So let the 997.1 gt3 search begin...

[Digga]

evodarren said:

991.1GT3 does not appeal to me at the moment. I have loved my 997 from the beginning. The feeling and interaction is on another level. When im just cruising or touring I don't ne 50 milisecond gear changes

I have to begin by saying I love the 991.1 GT3 and RSs and that, from what I hear, the 991.2 models must be even better. Good as the 997 GT3 was, and it certainly has been a benchmark used by many of Porsche's competitors, if it had not evolved, every man and his dog would have criticised the lack of ambition and technical endeavor. The 991.1 cars are more than worthy of comparison to any contemporary competitor.

When I bought my 997.1 GT3, I didn't have enough cash to buy outright. I thought long and hard about spec, budget and options, which included the thought that, with a bit more deposit and debt, the gap from 997.1 (I'd had a 996 turbo, so fancied a change, otherwise a 996 GT3 would have been in the running too), right through to 991.1 GT3 was not that huge. You were talking £80 to £120k, min-max which, with flexible finance and a generous application of man-maths is not massively different (per month), given the bigger budget gets you OEM warranty too.

I did the Silverstone PEC GT Experience, driving the 991.1 cars, with as open a mind as possible. I surprised myself at 'getting' and enjoying the PDK almost instantly - it's great and it suits the cars, as does the rear-wheel steering, which even a ham-fisted fool such as me could actually appreciate.

However (and this is a very, very personal and subjective matter) I felt the older cars more quirky and special and the newer cars to be more impressive. The 997 interior now looks pretty dated, and quite plain, but I like that, especially in Clubsport trim, because it does look and feel more 'racecar' no-nonsense.

[Slippydiff]

Digga said:

I did the Silverstone PEC GT Experience, driving the 991.1 cars, with as open a mind as possible. I surprised myself at 'getting' and enjoying the PDK almost instantly - it's great and it suits the cars, as does the rear-wheel steering

With you there Digs. Sure, there's fun to be derived from (and skills honed using) a manual 'box, but it really isn't the be all and end all, there's still lots of other stuff to be doing behind the wheel to keep you busy !! That is unless your braking, steering and use of the throttle are all perfect (along with your roadcraft), which judging by the way some portray themselves on here, they clearly should be driving for the Mercedes F1 team, the Hyundai WRC team or one of host of the other top line teams campaigning at World Championship level...

[Kettmark]

evodarren said:

991.1GT3 does not appeal to me at the moment. I have loved my 997 from the beginning. The feeling and interaction is on another level. When im just cruising or touring I don't need 50 milisecond gear changes

Edited by evodarren on Thursday 8th November 15:38

Tell us about your car Darren. You mentioned it may be for sale...

[Kettmark]

evodarren said:

991.1GT3 does not appeal to me at the moment. I have loved my 997 from the beginning. The feeling and interaction is on another level. When im just cruising or touring I don't need 50 milisecond gear changes

Edited by evodarren on Thursday 8th November 15:38

Tell us about your car Darren. You mentioned it may be for sale...

[dimots]

I’m not the best driver but I took a new gt3 rs round a track recently after a 997 gt2 rs and the older car was way more fun. Doesn’t mean much maybe, but if your skills are as weak as mine the manual go-kartiness of the simpler car wins the day.

[evodarren]

Kettmark said:

evodarren said:

991.1GT3 does not appeal to me at the moment. I have loved my 997 from the beginning. The feeling and interaction is on another level. When im just cruising or touring I don't need 50 milisecond gear changes

Edited by evodarren on Thursday 8th November 15:38

Tell us about your car Darren. You mentioned it may be for sale...

Best car I’ve ever owned

[Kettmark]

evodarren said:

Colour? Spec? For sale?!

[evodarren]

Kettmark said:

Colour? Spec? For sale?!

As I said been a great car
Spec is Carrera white, gloss black wheels, carbon brakes, sports chrono,pcm2, 18 way electric sports seat. Extended leather : dash air vents, whole interia. OPC warranty until November 2020, 36,000 miles. 2 owners

[Kettmark]

Lovely jubbley.

[Digga]

Slippydiff said:

With you there Digs. Sure, there's fun to be derived from (and skills honed using) a manual 'box, but it really isn't the be all and end all, there's still lots of other stuff to be doing behind the wheel to keep you busy !! That is unless your braking, steering and use of the throttle are all perfect (along with your roadcraft), which judging by the way some portray themselves on here, they clearly should be driving for the Mercedes F1 team, the Hyundai WRC team or one of host of the other top line teams campaigning at World Championship level...

dimots said:

I’m not the best driver but I took a new gt3 rs round a track recently after a 997 gt2 rs and the older car was way more fun. Doesn’t mean much maybe, but if your skills are as weak as mine the manual go-kartiness of the simpler car wins the day.

Apropos of the above. Driving the 991.1 GT3, I found I was able to get an appreciation of the chassis and balance - a feel for where limits might be, even if I wasn't at them much of the time. By contrast, although easily faster - it was surprising just how much 'more' it felt - I found the RS unnerving, because I couldn't re-calibrate my own instincts and reactions. I think it might be a car I could go very, very fast in, without understanding why, in a similar way to something, say, like a McLaren.

I drove the PEC 997 GT2 there too and it terrified me. I thought my re-mapped 996 turbo had boost, but that thing was epic.

[RC1]

so ive just spent a good hour with Adam at jzm (who serviced my 964 c4 many moons ago) and he helped debunk a few myths and more importantly, has helped me inform myself about why my search will now be focused on a CS

having now sat inside a lovely guards red CS its clear that the CS is definitely the one i want. everything about it was nigh on perfect at least from an ergonomic and seating position perspective. i know its not a fair proxy for being out on the road in real time but sometimes you just know...

we did speak about some of the issues i read about namely, coolant pipes, radiators, rms and so on. interestingly i didnt know that the pccb discs could delaminate. i can imagine it would take a bit of work to get to that point but was a useful fact to know. also interesting to know that 2006 MY cars given their ecu are not able to store rev range data.

[Steviebeee]

After 8 years of ownership, I may be looking to sell my white 997.1 CS IF I find the right V12VS Manual. Rude health after a full suspension refresh, completely original car with the exception of only CUP diff plates after recommendation by the PH massive several years ago. Full OPC history, last serviced in April.

Feel free to pm if still looking.

Stephen

[RC1]

PM sent cheers for heads up

[Digga]

FWIW Steve is right; cup diff plates come highly recommend by most who 'know'.

At the moment, they are on back order with Porsche (as are a few other 997 parts both Motorsport and stock) so AFAIK your only chance of having a car so equipped is buying one that already has them.

I'm hoping we hear from the factory early next year when a few more racing 997s need refurb and they make another batch.

[Digga]

Thanks H. Yes Mike at Sports & Classic did discuss that option if the OEM plates we have on order aren't any closer to arriving by spring.

[Steve Rance]

Yep, I’d take the GUards option. They produce Avery good 997 diff upgrade and will set it up to your requirements.

[Cunno]

I’ve run cup plates and now on a guard diff . Guard diff with ramp angles to match the 996 diff is the way to go, it stops the rear brakes on the 997.1 trying to make up for the standard chocolate diff.

[Digga]

A whole GT diff is about £2k, right? Or do I have the wrong figure in my head?

[isaldiri]

Digga said:

A whole GT diff is about £2k, right? Or do I have the wrong figure in my head?

Yes there or abouts. Or at least that's around what I paid 2 years ago for it to be fit to the 4.0. Although it was with motorsport cup plates rather than guards plates with the guards diff though iirc.

[BertBert]

Fearnsport said to use the Guard plates and it takes about 3 hours to fit. Circa 1200-1500 to do.
Bert