At the recent preview of the 2009 Porsche 911 Targa at Garda Lake, Italy, one of the designer's pointed out that this sports car did not have a spare inch of fat on its body. Of course my mind immediately went to some of the better bodies I have seen, most of them in glossy magazines or on the big screen.

Well, put lean body mass to that to a vehicle and you're going to get what the new Porsche is all about. For starters: a glass roof that slides quietly into the trunk for open air driving; an LED band of lights that flank the rear; polished aluminum trim bars that skim the roofline and side windows that sail to the rear in a crisp angle. Yes, the Porsche 911 Targa is all about slim. And slim translates to aerodynamics. The 0-to-60 mph time for the top-performing PDK Porsche 911 Targa is 4.3 seconds.

Even with all that lean muscle, there's also room for shopping. The tailgate opens (by key fob) to 8.1 cubic feet of space behind the front seat. Of course, I managed to fill the back with a load of Italian purchases (groceries, jeans and tops). The 911 Targa, true to form, also has a front boot, in a nod to Italian style.

Coined an open-air sports car when it debuted for 1967, the early 911 Targa had a removable roof panel. It's name came from the Sicilian Targa Florio racing event. The Targa even passed the "hair test for ladies of the 60's" because it was a convertible with a protective shield.