Finally got a 718 GT4!
Discussion
Well a few weeks in now and although we are in the winter (and on the Dunlops!) the 718 has surprised me in a good way!
I have had a couple of 981s before all be it in my business rather than ones I have owned but I have had some decent seat time. I have to say the 718 is a huge improvement.
As ever in the Porsche world a lot of what you hear is just not right sometimes due to YouTubers or jurnos that are too scared to correctly criticise the cars or people can get the old blinkers on...
Anyway one thing I was not expecting having seen a few comparisons and reviews is the steering...wow! this is very much more detailed than the very wooly steering on the 981. I literally cannot believe that reviewers have reported that the old 981 setup was better it's night and day better on the 718. I gather it has some GT3 front suspension stuff? My old 991.1 RS had unexpectedly brilliant steering as well. Very good feedback and even loading up in the corners very much a highlight.
It feels a lot quicker than the 981 much more urgent I would imagine this is a combination of the pdk and additional power. Suspension is decent although the setup is not perfect. I have a bit of a test route that in fairness does show up most cars a very rough bit of old pit area road the only cars that fly down there and remain composed tend to be Ohlins equipped Lotus but down there the GT4 can feel bouncy a sign that the springs aren't actually that well calibrated to the damping. On most roads however its been good if a little on the soft side even allowing the splitter to bottom out on a couple of occasions.
Noise is a little quieter than the 981 of course and you do loose a bit of that lovely signature Porsche mechanical ticker sound. When I get chance I'll be pulling the exhaust flap vacuum off although I'm not too fussed about swapping the exhaust. Maybe something to get rid of the particulate filters in time.
We have Donny booked for March so looking forward to getting out on track to properly stretch her legs a bit but so far so good. It will be really interesting when the roads warm up as normally in the winter cars don't really impress as they need leaning on to get the best out of them but the 718 appears to have that rare ability to be genuinely enjoyable to drive at the lower end of the envelope.
fridaypassion said:
Well a few weeks in now and although we are in the winter (and on the Dunlops!) the 718 has surprised me in a good way!
I have had a couple of 981s before all be it in my business rather than ones I have owned but I have had some decent seat time. I have to say the 718 is a huge improvement.
As ever in the Porsche world a lot of what you hear is just not right sometimes due to YouTubers or jurnos that are too scared to correctly criticise the cars or people can get the old blinkers on...
Anyway one thing I was not expecting having seen a few comparisons and reviews is the steering...wow! this is very much more detailed than the very wooly steering on the 981. I literally cannot believe that reviewers have reported that the old 981 setup was better it's night and day better on the 718. I gather it has some GT3 front suspension stuff? My old 991.1 RS had unexpectedly brilliant steering as well. Very good feedback and even loading up in the corners very much a highlight.
It feels a lot quicker than the 981 much more urgent I would imagine this is a combination of the pdk and additional power. Suspension is decent although the setup is not perfect. I have a bit of a test route that in fairness does show up most cars a very rough bit of old pit area road the only cars that fly down there and remain composed tend to be Ohlins equipped Lotus but down there the GT4 can feel bouncy a sign that the springs aren't actually that well calibrated to the damping. On most roads however its been good if a little on the soft side even allowing the splitter to bottom out on a couple of occasions.
Noise is a little quieter than the 981 of course and you do loose a bit of that lovely signature Porsche mechanical ticker sound. When I get chance I'll be pulling the exhaust flap vacuum off although I'm not too fussed about swapping the exhaust. Maybe something to get rid of the particulate filters in time.
We have Donny booked for March so looking forward to getting out on track to properly stretch her legs a bit but so far so good. It will be really interesting when the roads warm up as normally in the winter cars don't really impress as they need leaning on to get the best out of them but the 718 appears to have that rare ability to be genuinely enjoyable to drive at the lower end of the envelope.
https://www.autoquestcars.com/custom-09
This is an interesting little write up from Evo back when the 718GT4 came out essentially agreeing with what you said
If you want to be faster than fun on track then tuition (they call it coaching) is worth a fortune.
The biggest performance difference that you will make from a starting point of fun, is coaching ... and this also pays huge dividends on the road where you realise how much your NCBonus is worth !
The biggest performance difference that you will make from a starting point of fun, is coaching ... and this also pays huge dividends on the road where you realise how much your NCBonus is worth !
honda_exige said:
Think it's accepted that the rear suspension design is a little bit sub ideal but it doesn't really hamper it too much, though it can be sorted if you want to spend £££
https://www.autoquestcars.com/custom-09
Talking with Center Gravity last week, they are thinking of reviving this project on a new car, as the previous UK car that this was done on is no longer with us. Will be interesting to watch as a showcase. https://www.autoquestcars.com/custom-09
But really GT4 as a package is brilliant and you don’t need to do much to just have a great time, or just do some little tweaks to sharpen it.
Edited by TDT on Sunday 14th January 22:00
fridaypassion said:
Well a few weeks in now and although we are in the winter (and on the Dunlops!) the 718 has surprised me in a good way...
Your point about steering feel at road speeds is particularly interesting to me as this was the nail in the coffin for my 981 GT4 (from an engagement rather than outright performance perspective).
Surprised about the comments on the steering feel Jon. Perhaps the 718 GT4 Spyder is different to the 718 GT4? When I tried the spyder after stepping out of the 981 GT4 I couldn’t believe how much worse the steering was in terms of feel - more numb and less feeling. Of course everyone is looking for somethIng different or perhaps the steering varies from car to car. As a serial Lotus owner (not as much as you ) steering for me is pretty much at the top of my list. Have you compared back to back out of interest ? Either way it’s great you are happy with it.
Not sure on the differences re the Spyder but the two 981s I spent time in one was stock one had the full MR handling kit and centre gravity treatment. The MR car felt very planted and was a good improvement but both of those cars I could drive around for an hour and file them under "meh" largely due to the lack of strong feel. As a Lotus owner you'll know all other cars are a bit rubbish to a degree as we're spoilt with the steering and handling.
One set of cars I did drive back to back was the 991RS and 981 gt4 as the GT4 came in my work as I had just sold my 911. The differences were night and day on the steering. The 718 even does that writhing sensation around the dead ahead and the only other car I've known that in is a Lotus. The weighting up in corners is an improvement over the 911.1 RS so they have obviously been busy with the steering. The only car with power steering I remember properly loading up in corners was the Evora so these comparisons are high praise. It's always good when a car exceeds expectation it rarely happens!
One set of cars I did drive back to back was the 991RS and 981 gt4 as the GT4 came in my work as I had just sold my 911. The differences were night and day on the steering. The 718 even does that writhing sensation around the dead ahead and the only other car I've known that in is a Lotus. The weighting up in corners is an improvement over the 911.1 RS so they have obviously been busy with the steering. The only car with power steering I remember properly loading up in corners was the Evora so these comparisons are high praise. It's always good when a car exceeds expectation it rarely happens!
I was lucky with my allocation. It was originally scheduled for August/Sept 2022, when there was loads of options not available. Ceramics, buckets, LED, yellow stitching etc all came on and off while the build kept getting pushed back. My spec changed half a dozen times.
Literally on the day before it locked the new LED PDLS was the last thing to come back on the list.
It was all a bit of a rollercoaster but worth sticking it out to the end.
I have to say a huge thank you to all the posters on PH that kept us up to date on options that dropped off and came back on again and made it possible for me to update my spec as I went along.
Literally on the day before it locked the new LED PDLS was the last thing to come back on the list.
It was all a bit of a rollercoaster but worth sticking it out to the end.
I have to say a huge thank you to all the posters on PH that kept us up to date on options that dropped off and came back on again and made it possible for me to update my spec as I went along.
Finally managed to get on track for the first time yesterday a peril of buying in December! got to Donington with RMA. Settled into it really quickly the EXC/TC was off on the second session such was my confidence in the handling. Brakes as ever were absolutely solid all day the PCCB is an essential option on these cars imho. I didn't get the chance to get on the Hunter before this trackday so the car is completely stock at the moment. The lack of camber on the front really shows with a bit of understeer on the GP circuit hairpin. This same lack of camber does really make the steering very nice on the road though!
So a good day its not the quickest thing in the world but certainly entertaining. I'm thinking of having the OPF bypass pipes I have been told they release a fair bit of power on the 718 does anyone have any feedback on this?
As you were at the RMA day on Friday, you’ll may have received the noise email or seen the note making the rounds on social media that tracks are having to tighten up further and will actually be recalibrating their noise meters to read cars higher in order to pass the council noise quotas …. so if you want to do trackdays in the Uk… don’t touch your exhaust… or if you do, get ready to invest in some trackday silencers as well..
Not to mention the legality issues…
That aside, yes removing OPF would unleash a decent chunk of hp and sound… you may well also need a remap to at least extinguish the check engine light… all told you might gain the region of 25-30HP, and torque will be up 20-30NM. The key thing, especially with a remap to add extra fuelling, is that the will be gains right across the rev range.
I haven’t touched my car from an exhaust or drivetrain PoV… I’ve focussed on ‘clubsporting ’ the handling and braking and upgrading the driver.
Not to mention the legality issues…
That aside, yes removing OPF would unleash a decent chunk of hp and sound… you may well also need a remap to at least extinguish the check engine light… all told you might gain the region of 25-30HP, and torque will be up 20-30NM. The key thing, especially with a remap to add extra fuelling, is that the will be gains right across the rev range.
I haven’t touched my car from an exhaust or drivetrain PoV… I’ve focussed on ‘clubsporting ’ the handling and braking and upgrading the driver.
Edited by TDT on Saturday 9th March 19:13
Gassing Station | Boxster/Cayman | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff