which one, and why?
 

I know this is a seriously silly question to ask on a Porsche forum, but I'll ask it anyway.

I have been looking for a clean, low mileage 997 as a weekend toy and long-distance touring/fun car. (We have some long road-trips planned through the land of the free and the home of the brave.)

I had my search narrowed down to a couple of nice coupes, and then got seriously distracted by test driving the new 2011 Mustang GT —with that wonderful aluminum V8.

So now I'm trying to decide between a brand new Mustang and a low mileage 997.

The Mustang will be cheaper (in these parts by about $20K), and will of course be under full warranty. It will be easy to service and repair (if necessary) throughout the US, and is in my view just as much (or almost just as much!) fun to drive as the Porsche.

The Porsche of course is the easier car to love, and has already taken the massive new-car depreciation hit.

My wife is a good German girl and favours the Porsche. I'm also leaning that way.

But the Mustang is so cheap and good that I'm seriously conflicted.

What would you do and why?

So here they are:

Porsche:

355 hp
295 torque
26 mpg
0—60: 4.7
3131 lbs


http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1278011288.jpg


Mustang:

412 hp
390 torque
26 mpg
0-60: 4.3
3605 lbs

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1278011322.jpg

The Stang is a great car but the engine is in the wrong end!

me being the "road-trip junkie" i would have to say.........................the porsche. but only if it was serviced within an inch of its life and with a compliment of do-it -yerself spares included. why?


cuz if yer broke down in da middle of monument valley,az communing with the spirit world and nature, yer screwed BIG TIME until the tow truck gets there and unless ya got a trunk full of cash the farthest hes gonna tow you is either farmington new messiko or kayenta,az. and as of last check there is NO PORSCHE dealership in either location. let alone a porsche wrench anywhere close. you will then have to resort to circling the porsche with drums playing in the back ground and waving chicken wings and wearing a goats head, while eating peyote and praying for a "spirit world" miracle" to fix the car.



ask me how i know.

well D..
the fact that you need to ask..
tells me..
your no Dottore...

Rika

Your answer is clear.

I don't have to ask you. I was there. :)

I haven't driven either, but there really shouldn't be a decision to make if you can swing the 997. There's a little higher chance of problems, but the experience should be worth it.

We were contemplating a Mustang a couple of years back. I've rented several (you my try that!) and they were very nicely setup. We decided to extend running what we have instead, but I think the Mustang is a good choice, for all of the reasons you've listed.

I'd be conflicted too. The answer probably lies in how long you plan to own it, and how you'll sell it when you're done.

If you're going to own it a year or so, you'll still lose quite a bit more on the Porsche. Especially if you're planning on buying a low mileage example and putting on a few thousand road-trip miles. You'll do better selling the 5.0.

That's if neither car needs anything. Oil change costs are quite different. Tire costs are different. If something breaks, the Ford is under warranty and quickly/easily fixed and you're on your way. The Porsche? Different story.

And there's probably something to be said for exploring the United States in a uniquely American icon. Only a Corvette would be more memorable, and even then, marginally so.

I guess I'd vote Mustang. But I love the 997 a lot. Just not as much for your expressed purpose, at least how I interpreted it.

Save the 997 for your exploration of the Autobahn :D

Well Grasshoppa..go drive them both again and sleep on it for a week or two...the answer will come to U in a dream...

In the world of men...comfort on a long trip would be a major consideration. Cost of maintence, insurance and depreciation would also factor in. Also a break down on the far edge of the world...ummm could be a consideration..but that could happen with the Horse to.

You should not rule out the new Mustang V6. Great mileage and still 300 HP at least take one for a spin or better yet rent one for a week end.

I drove one, thanks. It's good, but didn't put a silly grin on my face like the V8.

I just rented a Chevy Aveo 1.4 power nothing. Try it out you may like it. ;)

In all seriousness, I would just rent the Ford for the duration of the stay. You can get a couple of a month for dirt cheap compared to depreciation and maintenance costs.

Listen to your wife. The Porsche is a precision instrument. The Stang is a car. Listen to your wife.

Ian

Edit: I have rented a lot of Stang converts. A Hertz fav in Florida. Albeit not the 8 cyl. Not bad for handling overall & comfort is OK but they are still crude imho.

Do you mind seeing yourself on every corner? If not, then certainly the Mustang. If so, then 997/

Would you keep the 3.2?
I would buy the 997 regardless, if possible.
Reasoning: Duffy Lake!

The Duffy Lake road is a good argument—although I'd love to thrash the new Mustang on that road sometime as well...

I have put the 3.2 up for sale. Absolutely no more garage space. (See ad on this forum).

I'm guessing that most of the respondents here have not driven the new 5.0 liter Mustang.

I mean, I've also rented a whole bunch of Mustangs over the years, and none of them impressed me all that much.

The new 5.0 liter is however a different animal. I started a thread on it here a week or so ago.

Cheers

If you are really coming down here to finally "man up" to the "tussle in the desert" then buy the MouseTurd. My neighbors are used to seeing nice exotic cars around the house and would report something as silly as that, especially in that color. Then I would know you are sneaking around...

No way to compare them really. Do you want to go fast in a straight line, or fast all the time, corners and all.

You sure you are really German? Maybe its rubbing off... A real German would have no question in this matter.

Foolish is the man who does not listen to sage advice...and one wonders why ill fortune befalls them...for they do not pay attention to their own hearts...and follow the path that the great spirit in the sky wishes them to follow.

They have fallen into believing that the world of men is everything and have forgotten the unseen world of the spirit..Yet it is the unseen hand of the spirit that moves the world through the unconscience world of dreams, imagination and heart.

when one turns their back on the spirit world the spirit world lets you befall your fate unaided.

You have corners in Arizona???

the one you will love, P
The one just to get you there, Mustang.

Buy the 997 and rent the occasional Mustang. The depreciation hit on a new Mustang will buy a lot of rental days.

Thanks to you and Kaisen (up-thread), I am beginning to see the light.

Foolish men chattering and jabbering away as if they had some wisdom to impart..but the silence of any true wisdom being imparted is deafening.

Gawd, am I getting sick of this uninformed viewpoint.
Drive a 5.0 hard, then report back
Or AT LEAST read the reviews of this car, then comment
Don't just regurgitate 30 year old convention

Yes and keep looking in the mirror and you will eventually see me come up behind you. But by then it will be just a bit too late... :)

So...buy the Mustang and rent a 997? God, I hate it when I get these wrong!

Have driven both and there is no way to compare them. The Porsche is a Porsche and the Mouseturd is typical in that it goes fast in a straight line but worthless in the curves. As well its value takes a nosedive once its out of the showroom floor.

That comment tells me that you haven't driven the 5.0 liter.

The world of men should be considered..but it is the world of the spirit that will lead you to the true and correct heart felt answer. The one that will lead to contentment and happiness with the decision that you make..

If you get a mustang, you can hang out on mustangforums.com with people like this.

So to put in into language you can understand..go drive the fking things again to reinforce their strenghts and weaknessess, to make sure that they are clear and not just an idealization. List all the pros and cons put all that noise on the shelf for a weeek or two and just sleep on it..and you will come to the decision of which one you really like the best..the one that makes you the happiest..

In th end it will probably be the 997 that just tweeks your heart a bit more...

What is so fking hard about this???

The rest of this fking noise is just plain stupid.

I think the Mustang would be fun for at least a few years. After that, I cannot say. Paul certainly likes his, and the new one is very compelling.

Do a Youtube search of SR 89 between Jerome and Wickenburg. It's one of the best roads in the country. I haven't doen it in the 993 yet, but on the bikes many times.

Definitely go with the Porsche...Think of the image it projects, one of weath, fame, success.

Mustangs are just so common. Not only that, you need to grow a mullett if you buy one.

I was just pulling Joes plonker—figuratively speaking I hasten to add.

We actually drove that road last year—from Wickenburg right through to Sedona. It's pretty damn fine—even though large stretches of it (at altitude) have curves that are a little bit too tight to really enjoy in anything other than a go-cart IMO.

Its unfortunate that you did not read the post above yours where it states that I have driven both.

Maybe you should get the Mouseturd. The two of you would fit nicely together! :)

Would you please stop pulling on it? The ladies are saying that it hurts already, so larger is not going to help me any.

Just buy the mouseturd and drive between Flagstaff and Phoenix on the main road, as curves would be difficult for you. We can meet you somewhere in a big parking lot where you would not get lost! :)