bradStyle

So I finally picked up my new 2021 CGTS 4.0, my first Porsche, from PECLA and then from Glistening Perfection, and drove it over 1,000 miles home to the Pacific NW.

I followed Andreas Preuninger’s GT car break-in recommendations. Considering that I get most of my fun at 0.8-1.3G on corners, I didn’t find this schedule limiting for the most part, though I did have a couple quick instances where I over-revved the car while getting a feel for its country road passing abilities. Not a big deal.

I had intended to take the car on Highway 1 up through Big Sur, but unfortunately the landslide in January put the kibosh on that. Instead I drove the PCH up to Malibu Canyon, then took backroads to Oxnard, and then the 101 to Santa Barbara where I spent the first night. The next day I took Hwy 1 up to Morro Bay and then cut over to Atascadero, but instead of taking the 101 I took backroads through Paso Robles and Lake Nacimiento, past beautiful horse ranches and vineyards. Not a car seen (much less any LEO) on the freshly paved roads. I had a chance to thoroughly put the car through its paces. Eventually I made it up to Santa Cruz this way, and I spent several days visiting friends in the Bay Area. My fiancée flew in and we finished the second half of the drive together, up the 101 through Marin, Sonoma, Mendo, Humboldt, and Del Norte, before cutting over on the 199 to Highway 5 and home from there. A fantastic drive overall.

A few quick observations about configuration options that I had vacillated on:

Despite *nine* minor scrapes to the front bumper lip, I am still glad I made the choice to go with the standard SPASM. Usually these were from driveways, or when pulling into gas stations. I’m still getting the hang of it, but the lip still feels smooth when I run my hand along the bottom and there’s no visible wear. Bottom line, I bought this car for handling performance, so I feel I made the right call here.

I was really on the fence about a rear wiper. I live in the PacNW where it rains a lot. Enough people suggested that a wiper really wasn’t necessary, and after a solid day of driving in the rain, I now completely agree. The back end is sloped in such a way where it really is unnecessary, and water sitting there from parking washes off very quickly once driving commences. Another win.

And finally the Burmester. So many people have opinions on the music system in these cars. Some think any system is totally unnecessary. Some think the Bose is more than good enough. Some think that even the Burmester sounds like ****. Some think that it’s silly to attempt to put audiophile grade sound in a car with that much road noise, at any price. In my opinion I’m very happy I went with the Burmester. I think it’s a solid stock system. I don’t think it’s great, but I’m happy to turn to the aftermarket for that. I think a tweeter upgrade, and a better amp, along with some better speakers in the doors will do a lot.

Beyond this, I don’t have much to say yet. It’s an incredible car. It’s everything I hoped it would be. Unfortunately I don’t have a garage at my house yet. We break ground for one in another month. So in the meantime my new baby is in a car storage warehouse 30 minutes away. Hopefully by mid-summer we’ll be ready to bring her home. Fingers crossed.

If anyone wants to see the initial build of the car, it’s here: https://rennlist.com/forums/718-gts-...t-porsche.html

bradStyle

Jeff Jones

Great car and thanks for sharing the story of the drive home! Congratulations and enjoy all of the beautiful PNW driving roads we have!

UncleDude

Awesome, I love the spec. and these look so much better in person. What a nice way to break it in!

Makers

Wow! Bottom line, you nailed it. IMO you got every detail exactly right, eg, deleting the decals and badging, painting the calipers black (did you check that option later?), seat backrest shells in leather (I've never actually seen this, now I wish I had it!), and clear side markers. If I was shopping for a GTS 4.0 I'd bring your pictures to the dealer and tell him to get me one just like that! Well done!

PS. It also appears to me you know your way around a camera and how to take pictures of a car. Brochure quality pics!

bradStyle

Thanks! And good eye, yes, I forgot to include black calipers initially. Would have done those even if I went with the ceramics, which I considered. I really like the badging delete. If people don't know it's a Porsche I don't care. If people don't know it's a Cayman or a GTS I don't care. I know what it is, and fellow enthusiasts will recognize it. That's good enough for me. Regarding the backrest shells in leather, you know a lot of people complain about Porsche options driving the price up so much. I don't see it that way. I see it as Porsche allowing us the option to spend much less on the car if we want. They could throw in all of those options and charge a fortune, but they let you remove just about anything. To me, if I buy leather seats, I want the whole seat in leather, even if I'm not regularly looking at the back of it. Some people will elect to save $$$ there and that's fine, but not for me. I love the look of the full leather, and also getting rid of that tacky silver trim stripe. It's less busy without, and to me a cleaner, simpler look is more elegant. Glad you like it!

As much as I'd like to take credit for the pics (I am a photographer as well), the photo credit here goes to @MoeMistry of Glistening Perfection, an all-around badass.

Makers

Well kudos to Moe, and if I lived anywhere close I'd be a customer!

And I completely agree. IMO, the cleaner, the simpler, the better. Yours gets a 10!

Porsche757

Nice writeup! I also have a Cayman GTS on the way with the rear wiper, black calipers and Burmester but mine is chalk exterior and a manual. Unfortunately I'm caught up in the stop sale but hopefully on target for a late May delivery in Atlanta.

masti99

Congrats, enjoy in good health!

Goodwood

Gorgeous machine! Makes me wish mine would hurry up and get here! Mind saying what you had done at the detailer's?

bradStyle

Here's the breakdown:

ExMB

If you are going to do all that you just confirmed that the Burmester upgrade was a waste of money like so many advised.

bradStyle

$4,690 means something different to each of us. I think we can all individually make up our minds on what that is. You and I have each made our opinions clear.

JBM718GTS

Classy specification. Really understated and elegant. Congrats on that gorgeous thing!

JAhmed

Phenomenal build. Enjoy!!!