Conflicting opinions on C2 & C4
Discussion
Trying to find out the differences/pros & cons of owning a 996 3.4 C2 or C4 is quite possibly the most conflicting and frustrating task ever!
The figures given are so conflicting.
Evo magazine give a 0-60 of 4.6 for a C2 and 4.9 for C4
GT magazine gives a 0-60 of 5.4 for a C2 and 5.2 for C4.
in the same magazine it gives a 0-60 time of 4.9 for a C2. (all 3.4 996's)
It is also stated that the 4WD offers no real benefits over the 2WD. That the C2 is the better car to drive.
It also states in the same mag that the C4 is 'unstoppable'.
One must be quicker than the other?
I'm sure the way the cars drive are down to personal prefrences, but surely the C4 must be a better handling car, especially in the wet?
Is there a BIG difference between a C2 & C4 in the wet?
Can someone help me out before I go mad!
The figures given are so conflicting.
Evo magazine give a 0-60 of 4.6 for a C2 and 4.9 for C4
GT magazine gives a 0-60 of 5.4 for a C2 and 5.2 for C4.
in the same magazine it gives a 0-60 time of 4.9 for a C2. (all 3.4 996's)
It is also stated that the 4WD offers no real benefits over the 2WD. That the C2 is the better car to drive.
It also states in the same mag that the C4 is 'unstoppable'.
One must be quicker than the other?
I'm sure the way the cars drive are down to personal prefrences, but surely the C4 must be a better handling car, especially in the wet?
Is there a BIG difference between a C2 & C4 in the wet?
Can someone help me out before I go mad!
Drive them !
But before you do, remember that there are differences between 996 3.4 and 3.6, and those with PSM and without PSM.
The C2 is the purer car, and probably more suited to the odd track day. I have a C4 (which to be honest I chose because it was there and the price and colour was right) but now I have a C4 I do enjoy the way that I feel like a "driving god" in the rain. A C4 with PSM can cover ground on a typical english grimy day SOOO quickly...
Most of the time though I don't even think about whether the car is 2 or 4 WD. And remember that a C4 is not 4 WD all the time - it is "intelligent" and diverts power to the front as needed. The C4 still has a rear drive type feel, albeit more neutral than a C2.
If you are used to a Scoobaru, then you'll adapt to the C4 really quickly.
But before you do, remember that there are differences between 996 3.4 and 3.6, and those with PSM and without PSM.
The C2 is the purer car, and probably more suited to the odd track day. I have a C4 (which to be honest I chose because it was there and the price and colour was right) but now I have a C4 I do enjoy the way that I feel like a "driving god" in the rain. A C4 with PSM can cover ground on a typical english grimy day SOOO quickly...
Most of the time though I don't even think about whether the car is 2 or 4 WD. And remember that a C4 is not 4 WD all the time - it is "intelligent" and diverts power to the front as needed. The C4 still has a rear drive type feel, albeit more neutral than a C2.
If you are used to a Scoobaru, then you'll adapt to the C4 really quickly.
toppstuff said:
Drive them !
But before you do, remember that there are differences between 996 3.4 and 3.6, and those with PSM and without PSM.
The C2 is the purer car, and probably more suited to the odd track day. I have a C4 (which to be honest I chose because it was there and the price and colour was right) but now I have a C4 I do enjoy the way that I feel like a "driving god" in the rain. A C4 with PSM can cover ground on a typical english grimy day SOOO quickly...
Most of the time though I don't even think about whether the car is 2 or 4 WD. And remember that a C4 is not 4 WD all the time - it is "intelligent" and diverts power to the front as needed. The C4 still has a rear drive type feel, albeit more neutral than a C2.
If you are used to a Scoobaru, then you'll adapt to the C4 really quickly.
I bought my C4 for exactly the same reason..it was there, it was in good condition and good price..The C4 is indeed very sure footed. The only real issue with it is that its steering feels a bit dead and heavy compared to a C2 and is no where near as good as a Boxster.
The C2 is probably the better handling car if you know how how to oversteer etc but if you want a point to point car then the C4 is the way to go. To illustatre this Porsche maked the most "sporting" of the 996 range as 2 wheel drive, probably with the expectation that these will see track days. They make the ultimate road car with 4 WD which is the turbo.
I'll just have to drive both, though it's hard to get a feel for a car in such a short time.
That's why I'm after as much info/opinions as posible.
Given average driving skills, would it be easier to extract speed from the C4?
Would the C4 be miles ahead in the wet? But behind in the dry?
What are C2's like in the wet?
I'm leaning towards the C4 as it seems to offer better all round performance.
Thanks for all the info, it's been excellent!
That's why I'm after as much info/opinions as posible.
Given average driving skills, would it be easier to extract speed from the C4?
Would the C4 be miles ahead in the wet? But behind in the dry?
What are C2's like in the wet?
I'm leaning towards the C4 as it seems to offer better all round performance.
Thanks for all the info, it's been excellent!
TKD said:
I'll just have to drive both, though it's hard to get a feel for a car in such a short time.
That's why I'm after as much info/opinions as posible.
Given average driving skills, would it be easier to extract speed from the C4?
Would the C4 be miles ahead in the wet? But behind in the dry?
What are C2's like in the wet?
I'm leaning towards the C4 as it seems to offer better all round performance.
Thanks for all the info, it's been excellent!
No problems...but how many times are you gonna ask the same thing....go out and buy.......
As others have said, you will notice the difference in the way the C2 and C4 drive, and it will come down to preference and your needs. In my experience, the C4 feels less rear-end biased, and a little less lively. The one thing to bear in mind when you make this comparison is the confounding effect of the tyres. Changing from Pirelli PZeros to ContiSports has transformed the handling of my C2, especially in the wet. It may not be conventional wisdom, but I stand by the fact that ContiSports are far better suited to this car, and have outstanding wet weather grip.
Kevin
Kevin
I have posted this before but couldn't find it...i sold my psm equipped C2 facelift last summer...Over the 14 mths of ownership i had the opportunity to drive a friends similarly equipped C4 facelift.
There are some big differences, bear in mind that we had enough confidence in the cars and we knew the roads we were driving over,so we may have got more out of it than your average road test or test drive!
The C2 definitely feels the faster and in the dry if you know what you are doing,you can leave a C4, in anything other than very wet road conditions this is reversed.
The C2 communicates a lot more in the manner of a more traditional 911, you accelerate hard & the rear squats and the steering goes a little lighter and may chop a little over un even surfaces.When you come to a corner you brake hard the nose goes down you have some throttle through the bend,then when through the apex....back squats,you take off etc....when you get it right it is true 911 and possibly one of the most rewarding driving experiences out there.
The C4 is very different, the power is transferred between front and rear axles as required and the psm brakes diagonal wheels and cuts back the fly by wire throttle....set of in the C4,,,boot it,,,the car is flat,no rear squat,come up to the bend and brake hard,probably harder than you actually needed to,apply throttle and the car is flat all the way through,,,the electronics mentioned above take care of all the traditional weight distribution, ultimately this makes it feel more inert,and inspires a greater level of confidence in the wet...We tried dry runs and the C2 was off, in the wet the C4 was quicker,,i managed to get the C2 to go round wet bends as quick as the C4 after much practice,but this was with the psm activated,my passenger was not happy and i had to give the impression of calm rather than jubilation that we were still alive.
My friend is on his 2nd C4 and swears by them,he would have a C2 for fun if he didn't do in excess of 15k miles a year..As far as i am concerned, on the modern C4 cars the electronics take away too much of the driving experience,so i really wouldn't spend my money there...A 4wd TT may be another matter as the road performance is truly awesome (cheers Daz)but personally i will stick with 2wd rear engine Porsche,ideally with PSM.
You really need to drive both,hopefully the above considerations will help in your judgement..good luck!
p.s. i just re-read Kevin's post and he is right about tyres,the above C4 was on contisport, my C2 was on the new P-Zero Rosso.....Rosso king of the dry,,,conti make you feel like Schumy in the wet.
>> Edited by clubsport on Friday 2nd January 21:21
There are some big differences, bear in mind that we had enough confidence in the cars and we knew the roads we were driving over,so we may have got more out of it than your average road test or test drive!
The C2 definitely feels the faster and in the dry if you know what you are doing,you can leave a C4, in anything other than very wet road conditions this is reversed.
The C2 communicates a lot more in the manner of a more traditional 911, you accelerate hard & the rear squats and the steering goes a little lighter and may chop a little over un even surfaces.When you come to a corner you brake hard the nose goes down you have some throttle through the bend,then when through the apex....back squats,you take off etc....when you get it right it is true 911 and possibly one of the most rewarding driving experiences out there.
The C4 is very different, the power is transferred between front and rear axles as required and the psm brakes diagonal wheels and cuts back the fly by wire throttle....set of in the C4,,,boot it,,,the car is flat,no rear squat,come up to the bend and brake hard,probably harder than you actually needed to,apply throttle and the car is flat all the way through,,,the electronics mentioned above take care of all the traditional weight distribution, ultimately this makes it feel more inert,and inspires a greater level of confidence in the wet...We tried dry runs and the C2 was off, in the wet the C4 was quicker,,i managed to get the C2 to go round wet bends as quick as the C4 after much practice,but this was with the psm activated,my passenger was not happy and i had to give the impression of calm rather than jubilation that we were still alive.
My friend is on his 2nd C4 and swears by them,he would have a C2 for fun if he didn't do in excess of 15k miles a year..As far as i am concerned, on the modern C4 cars the electronics take away too much of the driving experience,so i really wouldn't spend my money there...A 4wd TT may be another matter as the road performance is truly awesome (cheers Daz)but personally i will stick with 2wd rear engine Porsche,ideally with PSM.
You really need to drive both,hopefully the above considerations will help in your judgement..good luck!
p.s. i just re-read Kevin's post and he is right about tyres,the above C4 was on contisport, my C2 was on the new P-Zero Rosso.....Rosso king of the dry,,,conti make you feel like Schumy in the wet.
>> Edited by clubsport on Friday 2nd January 21:21
TKD said:
I'm sure the way the cars drive are down to personal prefrences, but surely the C4 must be a better handling car, especially in the wet?
Is there a BIG difference between a C2 & C4 in the wet?
I drove 3.4 C2 and C4 back to back in the wet a few years ago. As already mentioned, C2 felt more immediate, lively, responsive. But C4 felt much safer. I figured I'd probably enjoy the C4 more often if I felt safer, so that's what I bought.
TKD said:
Can someone help me out before I go mad!
Not sure if we can help there...
Excellent replies, I'll test both, as I can see this will be the only way to truly find what suits me.
A C2 with PSM sounds fun.
The reason for so many qustions is; in the past I have been very compulsive with my choice of car, only to later regret my decision.
I want to make sure that when I spend 35-40k, I get what is right for me, with nothing left to chance.
Once again, many thanks.
A C2 with PSM sounds fun.
The reason for so many qustions is; in the past I have been very compulsive with my choice of car, only to later regret my decision.
I want to make sure that when I spend 35-40k, I get what is right for me, with nothing left to chance.
Once again, many thanks.
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