Drove a Boxster GTS around town in Sport (and Sport + mode); mainly in Sport though. Made an absolute fantastic noise and in my opinion better than the GT3 I had a shot in recently (for sound). Very loud. Great. Compared to the 718 I drove back-to-back with the car it was night and day difference. The GTS sounded faster, more exciting and more exotic compared to what I can only describe as a Subaru engine in the 718. Anyone that tells you it is a nice sounding engine, or even acceptable in sound, is plain crazy. At $170,000 in Australia (for one that is decently optioned driveaway - decently, not properly optioned! there is a difference!) it shouldn't sound like a Subaru. Not so great was the fuel efficiency: I was averaging 29.9L per 100/km in the Boxster GTS. That is worse than my LP640 from memory. That 3.4L flat 6 sure was a heavy fuel user. Without Sport+ engaged it was a dull drive; felt more like a cruiser/boat then a sports car. Without that engaged it was noticeably slower too - I did 0-100km in 'normal' in about 5.2 seconds. Not fast any way you cut it. With it engaged (Sport+ and launch control) I hit 100km/h in 4.2 seconds, as measured by a GPS tracker. From my time with the car it felt just as fast as the new 718 Boxster S with Sport Chrono package when using launch control. No noticeable speed difference in a straight line; not sure how a regular Boxster S would fair though. The balance of the car was perfect, the steering well weighted (the wheel maybe in diameter a bit too big though); compared to the 718 it wasn't as sharp but just as well weighted. To be expected I guess from a small generational refresh, but still. I thought the PCM in the GTS was outdated and the interior a bit bland. The car did get far more attention then I thought a Boxster would ever get - a few onlookers and one or two who snapped a photo. The 718 has the better interior and far, far better PCM. In terms of looks from the general public the 718 had zero looks while the GTS had more - likely due to the more exotic sound and the better front end looks. The 718 steering wheel is a huge leap over the GTS in my opinion - it's best interior hardware feature. The GTS needed wider rear rubber, a longer wheelbase and wider body as I still feel the look is like a compressed exotic car. It just needs more presence in general on the road. Same goes for the 718. If there are people with a 981 GTS I would not upgrade to the 718. If you have the regular 'S' I probably still wouldn't upgrade. The only two benefits I saw in the 718 was the PCM and the slightly faster steering, both things not worth the depreciation and trade-in hit for the 718. I'm tempted to compare the Boxster to the 918 Spyder as it really feels like a mini 918. The interior space is similar, the layout is similar, the looks are similar (to a point) and the engine placement is the same - you get a real sense of connection between them despite the obvious differences. It could be that I'm new to Porsche but I wasn't expecting to ever think of the 918 when sitting in a Boxster, but I did. Not sure I'm getting my point across properly here but when I drove the LP560 and then getting into the LP640 I felt less connection between the models. The LP640 seating arrangement was a little different, the layout of the dash was different, electronics in a different place, etc etc. Maybe put it this way: I'd have the 918 in the shed for the fun times, and a Boxster GTS (or Spyder) for the everyday; you can feel the differences which are vast but maintain a sense of familiarity too.
Have you driven a S1 991 or S2 991? Would be an interesting comparison. I love the looks of the 991 series of the 911.
Driving a Porsche 911 hard and fast in the rain certainly livens things up. Not necessarily for the better though.
I have driven a 911 991.1 Carrera S and Carrera, but none of the 991.2 (twin turbo range). Between both Carrera's I see no reason why anyone would buy the standard Carrera over the 'S'. In Australia both are well above $200k with options, so not exactly small money. If I wanted a 911 Carrera it would have to be an 'S'. The performance on the standard car, in the 991.1 range, was not great and I would never want to spend $200k+ on a standard Carrera. Not worth the money from a: 1. performance perspective, 2. design perspective (not appealing to me) 3. luxury perspective. The Carrera S shares the same design but the quad-exhausts, power bump and the fact you have a bigger engine make a noticeable difference to me. The 981 Boxster/Cayman GTS have extremely similar performance in the real world to the standard Carrera, the same amount of luxury in the interior and both are far cheaper. I also got more looks in the Boxster GTS over both Carrera's and the Cayman. If I was to buy any Porsche now it would have to be GT3 as the addition of turbo's the the 718 I drove killed the emotion of the car and the feeling. I have heard similar things from a friend who purchased, and sold, a 991.2 Carrera S. I never got the chance to drive it though but all his comments on emotion, driving enjoyment and visceral enjoyment lined up with my thoughts on the 718. Quality of the build on Porsche's all look pretty similar to me; never noticed any difference between the 991 GT3, Carrera/S, Boxster/Cayman. The 918 had a noticeably better quality build but that was to be expected (e.g. paint looked far better, interior seemed expertly fitted as opposed to 'very well fit' in standard Porsche cars.). If anyone is in the market for a Porsche - a Boxster/Cayman GTS or Spyder/GT4 (respectively) would be my recommendation. If it must be a 911 anything with an 'S' or 'GTS/GT3' badge from the 991.1 range. The naturally aspirated flat 6 is a great engine.
Which 991 911 are you talking about? I can agree that the standard Carrera is boring and the Carrera S, while nice, isn't the most fun either. About as much fun as a Continental GT. The 991 GT3 is fantastic - the RS that much better. The Boxster GTS and Spyder [Cayman GTS and GT4] are fantastic cars with usable performance margins for the side roads; super good cars and quick. They are also the best sounding Porsche cars period (excluding the 918, Carrera GT). The Spyder/GT4 are also just as fast as an F430; the GTS Boxster/Cayman are not far behind either - go figure - so speed isn't really an issue.
The Carrera S is the one I drove.... Fully optioned. Didn't do much for me, even though it was incredibly competent.
That aligns with my views then; competent, but boring. The others I mentioned though are worth your time; I suspect your views may change behind the wheel of a GT3.
I drove a 996 GT3. I was unimpressed, but I'd just hopped out of a 355 challenge and F430, which are big boots to fill. It's all about the excitement for me, not the performance.
Fair enough. I haven't driven the 996 but I have driven the 997 GT3 (not RS) - I didn't like that car much. I prefer the F430 to the 997. Comparing the F430 and 458 to the 991 GT3 RS; the RS is more involving than the 458 and more exciting than the F430. This is based on track use only. The F430 sounded the best of the three. Now the 430 was an F1 car not stick. The new 991.2 GT2 RS will release relatively soon - that might be something to think about. I've considered putting a deposit down, and was offered to do so, but I'll wait until the replacement for the 650S comes out later this year I think for a decision is made. For reference next month I will be trying out a 458 Speciale with a few other cars on track - if the 458S is as good as I hope, that will be a car worth considering. I'm in the Lambo and McLaren camp more than Porsche/Ferrari, so I like to think my views are neutral when discussing Porsche/Ferrari!
Yes, [But don't forget IMS bearing issues] but i find my 996 simply lacks punch, pony-size horses, good buying ATM and a 911. I would be looking for a superior kW/kg, 296HP/3.4L is not enough, or maybe its the torque i am missing? Matter not, last week, she has a new owner...
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