quibbs

Today I traded in my 2007 TT and '07 BMW 335 for a Carrera CS. The intent is to make the new P-car a daily driver until a 2012 M5 I have on order comes in.
I am tired as I compose this so I will give a fairly brief synopsis of my experience going from a Tiptronic turbo to a PDK 991CS.


Pros/Cons of the 991cs vs 997 TT:

Appearance: Looks are subjective. Both cars are great to look at. I like the back of the turbo with the Dectane lights I had over the 991cs rear end. But the 991 isn't bad, just different. Still Turbo wins this imho.

Turbos are a rare sight around here and are real attention getters. The 991 gets some looks but nowhere near the TT. The non-turbo is more pedestrian looking, at least my 991 is.

I think in some ways the 991 does make the 997 tt feel dated and in other ways it does not.

Interior: My initial impressions after my first test drive left me liking the leather interior in the 997 almost as much as the 991. The 997 also felt more spacious up high. However, after spending a few hours in the new car, the 991 really does have a nicer interior.

The new car's isn't even full leather and it's really nice and certainly more comfortable.

I do feel the buttons around the Nav screen feel cheap. That was a little disappointing but not a deal breaker. 991 wins here imho.

Handling/ride: The PDK is really a big step up from the tiptronic imo.It shifts very quickly and just does it's job really well.

I don't track and probably never will. Keep that in mind when I say I'm pretty impressed with the EPS. You can feel the electronics kick in on hard corners and such (this car has PDCC, SPC, SP+) but it really isn't distracting and the car will most certainly out handle the turbo in the hands of an average driver.

I took a very tight on-ramp at almost a third faster than I would of ever tried in the TT. Damn that car was silly good on the corners. The steering is good. Maybe not purist good, but very good, especially for day to day. My experience so far reinforces my opinion (to me) that the 991 is certainly a better DD.

Power/speed: 400hp is not going to compete with a turbo. But while the turbo had wicked power the 991 has more useful all-around power.

Obviously the torque of the TT is in another league. Still, the 991 is plenty fast. I am already using more of this car than I did with the 997. If that makes sense.

Summary: I don't think I will miss my turbo because of it's power vs the 991. I will miss it because it was a really nice turbo, black and black and it was wicked looking. My new car is agate with black interior and while it is very nice, it has a different, low-key presence.

I do not have any buyers remorse because of the mechanics or handling of the new car vs the old. If I have any remorse it would be more of wondering if I picked the right colors and wheels.

Only real concerns I have are driving a Porsche as a DD whereas I had a beater BMW I could use for dirty trips and mall parking... Outside of that silliness I believe I will be very content with the 991 until my M5 gets here and then I will trade the cs in for a turbo in 2 years.

cmb13

Beauty! Where are you, Atlanta?

quibbs

Thanks. Between Atlanta and Columbia, SC

Mike in CA

Beautiful. That's Agate Grey, isn't it?

quibbs

It is Agate. I saw another agate yesterday with a red interior and that was a stunning combination. I had thought about a red interior, just don't know if I would like it as much as a day to day interior color.

Alstoy

Congrats! Enjoy.

LastMezger

Just curious...why didn't you keep driving the TT until the M5 arrived?

quibbs

My goal has been to upgrade both my cars (the BMW 335 to M5 and the 997 TT to a 991 TT). The M5 will not arrive until Oct/Nov and the 991 TT for another 13 months plus. After test driving a 991 I was so impressed I decided to go ahead and purchase it. Which meant losing my two current cars now. So the new car is a DD until the M5 shows up. When the M5 gets here it will become the DD and eventually I will trade in the 991 on a turbo.

Monetthecat

Quibbs - How do you like the agate grey in person? Been debating a purchase in that color, but haven't seen one live. Does it have good "pop"?

quibbs

I like it. Not sure if there had been a silver or black sitting on either side which I would have driven off with. I really like black cars but I have owned so many, same for silver, that I wanted to change it up. Wheels have a big impact on colors for me as well. I like the sports design rims on it now but I may switch them up for the Carrera Classic or the Carrera S wheels painted in platinum. The wife wants me to keep the current wheels.

Best bet is to go see one in person and judge for yourself.

cole328

OP - Let us know what you think of the M5 when it arrives when my lease is up in April (next year), that car is on my short list of replacements as my DD, along with a) Panamera GTS, and b) Merc AMG CLS63 decisions decisions :-)

quibbs

Will do.

There are several reviews from folks (on F30forums) over in Europe where the car has already been released. Everyone seems to really like it but have mentioned a couple of issues (turbo lag and not being fans of the standard M-sport wheel). It will be interesting to see for myself.

I have test driven a Panamera V6 and really enjoyed the car. Others have said they actually preferred the v6 to the other variants because of the handling (smaller engine, etc). Apparently the extra weight of the v8s and tuning (?) makes those versions feel more nose heavy and less agile. Of course that is all hearsay. Maybe next week I'll go test drive a Panny turbo and see for myself.

Cpa4S

nice review - tip to PDK is light years. i am going 6 speed manual with short shifter to 7 speed manual so that transition will be much less.

Cpa4S

my dealor has a couple agate gray - my conclusion was that it was gray; not a different a shade as carbon gray on the Panamera

quibbs

I like the color combo you ordered (in your sig). I put on another 200 miles today. It is such a great car. You are going to love it.