718GT4CS.Porsche itself settles the perennial 981 vs 718 De
718GT4CS.Porsche itself settles the perennial 981 vs 718 De
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carspath

Original Poster:

909 posts

201 months

Thursday 3rd January 2019
quotequote all
Surely with the launch of the 718 GT4 Clubsport. , Porsche themselves have settled the ever-lasting 981 vs 718 debate ?
Naturally aspirated classic Flat-6

pete.g

1,531 posts

230 months

Thursday 3rd January 2019
quotequote all
carspath said:
Surely with the launch of the 718 GT4 Clubsport. , Porsche themselves have settled the ever-lasting 981 vs 718 debate ?
Naturally aspirated classic Flat-6
I'm not sure the GT4 CS has any relevance in the debate - it's a £156,000 race car.


The new 718 GT4 road car may not help much either - if the price hike is similar, it will be £90k plus list price.


This doesn't really help with the comparison between cars in 35-65k price range where there are choices to be made between F4T and NA F6.

jonttt

686 posts

195 months

Thursday 3rd January 2019
quotequote all
It is relevant and it supports the probable fact that Porsche only fit the FI 4 pot motor to meet emission and tax requirements and if given a choice would have fitted a NA engine ie as they can do in the more limited production GT cars ;-)

Deep

2,507 posts

267 months

Friday 4th January 2019
quotequote all
jonttt said:
It is relevant and it supports the probable fact that Porsche only fit the FI 4 pot motor to meet emission and tax requirements and if given a choice would have fitted a NA engine ie as they can do in the more limited production GT cars ;-)
Why do you say probable fact? I'm not sure any performance car manufacturers have ever really denied that the often prefer large capacity NA engines.

I think that they've been quite clear in saying its all about emissions



Crispystork

198 posts

106 months

Friday 4th January 2019
quotequote all
NA wins again wink

Basaltbox

21 posts

91 months

Friday 4th January 2019
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Relevant for those who want it to be relevant.

For most of us not relevant.

carspath

Original Poster:

909 posts

201 months

Friday 4th January 2019
quotequote all
My feeling is that it is totally relevant .

The 981 GT4 was the pinnacle of the 981 range , as the 718 GT4 will be to its range .

Porsche didn't compromise when designing and producing the 981 GT4 , and there is no reason to believe that they will compromise when designing and producing its direct replacement --the 718 GT4 .


It appears that the road 718 GT4 will be a Flat-6 normally aspirated car , and this speaks volumes ---especially when Porsche have spent vast sums of money over the last few years telling us that the 4 cylinder turbocharged engine is the new best thing .


Porsche themselves have now demonstrated that they consider the Flat-6 to be superior to the Turbo-4 , by using the former engine-type in the flagship version of their base sportscar.

carspath

Original Poster:

909 posts

201 months

Friday 4th January 2019
quotequote all
Or more accurately , the start of the last line of my post above should be corrected to read :


'' Porsche themselves will soon demonstrate '' , rather than
'' Porsche themselves have now demonstrated ''


Basaltbox

21 posts

91 months

Friday 4th January 2019
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Yep, very well presented argument.

130R

7,013 posts

230 months

Friday 4th January 2019
quotequote all
Yes great, except Porsche will never fit a NA engine to the normal 718. So you are forever stuck with the old model if you don't like turbocharged engines.

carspath

Original Poster:

909 posts

201 months

Friday 4th January 2019
quotequote all
130R -- exactly the situation that I faced . And does new mean better ?

The 718 was already available , when I started looking in earnest for a Boxster .
OPC Mayfair found the very last new 981 S (in Racing Yellow) , with a plethora of options sitting in Reading ….but I was not allowed to test drive it .

Fortunately . I had extensively test driven the 981 S previously , and also the 718 and 718 S.


I wanted the 981 S , but can fully appreciate that someone else would prefer the 718 .


The key point here however , is that the suspension and the interior of the 981 and the 718 are very similar .
What is different are the engines .
There has been a 3 year debate about which is the better car , and because the interior and suspension are very similar , this essentially boils down to which is the better engine .


And Porsche themselves have now (or are about to ) give a very clear verdict re the 981 vs the 718 engines .


There are still plenty of low mileage, very well maintained 981s which are only a few months older than the earliest 718s

So a buyer has a very real decision to make on a very real choice .


Bear in mind that the next Boxster replacement is very likely to be radically different , probably a hybrid .


Would you really choose what Porsche themselves have (or are about to) admitted is their second choice of engine , over what is already , or is surely destined to be , an all -time classic --- the naturally aspirated Flat-6 , which is such an integral part of Porsche's history


Or would you rather wait it out for another couple of years and go for what will be radical new engine technology ?

A very real choice awaits the buyer who needs a Boxster NOW ---there are still some beautifully maintained , low mileage 981s still available today

Despite being a self-confessed 981 enthusiast , I can see that the 718 is a very , very good car .


I started this thread because I think that Porsche have now revealed their inner feelings , uncontaminated by CO2 , particulates , emissions and economy .

130R

7,013 posts

230 months

Friday 4th January 2019
quotequote all
Steering, brakes, technology, etc. have all improved in the 718. In 2 years the newest 981 you can buy will be 5 years old, and it's a big assumption that any new model wouldn't also be a turbo, or that a hybrid would be a better engine. I would certainly buy a 718 S or GTS that had a NA engine, but it's not going to happen. So if you don't mind the turbo (like me) then there are plenty of reasons to buy a 718 really.

Basaltbox

21 posts

91 months

Saturday 5th January 2019
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Can’t wait to ditch my 986 (had it from new) and get the 718.

Thankfully I’ve never sat in a 981 so can’t argue with myself over which is best.

On test drives the 718 sounded awesome

tedblog

1,442 posts

104 months

Saturday 5th January 2019
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Its a limit run car that they can sell for a vast sum of money
The price will be over a £100k and like the previous gt4 only around 550 will be available and already there is a waiting list to get on the waiting list.
Sounds like good marketing to me ? Youve got people willing to buy a car that you dont know how much it will cost?
Porsches have always used different engines over the years even a diesel so doesnt prove anything . I believe there was uproar when they turboed the f6?
One thing i would say is the engine that has been fitted to the gt4 is a 911 engine (like the previous model) not a boxster engine as although f6 are not the same engine.

Edited by tedblog on Saturday 5th January 09:12

jonttt

686 posts

195 months

Saturday 5th January 2019
quotequote all
Totally misses the point, it is a 6 cylinder none turbo charged engine in preference to a FI 4 pot which they could have used, it would have been fast, more economical etc etc etc. Ie better in every way .....except the way it drives, that is the point, the FI 4 pot is a flawed compromised forced on Porsche and will forever suffer for that.

tedblog

1,442 posts

104 months

Saturday 5th January 2019
quotequote all
jonttt said:
Totally misses the point, it is a 6 cylinder none turbo charged engine in preference to a FI 4 pot which they could have used, it would have been fast, more economical etc etc etc. Ie better in every way .....except the way it drives, that is the point, the FI 4 pot is a flawed compromised forced on Porsche and will forever suffer for that.
I could understand if it was the 981 boxster engine as that would prove that they could of if they wanted too?
The 911 engine is a different one and used as a special edition car

tedblog

1,442 posts

104 months

Saturday 5th January 2019
quotequote all
anonymous said:
[redacted]
Same engine slightly different spec and about 130 bhp more , larger radiators, bigger block and cylinder heads . Ermm what else have Roman done for us lol
Wasnt that the problem they couldnt fit this engine in the boxster?

gtsralph

1,306 posts

168 months

Saturday 5th January 2019
quotequote all
anonymous said:
[redacted]
My old 3.4S engine and my installed 3.8S engine side by side, basically straight swap aside from reverse installed orientation


jonttt

686 posts

195 months

Saturday 5th January 2019
quotequote all
tedblog said:
jonttt said:
Totally misses the point, it is a 6 cylinder none turbo charged engine in preference to a FI 4 pot which they could have used, it would have been fast, more economical etc etc etc. Ie better in every way .....except the way it drives, that is the point, the FI 4 pot is a flawed compromised forced on Porsche and will forever suffer for that.
I could understand if it was the 981 boxster engine as that would prove that they could of if they wanted too?
The 911 engine is a different one and used as a special edition car
Lol wrong again, do you want to go for the treble ?

pete.g

1,531 posts

230 months

Sunday 6th January 2019
quotequote all
What is the flagship of the 911 range?

Using price, power and performance as criteria, it would be the GT2RS.

So using the argument being used here, Porsche rate turbocharging above normal aspiration . . .

Porsche have made some great V8 engines for the Panamera and Cayenne - do they outrank a flat 6?

This is a thread based on a specious argument.