GT3 - buy a 997.2, or buy a 997.1 and save £20k?
Discussion
Gen 1, albeit the RS, has been over the past 18 months since I bought it, the most thrilling car I have ever owned. Just a joy and such a friendly feeling car, it always seems to be on your side. Buckets amazingingly comfortable as you can pad out and adjust for your perfect seat, including 2500 mile across the alps with V8 KSN.
Just cannot imagine that a mere 20HP can make such a difference, but then again not driven a Gen 2. All advice I had when I bought mine was not worth the extra 20 k.
Just personal opinion but I think you would need to be after 10ths on track for it make sense.
However in the end it depends how wealthy you are and i suspect if you are asking the question this is a consideration. Gen 1 and gen 2 surely amazing but not 20k difference amazing.
Capability aside the gen 2 997 gt3 is one of the best looking mass produced Porsches of all time. For that reason it deserves it's place in the half of fame, the fact that it is also one of the best drives is the icing on the cake. Gen 1 is no doubt a great car but will always now be in the shadow of the gen 2.
Worth £20k extra? The riviera blue one was.
Worth £20k extra? The riviera blue one was.
This might help, Alex knows his stuff!
http://sharkwerks.com/porsche/porsche-modification...
So you've settled on what is perhaps our favorite platform: the Porsche 997.1 GT3 / GT3 RS. At SharkWerks we've owned every GT3 variant/model to date but there's something magical about the 997.1's lighter-weight 3.6 pistons/internals and the way it revs versus the 3.8L Mk2 GT3. On this GT3, you have started with the most highly tuned sport suspension, brake and chassis set up from the factory, the most exciting flat-6 Porsche engine to date (plenty of power/acceleration), and with some terrific aero fine-tuned at the 'ring.
http://sharkwerks.com/porsche/porsche-modification...
So you've settled on what is perhaps our favorite platform: the Porsche 997.1 GT3 / GT3 RS. At SharkWerks we've owned every GT3 variant/model to date but there's something magical about the 997.1's lighter-weight 3.6 pistons/internals and the way it revs versus the 3.8L Mk2 GT3. On this GT3, you have started with the most highly tuned sport suspension, brake and chassis set up from the factory, the most exciting flat-6 Porsche engine to date (plenty of power/acceleration), and with some terrific aero fine-tuned at the 'ring.
GT3andy said:
Just personal opinion but I think you would need to be after 10ths on track for it make sense.
Actually it is the opposite - I found that the advantage of the 3.8 is mostly felt at the bottom end and not while trying to wring every last horse out of it. In a straight drag you are only talking a few car lengths over the entire length of the main straight at the 'ring. On the track the benefit is marginal except for a few places where you can get away with using 3rd instead of kicking it down a cog, but for drivability as a road car I find it better than a 3.6 (pulls better at the bottom end and is more linear in its delivery). The Gen2 also has stiffer springs and a better front end out of the box (the presence of PSM - which I now have to recommend turning off on track - means that it comes with less factory understeer), but as I said earlier they are little different once properly set up.On the subject of the seats - if you fit in the gen 1 buckets then you are golden and can't go wrong. Most people that I know don't though - if broad across the hips or shoulders... The best seat for comfort and for the widest range of people that fit it is still IMHO the 996 bucket. The next best is the 997.2 folding bucket. The other fixed 997 buck is usually okay for people who are built for speed, but if you (or any potential occupant of your passenger seat) are on the weights or the pies it is far from optimal. The OP will know when he goes car viewing if that matters to him. What I will add though is that if you have a Bell helmet/HANS bag, the folding buckets are the only way that it is going to be transported behind your seats. Stowing things behind the seats with those is a night and day convenience improvement.
Edited by DiscoColin on Wednesday 30th July 22:22
Well that was straightforward.
I drove a 7.1 club sport first thing, and (no offence to 7.1 owners here) I wasn't keen on the interior which seemed a bit of an old design, which I guess it is. The bucket seats didn't suit by bum either. So I cancelled the drives in the other two later in the day.
Then it was off to see a white 7.2 comfort, which was awesome & quite scary. I wasn't 100% on the white though, so carried on to see a black one, same spec but newer, with fewer miles & owners. It was the one I'd had my eye on from the start, but hoped I wouldn't like as it was naturally the most expensive. No ceramics, front lifter, chrono, nav, just what I was after.
They offered me low on my car, but full price on the GT3. Worth a try I s'pose. I made them a low counter-offer which I thought they'd say no to - and they did. I was secretly relieved as it's a shed load of cash, so I dug my heels in & said that was my best offer. The nice sales guy went off to see the sales manager, as they do, and came back with a deal £500 away. Close enough that I had to say yes really.
Picking it up Monday. Crap!
I drove a 7.1 club sport first thing, and (no offence to 7.1 owners here) I wasn't keen on the interior which seemed a bit of an old design, which I guess it is. The bucket seats didn't suit by bum either. So I cancelled the drives in the other two later in the day.
Then it was off to see a white 7.2 comfort, which was awesome & quite scary. I wasn't 100% on the white though, so carried on to see a black one, same spec but newer, with fewer miles & owners. It was the one I'd had my eye on from the start, but hoped I wouldn't like as it was naturally the most expensive. No ceramics, front lifter, chrono, nav, just what I was after.
They offered me low on my car, but full price on the GT3. Worth a try I s'pose. I made them a low counter-offer which I thought they'd say no to - and they did. I was secretly relieved as it's a shed load of cash, so I dug my heels in & said that was my best offer. The nice sales guy went off to see the sales manager, as they do, and came back with a deal £500 away. Close enough that I had to say yes really.
Picking it up Monday. Crap!
andywaterfall said:
Forgot to say, thanks everyone here for all the excellent advice. When it came to it though, there was no substitute for personal experience & preference.
Really looking forward to the Alps with PHN now!
Looks absolutely fantastic mate.. I look forward to seeing it in the flesh on the PHN trip in September, Many congrats.Really looking forward to the Alps with PHN now!
andywaterfall said:
Well that was straightforward.
I drove a 7.1 club sport first thing, and (no offence to 7.1 owners here) I wasn't keen on the interior which seemed a bit of an old design, which I guess it is. The bucket seats didn't suit by bum either. So I cancelled the drives in the other two later in the day.
Then it was off to see a white 7.2 comfort, which was awesome & quite scary. I wasn't 100% on the white though, so carried on to see a black one, same spec but newer, with fewer miles & owners. It was the one I'd had my eye on from the start, but hoped I wouldn't like as it was naturally the most expensive. No ceramics, front lifter, chrono, nav, just what I was after.
They offered me low on my car, but full price on the GT3. Worth a try I s'pose. I made them a low counter-offer which I thought they'd say no to - and they did. I was secretly relieved as it's a shed load of cash, so I dug my heels in & said that was my best offer. The nice sales guy went off to see the sales manager, as they do, and came back with a deal £500 away. Close enough that I had to say yes really.
Picking it up Monday. Crap!
Congratulations I drove a 7.1 club sport first thing, and (no offence to 7.1 owners here) I wasn't keen on the interior which seemed a bit of an old design, which I guess it is. The bucket seats didn't suit by bum either. So I cancelled the drives in the other two later in the day.
Then it was off to see a white 7.2 comfort, which was awesome & quite scary. I wasn't 100% on the white though, so carried on to see a black one, same spec but newer, with fewer miles & owners. It was the one I'd had my eye on from the start, but hoped I wouldn't like as it was naturally the most expensive. No ceramics, front lifter, chrono, nav, just what I was after.
They offered me low on my car, but full price on the GT3. Worth a try I s'pose. I made them a low counter-offer which I thought they'd say no to - and they did. I was secretly relieved as it's a shed load of cash, so I dug my heels in & said that was my best offer. The nice sales guy went off to see the sales manager, as they do, and came back with a deal £500 away. Close enough that I had to say yes really.
Picking it up Monday. Crap!
Car looks awesome! Are you going to give it a service and oil change etc before the tour? If so, I would recommend you take it over to JZM or PARR or someone who has experience of working on GT3's and get the geo checked too just to make sure all the wheels are pointing straight.
If you have time and you like a bit of noise, get yourself a Hayward & Scott exhaust too as they sound incredible!
Cant wait for the PHN tour myself now, another GT3 to chase
andywaterfall said:
Then it was off to see a white 7.2 comfort, which was awesome & quite scary.
Congrats sir, car looks great - the wait is the most painful part! #sleeplessnights One question... You mention the non bucket / comfort 7.2 was more scary than the (more hardcore) clubsport 7.1? Would have thought the rawness / observation would have been the other way round no??? Comfort spec (espec seats) generally take the edge off the ride...
Slickhillsy said:
andywaterfall said:
Then it was off to see a white 7.2 comfort, which was awesome & quite scary.
Congrats sir, car looks great - the wait is the most painful part! #sleeplessnights One question... You mention the non bucket / comfort 7.2 was more scary than the (more hardcore) clubsport 7.1? Would have thought the rawness / observation would have been the other way round no??? Comfort spec (espec seats) generally take the edge off the ride...
I don't know if the particular 7.1 I drove was a bit tired or something, or maybe I was over-awed by the whole GT3-ness (as it was my first drive in one) and wasn't extending it properly to the top of the rev range, but it just wasn't as quick as I'd been expecting. Whereas the two 7.2s definitely were, and then some.
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