2022 Porsche 911 Targa 4 GTS Quick Drive: Top-Down Driving, Perfected

A Porsche 911 is a lot like chocolate—most people love it, and even if it isn't always the first thing you reach for, it comes in some flavors you appreciate more than others. The supremely stylish 2022 Porsche 911 Targa 4 GTS is one of the best concoctions of 911 out there. The ingredients aren't unfamiliar; it's a 911 with a Targa roof, all-wheel drive, and GTS goodies. Combined, however, they make a truly wonderful and daily-service open-top sports car. Before you even ask: Yes, it's available with a manual transmission, too.

If you're on the hunt for the most engaging roofless 911—nay, the most engaging roofless anything—to drive, the 2022 Porsche Targa 4 GTS is high on the list.

The 911 Targa 4 GTS has a laundry list of a name, but it's an accurate one. Launched in June 2021 as one of the five members of Porsche's more performance-oriented GTS family, it of course features the famous Targa roofline if you prefer that over the standard cloth-top Cabriolet version. All-wheel drive is standard, as is the eight-speed PDK gearbox, though the seven-speed manual with its gear lever shortened by 10mm is also available as a no-cost option.

Other standard features include Porsche Active Suspension Management (PASM) sport suspension for a 10mm ride-height decrease, the Sport Chrono package, bigger brakes, the Sport exhaust system, center-locking wheels, and GTS-specific black exterior accents. The 3.0-liter twin-turbo flat-six sees a 30-hp bump over the 911 Carrera S to produce 473 hp and 420 lb-ft of torque.

Inside you find pretty standard 911 fare, with the familiar five-gauge cluster and a center infotainment screen updated to feature a smoother interface and larger icons. Special shoutout to whoever at Porsche specced this test car, though, because the Truffle Brown leather with Chalk-colored stitching is to die for.

No one will ever describe the Carrera S and 4S as bad to drive, because they're spectacular cars. But getting into the 911 Targa 4 GTS feels like everything is suddenly tightened up. It rides a little firmer, the engine is a little louder, the gear throws are a little shorter, and the car is a little faster. It's all simply brilliant.

Owing to its all-wheel drive and turbocharged hardware, power rolls on as a mighty swell. It pulls the 911 through straights and ebbs on command for wonderful midcorner balance. The brake bite is sharp but progressive. The clutch is stiff but deliberate. The quick steering is weighted perfectly and feels gloriously direct. Prior to the invention of modern steering assists and stability systems, it was easy to applaud the engine's rear placement for this phenomenon. But seeing as the 911 is bigger and heavier than ever, and has its engine mounted closer to the rear axle than ever before, this W goes to Porsche's electronically assisted steering system.

Adding to the Targa 4 GTS's dancer-like quality is the inclusion of rear-axle steering, a $2,090 option. It's worth it because the car feels shrunken further around you as it tackles turns. It also makes navigating tight parking lots a breeze.

Yet, the shifter is perhaps the most rewarding tactile point in the entire car. It's amazing what 10 fewer millimeters will do: The tidied-up shift action is heavy but smooth, slotting positively into the well-defined gates with a substantive clunk each time. It's a clear-cut sensation that ranks up there with the first arpeggio you nail on a freshly tuned piano.

Only one thing stuck out as strange during a weekend spent with the 2022 Porsche 911 Targa 4 GTS, and that was its refusal to lower the top when it was too cold out. Driving with the heat blasting and the roof down on a really cold winter's day is one of the exclusive joys of a convertible, but those plans were foiled.

An examination of the driver's manual indicates there's an automatic roof operation shutout whenever outside temperatures reach 32 degrees Fahrenheit. While it makes sense for the roof's longevity, it was still disappointing. So much for driver's choice. And although the PASM Sport suspension offers some incredible handling benefits, it makes the car ride pretty hard, even in the Comfort setting. It should really be called Comfort-ish. Or Comfort, Kinda.

This side of a 911 GT3, the Targa 4 GTS is pretty damn perfect. It's already the best-looking 911 convertible there is, and paired with all the GTS-specific add-ons, it's one of the best all-around packages Porsche offers.

The price for all this is expectedly high: Before options, the Targa 4S starts at around $160,000. After options—which include the aforementioned rear-axle steering and Truffle interior leather, as well as front-axle lift and 18-way sport seats—you're looking at a sticker north of $180,000. This was supercar money not too long ago, and if you don't know what you're looking at, the understated Targa 4 GTS could be any other 911.

That might bother lesser buyers, in which case they'd just get the 911 Turbo S, win all the drag races they encountered, and be done with it. It shouldn't bother you. You don't buy the driver's 911 to alert everyone else on the street of your purchase. You buy it for you, because a tactile sports car that hooks an easy grin on your face is a simple joy. It makes even mundane trips through town to pick up pizza fun. And during the days when it isn't too cold out, you might even put the top down to enjoy some sun.

Chocolate doesn't even have to be your favorite food, but chances are it offers everyone's favorite flavor. I know which one I prefer.