Driving the new 991

[porwolf]

I don't know but I am seeing too many triangular elements. My tastes are more retro based on basic rounds and squares. I see too many gratuitous curves and bulges, reminding me more of Japanese manga art than good old fashion "form follows function". It would be interesting to know whether the same car could be offered as abasic model without all the electronics at a significant price drop to resemble more a car than a high speed entertainment center. But probably the electronics are there to justify the price. The electronics are probably much cheaper to produce than the basic mechanics........ just rambling!

[tazzieman]

Originally Posted by porwolf

It would be interesting to know wheteher the same car could be offered as a basic model

Miami Car Street Racing*|* Chapter 02

The last page below, read the rest for great S***s and Gigs!

[stinkydog]

My take on it (not having driven one):

- the rear end is too cluttered. getting rid of the badges will help, but I'm still not a huge fan of the taillights.

- front end: while not my favorite, it doesn't look too bad considering that it meets the silly Euro pedestrian/hood rules.

- interior: not a fan of the main dash & console. too "Camaro-ish". I like the idea of increased legroom for the kiddie seats though.


Losing weight is always a good thing. It will be interesting to see the "cool" versions of the 991.

[nkotselas]

I like the new 911, and everyone knows the 911 is probably the car that best stuck to its roots. If they still sold 3.2 carreras with sunroofs and power windows as the only options, we wouldn't be having this discussion. We should all just be grateful that the 911 will make it to its 50 year anniversary. It's still a flat six, it's still in the back, and it is recognizable (IMO).

I also think they are doing a great job with the weight. Just a couple hundred pounds more than our 30 year old cars sounds good to me when you consider all the technology and safety equipment involved.

I am young, my car is nearly twice my age and I still prefer the older cars; looks, feel, and all. But I won't knock the new 911, it is supposed to be different. If you prefer the older cars, then get them. This is just another option for those of us with lots of money. We have to remember that Porsche needs to survive as a business before anything else.

And for the record, I bet the 991 gt2's and gt3's will change many of our minds.

[gregwils]

I like the new body as I have liked all the past ones. Some more than others. I think the real challenge in 25 years is who will be afford to own them. The mechanical aspects of maintaining a 25 year old 911 is costly enough - even for a DIY. An '02 or '03 911 are selling in the $20's even with low mileage. People with that size budget won't be prepared to spend thousands annually to drive a few thousand miles each year, so the cars will get dumped to the next uninformed buyer. What will a 2003 be worth in 2028? I say not much. The 2012 buyer wil not fare much better. The 2012 911is a very capable car with a questionable future.

[McLovin]

It's a 928 with a couple of Pep Boyz subwoofers in the hatch!

[AlfonsoR]

I like it but wish the 911 brand would stay on the sporty side of the equation...not getting bigger with fancy electronics and buttons abound.

I wonder how much Porsche develops their cars? Do they actually strip some out to see how they perform as a GT2/3 racer? Being that it's a bigger car, I would expect that in race trim, it will be heavier compared to the outgoing 997. Perhaps the new engines will have to make up some lost ground before the race even begins.

PS: one thing I do hate is not being able to see the engine.

[Hodgey]

Originally Posted by AlfonsoR

I like it but wish the 911 brand would stay on the sporty side of the equation...not getting bigger with fancy electronics and buttons abound.

I wonder how much Porsche develops their cars? Do they actually strip some out to see how they perform as a GT2/3 racer? Being that it's a bigger car, I would expect that in race trim, it will be heavier compared to the outgoing 997. Perhaps the new engines will have to make up some lost ground before the race even begins.

PS: one thing I do hate is not being able to see the engine.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^......... I agree.....although lots of people need to buy the 991 so I can have my pick of the 997's to go with my '87 Carrera

[curtisaa]

Originally Posted by AlfonsoR

I like it but wish the 911 brand would stay on the sporty side of the equation...not getting bigger with fancy electronics and buttons abound.

I wonder how much Porsche develops their cars? Do they actually strip some out to see how they perform as a GT2/3 racer? Being that it's a bigger car, I would expect that in race trim, it will be heavier compared to the outgoing 997. Perhaps the new engines will have to make up some lost ground before the race even begins.

PS: one thing I do hate is not being able to see the engine.

If I'm not mistaken, the 991S beat the 997 GT3 around Nuremburg ring by 14 seconds...that would be suspension and technology along with PDK seemless shifting.

[jose luis]

The Rr end still needs to grow on me as well as the new Boxster : For that kind of money I will buy a nice 993tt and keep some money in my pocket !!!

[targajoe]

I am still not sure how I feel about the 991, some bits I like and others I don’t. I haven’t driven it yet so that may swing my vote one way or the other.

Funny thing is I think threads like this exist on every auto forum there is. In addition to my 911 I have a ’11 Subaru STI for the track and a highly modified Jeep Wrangler TJ for the trails so I belong to a number of Subaru and Jeep forums as well, and I read the same stories over there. Folks are always complaining that the new JK Wranglers are not real Jeeps anymore that the TJ was the last true Jeep and the CJ guys feel those were the last real Jeeps, etc. Same thing with the Subaru, folks are complaining that the new STI is too soft and not as raw as the earlier cars, and so on.

Times change, yes the 991 is now techno-laden compared to its predecessors and how will that technology hold up over the years, who knows but the same can be said for any modern car. A new Corvette, or Jaguar, or Camaro, or Mustang has a TON more technology than its ‘60’s era versions; that is what most consumers expect, they want “advancement” from year to year.

People on forums make up a fraction of the car buying pubic, I am sure the auto manufactures do plenty of research before working up a new model and have a pretty good idea what Joe Customer will want before the vehicle is released. I bet Porsche is going to sell a ton of these 991’s, which should allow them to get the GT versions of this platform to the more hard core enthusiast nuts among us. A 991 GT3 may be in my future, but I will always hang on to my 1970 911 for when I want that simpler, mechanical feel that only classic vehicles can deliver, and I’ll have the 991 GT3 for when I want to outperform nearly any car in sight.

[Paul K]

All:

Here's an idea. Land Rover now makes three versions of the Range Rover. They all look like Range Rovers (arguably not with the Evoque, but bear with me) so why doesn't Porsche make two versions of the 911? Keep the 991 as the 'Full size' and them make a smaller, lighter version with some retro styling cues thrown in that remind us of the older cars instead of the Panamera? If Mini and Toyota can do it with their Cooper and FJ Cruiser, why not Porsche?

Thoughts?

Cheers,

Paul.

[1971 911T]

we all enjoy talking about the new contemporary Porsche company, about mid 90s onwards. The truth, which most of us here wont really internalize, is that the grand mythologizing of Porsche to all of us(908, 917, 956), is all past. And the consistent winners and giant killer of the past decade or two, has been : Ferrari in F1! and Subaru World Rally Champions WRX. For non-partisans,(not us), Porsche has not been winning much of anything. And 996, 997, 991, has not inspired the wider public, and are not motoring icons in their own right.

the boxster and cayman, underspec'd, are held back by sales and profit considerations for the 911. instead of the weekend racer of the 50s, 60s, 70s are now replaced by products for social standing or prestige. The majority of Cayenne buyers in China? Bla bla bla

[450knotOffice]

You could not be more wrong. Where have you been in the past ten years. Porsche may not be dominating the top class of prototypes at LeMans, but that's because they don't race in that class. When they raced one class down, the Penske RS Spyders DOMINATED their class, and even occasionally won overall head to head against the faster, but not quite as agile LMP1 Audis.

As for F1, Porsche hasn't put a car into F1 in basically forever. It's not their game, with one short exception way back in 1962.

Where Porsche has DOMINATED is in worldwide GT sports car racing, and they've done it year after year for about ten years now - with the GT3 Cup cars and GT3 RSR's. Look it up.

[1971 911T]

I hear you, totally. I seen them. But my point that they aren't as iconic, and have not grabbed the wider public's imagination, stands. it's just a more crowded space now compared to the 80s.

And by not participating, Porsche lost the limelight. We here are obsessives, but the rest of the world doesn't hear or care. F1 gets the limelight, F-1 participants get the global limelight. but motorsports old style heyday has passed. no Siffert in Ecclestone.

What you and I say here, in our own little Porsche universe doesn't ring any bells in the wider population.

[timchar]

It's actually growing on me... I have to admit, I love the pdk transmission...Tim

[craigyirush]

This video about the 991 made by the Porsche center at Silverstone is worth a watch. Murray makes a good case for the car, but it won't convince the doubters on this board.

Driven: The new Porsche 911 - YouTube

[porschenut]

That engine lid is pointless. They should have just made it serviceable from underneath, with a flap in the interior to access the oil filler cap, like the Cayman.

[Nick Triesch]

I have found over the years that the public does not know the difference between a clean 1985 and a 2005 911. My 85 is very clean and folks ask me all the time if it is new. Also, you really do not need a lot of engine access in the new 911 or any new car for that matter because maintence is so far in between compared to say a 3.2. Even my 99 Mustang GT had 100,000 spark plugs!

[ronster]

Every new design Porsche comes out with gets dissed by a percentage of current Porsche owners. Anyone remember the 911 intro? Heresy is the word I remember most being tossed around by the traditionalist 356 owners. How about the 924 and 928 and 914? The Porsche crowd thought Porsche had lost it's mind when those cars were introduced especially the front engine water cooled one's. So it's normal that some Porsche owners will embrace the new design and some will not. Everyone is entitled to their opinion.