The new 718 Gt4/Spyder are here!
Discussion
daro911 said:
gpgts said:
Very positive review of “GT4” Spyder with a few criticisms. I think sound issue is overblown. The car in video sounds excellent.
https://youtu.be/oFeoGx2G7IM
I would say a very accurate review and the one thing that's not correct in this video is the exhaust sound as recorded isn't like that inside the car its far more muted very one tone "bassy" and no pops & crackles on the downshifts A massive amount of the 3.8 engines character is missing especially below 5k rpm where switching PSE on off on hardly makes much difference and near the max revs the sound track kicks in but is so so muted compared to 981 and that was with roof offhttps://youtu.be/oFeoGx2G7IM
The switch from 6 cylinders to 3 on a trailing throttle is annoying to the point where I had to switch the stop / start off to cut that out too.
I have never turned stop/start off in 13 years of it being on my daily drivers so its a technology I don't usually mind at all but the way the 718 switches from 6 to 3 is not that pleasant and definitely noticeable to the point of being annoying
Steering feel gear change and clutch as described is exactly what I experienced on my 75 minutes test drive and the ride in standard mode felt softer than the 981's which was appreciated on our far from smooth roads especially as the grip and handling were fantastic in the newbie
I would add that the steering feel & extra weight on my 981 is my preferred choice out of the 2 Spyders despite many thinking because the GT department developed this car the steering would automatically be an improvement over the older car which even according to my PEC driver was how he felt about the new set up too
Overall as usual from Porsche a step on but on the minus side is the step up in list price which no longer includes buckets and imo a massive chunk of character removed by the new very muted sound track so much so that when I got back into my daily driver Mini JCW and headed for home the first thing that struck me was how "loud" my Mini sounded and I have never considered the standard factory exhaust on that car to be anything but a nice muted background tone
Ultimately the new cars feel more mainstream... whereas the 981 GT4 have a bit of a special project feel and personality IMO.
Edited by TDT on Monday 10th February 10:37
Twinfan said:
The 3.8 in the 981 Spyder doesn't feel as hamstrung as the GT4 for some reason, maybe because you don't feel the need to try and extract all the performance out of it - you're enjoying the experience more than the actual speed?
Agree with this and despite the 981 Spyders somewhat irritating over farty exhaust in sport mode compared to the GT4, the Spyder being a non GT Porsche has nothing to prove and is undoubtedly the better package.The 981 GT4 on the other hand, great car that it is is at the money it is nevertheless essentially flawed primarily because of its strangled and detuned non GT engine where it falls well short despite having a Porsche GT badge on the rear.
TDT said:
I also agree that this review is one of the most accurate that I've seen. It certainly matches my experience of the 718 GT4 and 718 Spyder vs my own 981 GT4.
Ultimately the new cars feel more mainstream... whereas the 981 GT4 have a bit of a special project feel and personality IMO.
Oh come on...Ultimately the new cars feel more mainstream... whereas the 981 GT4 have a bit of a special project feel and personality IMO.
Edited by TDT on Monday 10th February 10:37
The 981 is louder, yes. But an exhaust switch changes that. There's your 'personality' back.
The engine is better in the 718, no doubt.
thelostboy said:
TDT said:
I also agree that this review is one of the most accurate that I've seen. It certainly matches my experience of the 718 GT4 and 718 Spyder vs my own 981 GT4.
Ultimately the new cars feel more mainstream... whereas the 981 GT4 have a bit of a special project feel and personality IMO.
Oh come on...Ultimately the new cars feel more mainstream... whereas the 981 GT4 have a bit of a special project feel and personality IMO.
Edited by TDT on Monday 10th February 10:37
The 981 is louder, yes. But an exhaust switch changes that. There's your 'personality' back.
The engine is better in the 718, no doubt.
Technically yes the 718 4.0 engine is more advanced.... unquestionably. But that doesn't equal character for sound or power delivery.
But the new cars are more mainstream than the original every one is reporting this...lighter steering, clutch, gearshift, softer damping, more normal and liveable. Same thing happen 996 to 997 and then big jump to 991
People say they can easily daily the 718GT4, because its more like a normal car at normal speeds. 981 GT4 lets you know something is happened from first 10meters. I'm not saying that great daily capability is mutually exclusive from great character when on it also. I'm talking about it feeling just like a normal sporty car, rather that a sports cars
It will be interesting to see the 718 4.0 GTS reviews... i wonder how similar these car will go down the road... I already reported that a 718 GT4/Spyder with comfort seats is basically a GTS+, and that was before the 4.0 GTS was announced.
Car character is more than exhaust noise, and pure stats...you should know that.
e.g Why is the 1M more revered that the M2? E46 M3 CSL, more than E92 GTS or F80 GTS?
Edited by TDT on Monday 10th February 13:13
The price delta between buying a used 981 Spyder and 718 Spyder here in Canada is not significant. Looks is subjective but prefer the 718. Yes engine noise is important- I loved it on my 360 Ferrari but after awhile the pops and cracks on the overrun on my 981 GTS grew tiresome. The general public now have way less tolerance for loud exhausts I find.
I thought the video did a pretty good comparison but obviously would have been much better if they had the 981 GT4 there, as planned, to do the runs back to back. One thing is for sure, based on video both the 981 and 718 put smiles on peoples faces.
I thought the video did a pretty good comparison but obviously would have been much better if they had the 981 GT4 there, as planned, to do the runs back to back. One thing is for sure, based on video both the 981 and 718 put smiles on peoples faces.
gpgts said:
The price delta between buying a used 981 Spyder and 718 Spyder here in Canada is not significant. Looks is subjective but prefer the 718. Yes engine noise is important- I loved it on my 360 Ferrari but after awhile the pops and cracks on the overrun on my 981 GTS grew tiresome. The general public now have way less tolerance for loud exhausts I find.
I thought the video did a pretty good comparison but obviously would have been much better if they had the 981 GT4 there, as planned, to do the runs back to back. One thing is for sure, based on video both the 981 and 718 put smiles on peoples faces.
Yep - they are great cars. Glad they exist and people can experience them.I thought the video did a pretty good comparison but obviously would have been much better if they had the 981 GT4 there, as planned, to do the runs back to back. One thing is for sure, based on video both the 981 and 718 put smiles on peoples faces.
gpgts said:
Yes engine noise is important- I loved it on my 360 Ferrari but after awhile the pops and cracks on the overrun on my 981 GTS grew tiresome. The general public now have way less tolerance for loud exhausts I find.
I agree exhaust pops bangs and fakery is so last year unless they like a farty exhaust which gets increasingly tedious to those of us preferring more pure sound.The trend appears to be more induction noise and you only have to drive a 991.1 and then a 991.2 GT3 to appreciate the vast difference and fantastic variable addictive sounds across the rev range of the newer car.
Doubtful if the 718 GT4 and Spyder provides this.
Twinfan said:
TDT said:
But the new cars are more mainstream than the original every one is reporting this...lighter steering, clutch, gearshift, softer damping, more normal and liveable.
They are, but it's a fairly subtle change in the case of the GT4s. It's not night and day different IMHO.Load of people complain that the 981 clutches are too stiff and the steering too heavy? - more gym days, or drink more milk imo - but each to their own.
Twinfan said:
Comparing Spyders, the exhaust soundtrack will be very different. The 981 GT4 never had the pops and crackles anyway, so they are more similar.
Regarding the steering, preference obviously varies person to person. For me, the GT cars feel a little more direct, the 981 Spyder I found a little softer but the most direct of the 981 series.
I personally think the 718 Spyder is a more accomplished car in the actual driving fast stakes, but the 981 Spyder would be my choice for a sunny day cruise around. I also think the 981 is better looking.
Of the GT4s, I prefer the 718 version because I find the 4.0 engine much less strangled so it feels much better to rev up to the 8k redline. The 3.8 in the 981 Spyder doesn't feel as hamstrung as the GT4 for some reason, maybe because you don't feel the need to try and extract all the performance out of it - you're enjoying the experience more than the actual speed?
One thing no one has mentioned as a comp so far and this was the reason I sold my 981 Spyder is the clutch it’s was so heavy if you get struck in traffic it’s not nice. The 718 is so much lighter and in my view the most important improvement. Re Exhaust note the after market exhaust market will be full of options soon at reasonable prices. So that will help in that area. Regarding the steering, preference obviously varies person to person. For me, the GT cars feel a little more direct, the 981 Spyder I found a little softer but the most direct of the 981 series.
I personally think the 718 Spyder is a more accomplished car in the actual driving fast stakes, but the 981 Spyder would be my choice for a sunny day cruise around. I also think the 981 is better looking.
Of the GT4s, I prefer the 718 version because I find the 4.0 engine much less strangled so it feels much better to rev up to the 8k redline. The 3.8 in the 981 Spyder doesn't feel as hamstrung as the GT4 for some reason, maybe because you don't feel the need to try and extract all the performance out of it - you're enjoying the experience more than the actual speed?
TDT said:
Yep - they are great cars. Glad they exist and people can experience them.
The fact is you can’t buy a new mid engine NASP manual convertible with GT parts. No other manufacturer offers this to my knowledge. The PDK intro will change this as there are other manufacturers doing this, including Chevrolet now. I’ll be disappointed when they introduce PDK as I think this will help sell more Spyders and impact the rarity/uniqueness of the car. If you don’t know how to drive a manual, or want to daily drive it or it is your only car, or it allows your other family members to drive it, the PDK becomes more appealing to a larger market and therefore more vehicles are sold. The nice thing about the Spyder and GT4 was the manual also mitigated demand for the above reasons. One of the reasons the new corvette wasn’t desirable for me was that there is no minus, but also because they will be as common as lamp posts on a highway here. I live in a city that is the 4th largest in North America, with lots of high end exotic cars and have seen only 1 Spyder in the wild. Rare car here. I believe less than 50 in the country. I think PDK might change that given they have said they will build one for everyone that wants one and it will be an extended run. And I know some people who put a deposit down once the manual rumour was closer to being confirmed. And I’m not trying to slag the auto crowd, I just liked the uniqueness of the manual Spyder. It made the Spyder one of the only new cars that ticks all of the boxes in my first sentence. gpgts said:
TDT said:
Yep - they are great cars. Glad they exist and people can experience them.
The fact is you can’t buy a new mid engine NASP manual convertible with GT parts. No other manufacturer offers this to my knowledge. The PDK intro will change this as there are other manufacturers doing this, including Chevrolet now. I’ll be disappointed when they introduce PDK as I think this will help sell more Spyders and impact the rarity/uniqueness of the car. If you don’t know how to drive a manual, or want to daily drive it or it is your only car, or it allows your other family members to drive it, the PDK becomes more appealing to a larger market and therefore more vehicles are sold. The nice thing about the Spyder and GT4 was the manual also mitigated demand for the above reasons. One of the reasons the new corvette wasn’t desirable for me was that there is no minus, but also because they will be as common as lamp posts on a highway here. I live in a city that is the 4th largest in North America, with lots of high end exotic cars and have seen only 1 Spyder in the wild. Rare car here. I believe less than 50 in the country. I think PDK might change that given they have said they will build one for everyone that wants one and it will be an extended run. And I know some people who put a deposit down once the manual rumour was closer to being confirmed. And I’m not trying to slag the auto crowd, I just liked the uniqueness of the manual Spyder. It made the Spyder one of the only new cars that ticks all of the boxes in my first sentence. donutskidmark said:
I know it isn’t a very popular spec but I think the red roof looks good on a black car:
https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/porsch...
I've always liked the black/red combo too.https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/porsch...
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