1 more sleep until factory collection of Boxster GTS!
Discussion
Soooo excited 
Collection tomorrow then 6 day road trip in/around the alps to run the girl in 
The car was ordered back in Jan so it's been a looong time coming. And this week has been a complete nightmare of waiting and organising dog-sitting etc and we're completely shattered from work not having had any time off since March. BUT! Should all have beeen worth the wait tomorrow
Collection tomorrow then 6 day road trip in/around the alps to run the girl in The car was ordered back in Jan so it's been a looong time coming. And this week has been a complete nightmare of waiting and organising dog-sitting etc and we're completely shattered from work not having had any time off since March. BUT! Should all have beeen worth the wait tomorrow
Hello all 
I've finally got a bit of time to put pen to paper
First things first: is factory collection worth doing? I'd say yes. The actual Porsche factory bit (i.e. ex travel costs) is good fun and at £600 it is rather pricey like all things Porsche. That said, when you consider it includes (in the order we did it):
1) a personal handover from someone with a German accent which somehow makes it seem more authentic (I'm serious!) who knows the car inside out and helps you get stuff set up how you like it, advises on running in: basically, drive it like you would normally, don't mollycoddle it, just keep high rev hooning to the occasional blat and avoid constant revs on autobahn
2) a nice pic of you and the car with commemorative little chassis number plaque
3) a full tank of super unleaded
4) 1.5hr+ factory tour with v knowledgable guide (he'd worked there in everything from engineering to sales for 48 years) and virtually a personal tour as there was us from the UK and an American couple from Texas
5) a truly excellent 3 lunch in their restaurant with a mini view of Porsche's piece of the Zuffenhausen area
6) Porsche museum tour - we did not do this as the museum was closed but we'd been there last year so wasn't a prob
....I think it's worth it. And without sounding naff, it does give you a bit more bond with you car having seen where it's come from and how the guys/girls build it. It's all very impressive. I'd like to be able to show you pics but cameras/phones are not allowed.
Anyway, that's my opinion of the collection bit, will now try and write a bit about the car itself and post some pics....
I've finally got a bit of time to put pen to paper First things first: is factory collection worth doing? I'd say yes. The actual Porsche factory bit (i.e. ex travel costs) is good fun and at £600 it is rather pricey like all things Porsche. That said, when you consider it includes (in the order we did it):
1) a personal handover from someone with a German accent which somehow makes it seem more authentic (I'm serious!) who knows the car inside out and helps you get stuff set up how you like it, advises on running in: basically, drive it like you would normally, don't mollycoddle it, just keep high rev hooning to the occasional blat and avoid constant revs on autobahn
2) a nice pic of you and the car with commemorative little chassis number plaque
3) a full tank of super unleaded
4) 1.5hr+ factory tour with v knowledgable guide (he'd worked there in everything from engineering to sales for 48 years) and virtually a personal tour as there was us from the UK and an American couple from Texas
5) a truly excellent 3 lunch in their restaurant with a mini view of Porsche's piece of the Zuffenhausen area
6) Porsche museum tour - we did not do this as the museum was closed but we'd been there last year so wasn't a prob
....I think it's worth it. And without sounding naff, it does give you a bit more bond with you car having seen where it's come from and how the guys/girls build it. It's all very impressive. I'd like to be able to show you pics but cameras/phones are not allowed.
Anyway, that's my opinion of the collection bit, will now try and write a bit about the car itself and post some pics....
It has to be more interesting going to the factory in Germany to collect rather than the nearest OPC.
Incidentally- your point about getting a full tank of petrol with the car may appear trivial to some however to me it is important.....I spent nearly £100k on a 991 GTS and when I collected it from Porsche Sheffield I was disgusted they had only put about half a tank in the car- it instantly antagonised me- few other businesses would take such large sums of cash from clients and then risk annoying them by skanking them on about £35 of petrol....it's a pathetic and mercenary course of action-which sums up most OPC's.
Incidentally- your point about getting a full tank of petrol with the car may appear trivial to some however to me it is important.....I spent nearly £100k on a 991 GTS and when I collected it from Porsche Sheffield I was disgusted they had only put about half a tank in the car- it instantly antagonised me- few other businesses would take such large sums of cash from clients and then risk annoying them by skanking them on about £35 of petrol....it's a pathetic and mercenary course of action-which sums up most OPC's.
david hockney said:
It has to be more interesting going to the factory in Germany to collect rather than the nearest OPC.
Incidentally- your point about getting a full tank of petrol with the car may appear trivial to some however to me it is important.....I spent nearly £100k on a 991 GTS and when I collected it from Porsche Sheffield I was disgusted they had only put about half a tank in the car- it instantly antagonised me- few other businesses would take such large sums of cash from clients and then risk annoying them by skanking them on about £35 of petrol....it's a pathetic and mercenary course of action-which sums up most OPC's.
I'm with you on this one. I've had many new cars over the years and not one has had a full tank of fuel.Incidentally- your point about getting a full tank of petrol with the car may appear trivial to some however to me it is important.....I spent nearly £100k on a 991 GTS and when I collected it from Porsche Sheffield I was disgusted they had only put about half a tank in the car- it instantly antagonised me- few other businesses would take such large sums of cash from clients and then risk annoying them by skanking them on about £35 of petrol....it's a pathetic and mercenary course of action-which sums up most OPC's.
Much to my surprise when I collected my new Boxster in Sept 2013 it had a full tank, very pleased.
So the opposite experience to you. It certainly has left a lasting good impression of my OPC.
The OPC in question is Silverstone
When I arranged to collect my GTS from Porsche Sheffield the salesman originally told me that he would collect me from Sheffield train station and give me a lift back to the garage.
Closer to the time he notified me that the garage was short staffed and he could no longer collect me from the train station- but as compensation for the taxi fare (£13) 'he would put extra fuel in the car' I had just purchased....so the 991 GTS had 'slightly' over half a tank- I was so bloody grateful.
To be honest the entire process of buying a car from Porsche Sheffield was a lesson in how to p*ss off a customer.
Anyway- to the OP- lets see some photos please of your GTS....
Closer to the time he notified me that the garage was short staffed and he could no longer collect me from the train station- but as compensation for the taxi fare (£13) 'he would put extra fuel in the car' I had just purchased....so the 991 GTS had 'slightly' over half a tank- I was so bloody grateful.
To be honest the entire process of buying a car from Porsche Sheffield was a lesson in how to p*ss off a customer.
Anyway- to the OP- lets see some photos please of your GTS....
Finally time for thoughts on the car and a few piccies In a few words: deeply impressive. It's a well worn cliche by now, but it makes a 911 (and certainly the 911 Cab) look rather superfluous in a way that was never the case before. And I say that as a dyed in the wool 911 fan. Especially when you've seen them both on the production line side by side. I'm not knocking 911 buyers to be clear, if you've got the money go for it, why not, life's too short 
But for me personally, I could have pushed the boat out a bit more to a Cab or a Cab S, but after a 981 GTS test drive, those thoughts evaporated. This does not feel or look like the entry level model in the way that previous gens did to me. It feels properly grown up and a genuine alternative in a way that the 981.2 facelift cars with their 4 pots won't I suspect.
Random comments in no particular order:
- I am so pleased with my exterior colour combo choice an interior colour choices. The dark metallic blue looks amazing in the sun and the red roof just adds a splash of brightness and cheekiness to what would otherwise be a quite serious colour. It was always going to be a bit of a gamble as it's a colour combo I've not seen on any other Boxster or 911 Cab, but I'm so glad I had the balls to go through with it. The red stitching and rev counter on the interior GTS pack are set off nicely by it too.
- interior overall is a wonderful place to be having now spent a couple of days in it and got over the initial "Look! Shiny!", on a par with much more expensive cars IMO. Buckets seats are well worth the money. Fantastically comfortable, look ace and its lovely to not have to cock around with eleventy two settings to get it to fit right
- engine: feels very sweet so far but obviously only 350 miles or so on her at the moment so haven't had any full bore excursions past 6k rpm yet. For every day driving though with traffic cut and thrust and basic overtakes it's certainly plenty. Which needs neatly on to....
- PDK gearbox: I'm not going to say that I'm a convert as that implies you've made a choice and excluded the other option as worse, but what I will say is that it is the transmission of choice for a 981 (GT)S IMO unless you're going for a track orientated or less-is-more spec. I think PDK suits it to a tee and gives it a fantastic dual personality with the PSE (more on that in a bit): Munich stop-start traffic for 1.5 hours yesterday? Stick it in Drive, PSE off, radio on and relax, no more shagged left leg and 25mpg in virtually stationary traffic with the stop start functionality. In the mountains on more interesting roads today? Sport or Sport Plus with PSE on, into Manual and just fly up and down the gears for the hell of it while carving perfect lines with both hands on the wheel. Was I heeling and toeing like in my 993 here last year? No. Did I care? No. Different experience but no less wonderful.
- handling: not explored the limits yet, but you can feel the balance/line alter noticeably in corners (more so than in the 993, 996s and 997 that I've driven) when getting on the power and it's very nice. The tail also feels a bit looser than in my 911s which I like but that may have just been some sub optimal road surface.
- PSE: fantastic in it's ridiculous-ness If you're of a shy disposition you may struggle with it on (
), but for me it's a bit like the red hood I have - a good foil for what is otherwise a very serious German car
- Electric steering: Was fine on my test drives, was fine on my PEC day, still fine now. Bit of a storm in a teacup IMO but others will disagree. Feels great, nice weight to it - yes I don't get the high frequency chatter that I do from my 7 GT3 but again I don't miss it. When she goes on track I may have to update this but until then all good so far
- Ride with PASM on 20" wheels is superb. Never crashy but still gives confidence in the corners. Not spent much time with the dampers in Sport, but again, not too firm for roads here in in Germany/Austria, will have a definitive answer after some miles in the UK but I suspect all is fine given that Sport setting on the Boxster is still much more compliant than Normal on the GT3.
Okay, maybe a few negatives/other points:
- The cabin is a bit more blustery than I was expecting with the roof down. Weirdly, above 100mph it seems to get better! But at regular motorway speed there's a lot more air than there is in my 993 Cab with a boggo after market deflector. Not a problem really, just a bit unexpected.
- The car feels bigger to drive than you expect in terms of dimensions (not weight): this is not a negative for me but might be for some. My 7.1 GT3 feels smaller (and probably is to be fair) but if you're after the go kart feeling you may be a bit surprised.
- there is the odd time when you wish the PSE wasn't quite so loud: it's a bit niche, but with my gf in the car asleep on the autobahn it'd be nice to be able to switch it off completely and be able to accelerate hard past 4k rpm without waking her up
Pics time! I don't have any ones of the interior but I'll try and take a couple tomorrow.
Collection Room awaiting funky German temporary plates
In car park ready to drive away with funky plates
A little dirty but better pics in the sunshine
In a few words: deeply impressive. It's a well worn cliche by now, but it makes a 911 (and certainly the 911 Cab) look rather superfluous in a way that was never the case before. And I say that as a dyed in the wool 911 fan. Especially when you've seen them both on the production line side by side. I'm not knocking 911 buyers to be clear, if you've got the money go for it, why not, life's too short But for me personally, I could have pushed the boat out a bit more to a Cab or a Cab S, but after a 981 GTS test drive, those thoughts evaporated. This does not feel or look like the entry level model in the way that previous gens did to me. It feels properly grown up and a genuine alternative in a way that the 981.2 facelift cars with their 4 pots won't I suspect.Random comments in no particular order:
- I am so pleased with my exterior colour combo choice an interior colour choices. The dark metallic blue looks amazing in the sun and the red roof just adds a splash of brightness and cheekiness to what would otherwise be a quite serious colour. It was always going to be a bit of a gamble as it's a colour combo I've not seen on any other Boxster or 911 Cab, but I'm so glad I had the balls to go through with it. The red stitching and rev counter on the interior GTS pack are set off nicely by it too.
- interior overall is a wonderful place to be having now spent a couple of days in it and got over the initial "Look! Shiny!", on a par with much more expensive cars IMO. Buckets seats are well worth the money. Fantastically comfortable, look ace and its lovely to not have to cock around with eleventy two settings to get it to fit right
- engine: feels very sweet so far but obviously only 350 miles or so on her at the moment so haven't had any full bore excursions past 6k rpm yet. For every day driving though with traffic cut and thrust and basic overtakes it's certainly plenty. Which needs neatly on to....
- PDK gearbox: I'm not going to say that I'm a convert as that implies you've made a choice and excluded the other option as worse, but what I will say is that it is the transmission of choice for a 981 (GT)S IMO unless you're going for a track orientated or less-is-more spec. I think PDK suits it to a tee and gives it a fantastic dual personality with the PSE (more on that in a bit): Munich stop-start traffic for 1.5 hours yesterday? Stick it in Drive, PSE off, radio on and relax, no more shagged left leg and 25mpg in virtually stationary traffic with the stop start functionality. In the mountains on more interesting roads today? Sport or Sport Plus with PSE on, into Manual and just fly up and down the gears for the hell of it while carving perfect lines with both hands on the wheel. Was I heeling and toeing like in my 993 here last year? No. Did I care? No. Different experience but no less wonderful.
- handling: not explored the limits yet, but you can feel the balance/line alter noticeably in corners (more so than in the 993, 996s and 997 that I've driven) when getting on the power and it's very nice. The tail also feels a bit looser than in my 911s which I like but that may have just been some sub optimal road surface.
- PSE: fantastic in it's ridiculous-ness
If you're of a shy disposition you may struggle with it on (), but for me it's a bit like the red hood I have - a good foil for what is otherwise a very serious German car- Electric steering: Was fine on my test drives, was fine on my PEC day, still fine now. Bit of a storm in a teacup IMO but others will disagree. Feels great, nice weight to it - yes I don't get the high frequency chatter that I do from my 7 GT3 but again I don't miss it. When she goes on track I may have to update this but until then all good so far
- Ride with PASM on 20" wheels is superb. Never crashy but still gives confidence in the corners. Not spent much time with the dampers in Sport, but again, not too firm for roads here in in Germany/Austria, will have a definitive answer after some miles in the UK but I suspect all is fine given that Sport setting on the Boxster is still much more compliant than Normal on the GT3.
Okay, maybe a few negatives/other points:
- The cabin is a bit more blustery than I was expecting with the roof down. Weirdly, above 100mph it seems to get better! But at regular motorway speed there's a lot more air than there is in my 993 Cab with a boggo after market deflector. Not a problem really, just a bit unexpected.
- The car feels bigger to drive than you expect in terms of dimensions (not weight): this is not a negative for me but might be for some. My 7.1 GT3 feels smaller (and probably is to be fair) but if you're after the go kart feeling you may be a bit surprised.
- there is the odd time when you wish the PSE wasn't quite so loud: it's a bit niche, but with my gf in the car asleep on the autobahn it'd be nice to be able to switch it off completely and be able to accelerate hard past 4k rpm without waking her up
Pics time! I don't have any ones of the interior but I'll try and take a couple tomorrow.
Collection Room awaiting funky German temporary plates
In car park ready to drive away with funky plates
A little dirty but better pics in the sunshine
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