Quote:
Originally Posted by willtel
To me the 997 is the sweet spot. The 991 is just such a huge car for what it is.
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The 997 was the sweet spot for me as well. It was gonna be "my last modern 911" before electric cars take over... I spent 6 months looking and test driving cars I did not really want (PDK, black cars, overpriced, or all of the above)...
Then my wife figured out the 991 was only $5000 more and asked why I wasn't getting that instead, tons to choose from... I gave her the "I read it in a magazine reply": it's bigger, it's got electric steering, it's got a PDK adapted gearbox, blah blah... Then I drove one and I realized magazine writers are a nitpicking bunch.
The 991 has more shoulder room inside, but it's not really that much bigger in measurements - it's mostly a visual thing (and compared to what anyway, a 997 looks bloated next to an early 911). The steering feels perfectly fine to me. The gearbox shifts great, 7th is stupid but if you ignore its existence there is no problem of missing downshifts. It handles amazing, traction of a 911, turn in of a cayman... Most of all it feels better built, it's quieter inside as far a tire/road noise (I drove another 997 after the initial 991 test drive and it felt like an oxcart in comparison), the LCD multifunction gauge is way cool, etc... Very few mechanical issues on the 991 also... The maintenance issues are also overblown, taking off the rear bumper presents no difficulty, changing oil is faster and less messy than on a gen 1 997/987 in my experience, you can do a lot on that car yourself...
Mostly, I was looking at 09 997s with 50K miles+ for $50-55K... latest 997s like black edition 2012s were $60K+. I ended up paying $60K for a 2013 991 with 100000 miles only, and it was still under warranty!!! My color, stick. Oh and you can use normal tire pressures on these (32/36)... If you have an older aircooled car in your stable, either a 997/991 will feel modern and bloated (and effing fast). So for the $, I went 991 and zero regrets...