Nizer

PCA member number required to access (if it's not already in your mailbox):
http://pca.imirus.com/Mpowered/book/vpca13/i3/p62

TRAKCAR

Great article, I loved the whole magazine actually!

frayed

Well done article by Pete. Reflects his statements on this forum following his drive with CH.

ECS

Panorama is the new Excellence. Pete is there and it is already showing.

1198r

Really liked the summary - well put and totally agree.

Mike in CA

Excellent review, fairly presented. As a counterpoint to Pete's opinion piece I will say that I don't see the GT3, or any Porsche model, as "sacred ground". Every Porsche represents what is best and possible for it's day. We can look back fondly on past models but no manufacturer can stand purely on tradition, unless they don't care whether they keep up with the competition or in fact stay in business.

The new GT3 represents a modern re-interpretation of a theme and is appropriate for it's time. Five to ten years from now the GT3 will have a hybrid power-train, will be appropriate for that time, and there will be those who wish for the good old days of the 991 GT3. Fortunately for them, there will be nice used ones to choose from, just as there are 7.2 GT cars for those who can't abide the new generation, just as there were still air cooled cars for those who couldn't accept water cooling, and 356's for those who thought the 911 was a mistake. The more things change the more they stay the same.

Macca

Great reading. One of the better written articles Ive read, balanced and made its points with subtly...right up to Petes "opinion piece" which was no surprise to those of us that had already read his threads on here but in some ways diminished the purity of the reporting IMO. I think there was plenty enough within the body off the article to allow each to make his own conclusion, but like Mike I dont believe there is any sacred ground here. I did that gig with the aircooled vs water cooled debate writing off a decade of Porsches cars after truing the 996.1 GT3 and at the time finding it a disappointment after the 993RS. Im older now and I accept that companies and cars grow up too....

neanicu

Congratulations Pete for this article!
I believe it summed up perfectly the vibes and emotions this new GT3 has been transmitting since its release! Brilliant car that is now easily competing with some of the big dogs out there that cost a lot more : Ferrari 458 and McLaren 12C come to mind. If that was Porsche's goal with this car I believe AP misspoke with his famous " Shut up and drive! ". I think he meant " Shut up and embrace the future! ". That was the moment he erased,just like a teacher would wipe clean his chalkboard,what the GT3 stood for all these years : an emotion,a passion,a statement that had no real competitor in the sports car industry. He reinvented a car that didn't need much alteration and moved on with the times. It's called over engineering.
Best,
Nick.

Carrera GT

Strange. That link works, but I didn't get the email.

Oh dear. Now it's 1:30am and my low grade OCD is kicking in: I haven't been keeping up with Rennlist, and bombshell posts deliver double-whammy reviews right as I'm going into a 48 hour sleep-deprived tour of Pebble and Laguna Seca, touring cars that deserve more than my late night palavra. I'll say the Pano review is ballsy and yet respectful without kowtowing deference.

What a week for Porsche. Roll on 2014, the drought has not broken, but at least there's storm clouds on the horizon.

Nizer

There's an email?

Carrera GT

Oh, you mean mailbox mailbox. Yeah, I got mail ... how very IRL of you.

Petevb

Excellent article, in particular the opinion piece at the end.

Unfortunately I still think German engineers dropped the manual because they don't really understand how Americans use our cars. We don't have an unrestricted autobahn on the back way to work.

Nick

Panorama caters primarily to long time Porsche owners most of whom own manual Porsche's. Pete went off the reservation in what was suppose to be an objective review of the 991GT3. Sadly, it turned into a Jihad for saving the MT. Clearly, he was lobbying to save the MT while at the same time placating his readers. In doing so, he did an injustice to the GT3 review.

Peppered through out the review were references to the pleasures of MT and the lack of driver involvement with PDK-S. He describes the pleasure he derives from driving the older 997GT3. Reluctantly, he acknowledges the brilliance of the 991GT3 but only in passing. Even the title of the article sent the wrong message. Trouble in Paradise? Was he referring to the police or the lost of the MT for 911 enthusiast?

Finally, he ends his review with an opinion piece yet again bemoaning the lost of the MT and fear of losing long time Porsche 911 enthusiast.

Pete is a terrific writer but he could have done better with his review of the GT3. For the most part, in his article the 991GT3 was an after thought.

aussie jimmy

the article is honest.

nothing more, nothing less. that is the purest form of reviewing. you want some sort of affirmation? then read the ads.

good on ya, pete. keep up the good work!

Conekilr

Nick, I tend to agree with you. The article itself was well written but the op ed at the end which Pete himself admits was a first for him (why do this at this time ??) took away from an otherwise great and professional review. This car appears to be Great on it's own merit. Why can't we just let it stand as such and have it's day in the sun.

JMHO of course