You can find sports cars with more sex appeal and you can certainly find sports cars that are more brutish. You will not find a sports car with better overall balance than the Porsche 911, however, and you will not find a true high-performance machine that is easier to live with as daily transportation. Which one? The basic Carrera is a terrific sports car and we'd be quite happy driving one every day. The S just adds a little oomph. A Carrera 4 with the Tiptronic is safe and comfortable no matter the weather or the ugliness of the traffic; it's a great sports car for the daily commuter. The Targa is interesting, but the mesh doesn't keep the sun out enough. The Cabriolets aren't as pretty to our eyes as the coupes, until we drive them, that is. The Turbo offers the ultimate in performance yet easy to drive and docile in traffic; it's our choice when money is no object. Surprisingly docile, though less comfortable for daily driving, the GT3 would be our choice for track events. No matter which 911 you buy you can pat yourself on the back and be confident you made a good choice.

NewCarTestDrive.com correspondent J.P. Vettraino filed this report from Detroit, with Mitch McCullough reporting from Los Angeles and Birmingham, Alabama.