbers, uncovering the one vehicle that offers enthusiasts the most engaging and rewarding driving experience possible. 

The Porsche 911 Carrera S, along with its opponents for the test, is currently being featured during Best Driver's Car Week (August 20-24) on Motor Trend's website www.motortrend.com and YouTube channel, www.youtube.com/motortrend.  Enthusiasts can follow all the track testing action that took place at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca and discover how each of the competitors performed by viewing 5 separate feature stories and 11 exciting videos.