Porsche's flat-six engine may not be air-cooled anymore, but it's still a jewel to behold. Powering the run-of-the-mill 911, the manual-transmission GTS, the giant-killing Turbo, and our the epic 911 GT3, that six-banger is as iconic as the ever-familiar silhouette of Zuffenhausen's rear-engine legend.
And while much has changed since the first six-cylinder engines rolled off Porsche's assembly line, purists will be glad to note that assembly of the 911 engine hasn't been entirely handed off to emotionless robots. Witness this video tour of Porsche's engine assembly line, a strangely serene place where expert technicians piece together the beating heart at the back of every new 911.
Like many prestigious sports cars, the 911's engine is largely assembled by hand. Automation handles the heavy lifting, and precision-built sub-assemblies are no doubt created with the assistance of high-tech machinery. But it all comes together under the well-calibrated hands and watchful eyes of living, breathing humans.
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That's as it should be. Cars like the 911 are built for human enjoyment, and while they represent an increasingly astounding level of high-tech advancement, at the end of the day they're machines built to evoke excitement in the gearheads who love them.
It's only fitting that these emotional machines are brought together by human hands.
This story originally appeared on roadandtrack.com.
from Car and Driver Blog http://blog.caranddriver.com
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