While the 2011 of Franfurt Motor Show is just around the corner, Porsche already announced public debut of the 2012 Porsche 911 (991) Carrera and Carrera S coupe for this event. Beside this, the car maker has already confirmed that a new seven-speed manual, a world first for a production car, will feature, but now it looks like the convertible version will get an intricate folding roof composed of both metal sections and traditional canvas.
Unfortunately, it looks like we will have to wait until early next year to see the convertible version. According to German Car forum, the roof of the sports car will be a combination of a metal folding roof section and a canvas covering the construction and the metal roof parts.
As we previously reported, the Ferrari California already featuring a folding hard-top, and the recently revealed 458 Spider going the same route, it looks like Porsche is getting in on the folding hard-top action as well.
The German website has revealed a patent US 7,607,715 B2 which holds the twist. These patent drawings allegedly filed by Porsche with U.S. and European trademark agencies have surfaced online, revealing a new design where the main roof section is composed of a sold material and the section around the rear window is soft.
“The wind screen would to the left of the image, the rear of the car to the right. The roof comprises of four panels with at least the first (no. 5 in the image) and fourth panel (no. 22 in the image incl. rear window) being sheet-like penals, i.e. metal panels. The suprise however is the canvas top layer covering the whole roof. This canvas layer is fixed permanently to the whole area of the first and fourth panel (no. 5 and 22), yet it’s fixed to the two panels in the middle only partially. This allows the canvas to remain flexible in that area during roof operation.”
If it’s so, the benefit is not only lighter weight, but the storage space necessary for the roof when folded will be smaller, thus, allowing Porsche to go with a sleeker design for the rear of the new 911 Convertible.
All details are expected to be revealed at the 2012 Porsche 911′s official unveiling at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show starting September 13, so stay tuned for more details.
Source: GeramnCarForum
