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Porsche 911 Cabriolet Keeps Your Hands Warm with the Top Down

Is anything quite as pointless as owning a convertible car, only to virtually never drive it with the top down because the weather is either too hot or too cold? Making a climate control system that works well inside a closed car is straightforward enough, but the same unfortunately can’t be said for open-top vehicles. Porsche, however, has worked hard to ensure the climate control system inside the Porsche 911 Cabriolet can offer the same level of comfort even with the top down.

Having put its engineers to the task, the German automaker seems to have found a solution to the weather itself. The new Porsche 911 Cabriolet uses numerous sensors that measure real-time engine speed, vehicle speed, insolation, and the temperature of the car’s interior and exterior. All of that information is fed into the climate control system, which also cares about the state of the 911 Cabriolet’s doors, seats, and of course, the soft-top itself.

Using this data stream, which consists of a total of 350 signals provided in half-second intervals, the climate control system not only continuously calculates the optimum air temperature, but also the air outlet volume, and the air distribution in the open-top interior.

Porsche says that the benefits of this advanced system are especially noticeable at low speeds. “Even in the searing summer heat of the city, 911 Cabriolet drivers are surrounded by a pleasant freshness,” the automaker claims, before adding that in winter conditions, the car manages to circumvent the “warm feet, cool head” problem. This is achieved by distributing more warm air via the center air vents, ensuring you can feel warm without having air blown directly into your face.

“In changing weather conditions, common in spring or fall, the automatic climate control reacts to practically every cloud in the sky with a control adjustment,” Porsche says, though reminding us that while it may feel exhilarating to let the climate control system make just about any weather feel comfortable, we ought still to remember to close the top when it rains.

Kurt Verlin

Kurt Verlin was born in France and lives in the United States. Throughout his life he was always told French was the language of romance, but it was English he fell in love with. He likes cats, music, cars, 30 Rock, Formula 1, and pretending to be a race car driver in simulators; but most of all, he just likes to write about it all. See more articles by Kurt.