Porsche says its flagship 911 has been thoroughly updated for 2009, but it looks nearly identical to the current model — the 997 generation in car-geek lingo — that’s been around for about four years now. Come to think of it, that car resembled the previous version, which arrived in 1998 and looked a lot like the mid-90s edition before it. You get the point.

No matter, because under the skin are enough drivetrain changes to make those same car geeks salivate. The 911 remains a performance benchmark, and thanks to some overdue changes inside, it’s more of an everyday driver than ever before. Don’t take that to mean it’s well-suited for the daily grind, though; this car was meant for the racetrack, so if you’re cross-shopping a similarly priced BMW 6 Series or Mercedes SL, you might find that, well, Porsche serves its coffee black.

As before, the 911 comes in a number of variants, which you can compare to the ‘08 model here. There are the rear-wheel-drive Carrera and Carrera S, the all-wheel-drive Carrera 4 and Carrera 4S, and convertible versions of each. Then there are the all-wheel-drive, glass-roofed Targa 4 and Targa 4S coupes. The 911 Turbo continues unchanged for 2009; for right now, at least, Porsche says the GT2 and GT3 come only as ’08s.

I drove a number of Carrera and Carrera S variants in coupe and convertible body styles at Salt Lake City’s Miller Motorsports Park and the surrounding mountain roads. Really, this job is harder than it sounds.

Source: cars.com