Designed by Benjamin Dimson through January 1986, it featured significant styling revisions over previous 911 models, most prominently the more integrated bumpers.

The 964 Carrera was the last generation sold with the traditional removable Targa roof until the 2011 991 (993, 996, and 997 versions used instead a complex glass-roof "greenhouse" system).

Porsche substantially revised the suspension, replacing torsion bars with coil springs and shock absorbers.

A revised interior featured standard dual airbags beginning in late 1989 for all North American production 1990 MY cars.

Engine design: Air/oil-cooled, horizontally opposed, dry-sump lubricated, rear-mounted Engine displacement: 3,600 cc (220 cu in) Cylinders: Six Bore and stroke: 100 x 76.4 mm (3.94 x 3.01 in) Compression ratio: 11.3 : 1 Fuel/ignition: Electronic fuel injection, DME controller, with twin-spark with knock regulation Crankshaft: Forged, seven main bearings Block and heads: aluminum alloy Valve Train: Single Overhead cam (SOHC)- one per bank, double chain drive Power: 250 PS (184 kW; 247 hp) at 6,100 rpm Torque: 310 N⋅m (229 lb⋅ft) at 4,800 rpm Engine speed limitation: 6,700 rpm The suspension was redesigned using coil springs instead of torsion bars, the first major engineering changes since the original 911.

It was based on Porsche's 911 "Carrera Cup" race car and harked back to the 2.7 and 3.0 RS and RSR models.

It featured a revised version of the standard engine, titled M64/03 internally, with a marginally increased power output of 260 PS (191 kW; 256 bhp) and a lightweight flywheel coupled to the G50/10 transmission with closer ratios, asymmetrical limited slip differential, and steel synchromesh.

The standard RS or heavier "Touring" variant included more creature comforts when compared with the Clubsport (thin carpets, some sound deadening, leather lined bucket seats, undercarriage protection with options such as a radio, power windows, and air conditioning).

[3] This engine was bored out by 2 mm for a total of 3,746 cc, and was also available in a more powerful competition version called the 3.8 RSR.

Engine Design: Air-cooled or oil-cooled, horizontally opposed (flat), dry-sump lubrication, rear-mounted engine Displacement: 3,600 cc (220 cu in) Cylinders: Six Bore and Stroke: 3.94 x 3.01 in (100.0 x 76.4 mm) Compression ratio: 11.3 : 1 Fuel/Ignition: Electronic fuel injection, DME controller, twin-spark with knock regulation Crankshaft: Forged, 8 main bearings Block and heads: aluminum alloy Valve Train: Overhead cam, one per bank, double chain drive Power: 260 PS DIN (191 kW; 256 bhp) at 6,100 rpm Torque: 312 N⋅m DIN (230 lb⋅ft) at 4,800 rpm The Carrera RS was not sold in the United States because Porsche Cars North America realized the challenges of the RS complying with U.S. federal crash / emission laws .

The plan was for Andial, the then equivalent of what is now Porsche Motorsport US, to convert these cars to full racing specification, however, due to lack of sponsor support, the Carrera Cup series was cancelled before it began.

The 45 cars imported to the US for this series were then sold, quietly without any advertising so as not to compete with the new RS America, through normal dealer channels.

The RS America featured a distinctive "whale tail" spoiler, a partially stripped interior with flat door panels, with fabric door pulls, (from the European RS) and carpeting along with a luggage shelf with storage underneath (1993 model only) replacing the rear seats.

Another major change was that the ABS could be switched off in the event of emergency braking or whilst the car was going backwards.

The standard Turbo model was modified to produce 381 PS (280 kW; 376 hp) with bigger injectors, more boost, more aggressive camshafts, and a lightweight interior with limited "creature comforts", making the Turbo S one of the fastest cars on the road.

With suspensions lowered by 40 mm, a front strut brace and manual steering, the Turbo S was geared towards performance.

[8] The Leichtbau requirement was achieved by deleting the under-body protection, soundproofing, air conditioning, power steering and rear seats, while further savings came from thinner glass, aluminium doors, a carbon-fibre luggage compartment and thinner carpets, the result being a reduction of 180kg over the standard Turbo.

[14] The Turbo S LM-GT made its debut at the 1993 12 Hours of Sebring where the car finished seventh overall and first in its class with the Brumos Porsche racing team (Röhrl-Stuck-Haywood).

From there, the car was entered in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, running under the guise of the Porsche factory team.

The team opened the year with a second-place finish at the 24 Hours of Daytona, before moving on to select rounds of the BPR Global GT Series.

The development work from the Turbo S LM-GT helped Porsche in creating the 993-generation 911 GT2 in 1995, which would be mass-produced and sold to racing customers.

Unlike the 1989 model, the 1994 Speedster was based on the new Carrera 2 platform and was not initially available with the "Turbo look" wide-body style.

The 1994 Speedster was designed to be a more focused "driver's car" and served as a hybrid between a 964 Carrera 2 Cabriolet and a 964 RS.

While it featured a softer suspension set up than the 964 RS, it offered almost none of the comforts of a normal 964 Carrera 2 Cabriolet, though power windows were standard and it was available with air conditioning and a stereo.

In addition, 20 special examples were finished at Porsche Exclusive's workshop at Werk 1 (Factory 1) with the optional “Turbo look” wide-bodies.

However, the intended engine (a 3.3 litre, 374 hp (379 PS; 279 kW) flat-six) could not be used due to cooling problems.

Various alternatives were considered during the car's development, including a water-cooled version of the traditional flat-six and two variants of Porsche's Indy V8 engine.