C o m p l e t e  9 6 4

Interior

For a seasoned 911 driver, entering the cabin of the 964 would not present any significant surprises. The dash board remained largely unchanged, with the exception being in the details. The instrumentation for the first time included a large array of warning systems pertaining to all areas of the vehicle (automatic wing malfunction, fan belt, brakes, ABS failure etc- a total of 13 warning lights) which were all located on the rev counter and clock (as opposed to the Carrera 3.2, where the brake pad wear indicator etc was near the air conditioning controls. The instrumentation was also now backlit, with the oil pressure and temperature needles now pivoting from external points rather than from behind the main instrumentation cluster.

The air con control system was also finally updated from the "slide" control mechanisms of years gone by to the 944 climate control unit.

Perhaps the most significant change in the 964 was the introduction of a high centre console for the first time in a 911. In front of the gear shift lay two switches- one for rear wing manual override (only from 1990 onwards) and four wheel drive locking. The reasoning behind the high centre console was simple- the high console concealed the four wheel drive system of the Carrera 4.

Also, for right hand drive models, the front hatch release lever was finally moved to the drivers side (unfortunately the same cannot be said of the fuel filler cap or the engine compartment opening lever which continued to remain on the left hand side).

From 1990, an on board computer was also supplied as an option to the 964, as were passenger airbags for certain markets. In 1991 an interior light time delay mechanism was also introduced (this could also be readily retrofitted to pre 1991 models).

Front seats were largely unchanged from the previous fully electrical units that permitted a large array of adjustments at the press of a button. Rear seats remained the same until 1991 when the rear seat release buttons were moved from the inconvenient mount points to the rear tops of the seats. Rear seat belt mounting positions were revised to under the rear parcel shelf.

1993 was the first year that drivers side airbags were included in right hand drive models.

[TO MAIN MENU]     [TO HISTORY MENU]

New centre console extending the full length of the cabin added a modern touch to an otherwise excessively spartan interior.

Note the entry points of the rear seat belts.

The air con control mechanism lifted from the 944. Note the temperature dial on the far right of the screen which now has an external pivot point.

The front seat control mechanisms.