kfmcmahon

I like your style. (and i say this with an unblemished record of staunch heterosexuality)

RealityGT

^HAHHA

BlueGT3

have absolutely loved the PDK-S on my 991.1 but if I get a build on 991.2 I'm definitely going with a Manual. Both are great, I just enjoy going thru the gears on the drive home. I've tracked the car a few times and prefer the PDK on the track but I don't track it enough for that to trump my driving enjoyment on the back roads with a manual gearbox.

matttheboatman

I have had both, understand and appreciate the nuances of each. It is not for me to tell you what you should and should not like.

But, from my perspective here are the real world differences:

PDK Pros:
1. Faster on track - depending on which track, but about 3 seconds on a 2:00 min circuit.
2. No chance of over-revs.
3. Downshifts from high speed are an intoxicating sound of all things motorsports.
4. It is a modern day marvel of technology that actually works better than you could demand.
5. You can manually downshift instantaneously with a quick flick of the left fingers to any gear without fear of hurting car (computer will protect all).
6. Normally extra $ option, its free on the GT3.

PDK Cons:
1. Not as exciting on the street, and sport plus mode with its red-line shifts are not practical.
2. All the shifting can be bothersome if you just want the car to slow or accelerate like a normal car.
3. More sterile feeling, not as involving.

Manual Pros:
1. On the track and at the edge, the manual is a learned dance that involves perfectly timed movement of your hands and your feet. Once perfected, there is something in the human condition that makes you want to repeat it over and over again.
2. Fun on the street - going to the grocery store more exciting.
3. As in the GT4, Porsche's manual shift is much improved over previously examples. A fun combination of an old school system, re-worked to modern day perfection - includes an auto-blipper for perfect downshifts.
4. A defining characteristic of a sports car is a manual shifter.
5. As evidenced by the value of 911 R, IMO manual will likely fetch more $ in future resale - BUT ONLY IF NOT OVER REV'ed.

Manual Cons:
1. Answering a cell phone call or getting an ice cream not practical with manual.
2. The fear of over-rev ruination of valuation. If you make one money-shift mistake, you can kiss a lot of money good bye.
3. On the track, no matter how skilled you think you are, the PDK computer is better/faster.

Truth be told, I can't decided whether I want the PDK or manual.

bronson7

There's some day's I say, get MT and some days I say PDK. Like I've been saying for a while, I'll worry about the decision when I get my allocation.

GrantG

Only 3 seconds on 7:15 lap of Nurburgring for Timo Kluck, Porsche test driver (implies well less than a second on the average US track).

With Auto Rev Match enabled on the Manual, even a merely good driver should be able to come close to his/her own PDK lap time.

neanicu

There is absolutely no freaking way pdk is 3 seconds faster than manual on a 2 min circuit in the hands of a capable driver!!

GrantG

3 sec on a 2 minute lap would be a 2.5% difference. The actual measured difference on the 991.2 GT3 is under 0.7% for Tim Kluck.

The professional drivers (Jason Plato and Tiff Needell) on the British TV show, 5th Gear, lapped similarly spec'd Manual and PDK Caymans and the manual was very slightly faster when PDK first came out in 2009. PDK-S does enjoy a very slight road course advantage over manual now, but I can't imagine that the time difference is significant enough that someone who is otherwise inclined to have a manual would opt for the PDK for that reason alone (with no money nor sponsorships resulting from the outcome of a track outing).

Palting

Was this episode with the old hosts, where Porsche's were often derided?

GrantG

Are you thinking of the old "Top Gear"? Clarkson hates Porsche. But I'm talking about "5th Gear" (with Jason, Tiff, Vicki) who I think all like Porsche.

scb997

I spent my first two years with my 2014 GT3 wishing that I had a manual for weekend drives. Sometime last fall, I went to the "dark side" and decided that I'd get a PDK, again. The build sheet, that I have at my dealer, for a 2019, says manual. I keep changing my mind. It's that close. Both would be great...

Scott

Palting

Ah, my bad.

matttheboatman

I heard this over and over with other models. And, I'm sure my words will not change your mine. But, for those who know first hand - like me, you must trust me, PDK in AUTO mode is substantially quicker. Same driver / Same tires it is measurably quicker, not 1/2% but seconds quicker.

Please note this observation - every time you see a Pro driver or media personality run a PDK car in a TV or video test or review, they shift it manually which negates some of the computer's advantage to make it quicker.

Keep in mind is not just a quicker shift that makes it faster. It also;

- improves braking performance after a long straight by engine-assist slowing with near perfect red-line downshifts

- it puts the car in the optimum power band during the track out phase at every moment of the process - even if that means it puts the car in 2nd gear for a half--second at the beginning of the acceleration phase.

- and there is no loss of momentum when up shifting between gears.

You don't gotta like PDK. And, it aint all perfect. But, if you think you will be able to keep up with your buddy's PDK-equipped 991.2 GT3 at the track, you will quickly learn otherwise. No matter how well you shift.

GrantG

Matt - I know you are coming from a sincere place, but you are not correct in this case. Timo Kluck is a paid employee of Porsche whose job is to test drive and develop its cars (and whose lap time was used in Porsche's press release for the 991.1 GT3). Are you suggesting that the reason he was only 3 seconds slower around the 13-mile Ring in a Manual .2 GT3 than a PDK-S .2 GT3 is because he doesn't understand how to properly use the PDK?

Also, you may want to add a couple more attributes of PDK-S to your list above:

1. It reduces engine power to the rear wheels by around 8 to 10 hp compared to Manual, because it is has more internal friction than manual (expending this lost power as heat into the gearbox)

2. It weighs 37 pounds more than Manual.

And as far as keeping up in your 991.2 GT3 with your buddy's 991.2 GT3 at the track, it will depend FAR more on what kind of driver each of you is (and even whose tires have an extra couple track days of use), more than which gearbox option each of you chose.

Mech33

GT3 vs GT4 on a 2 min circuit are roughly 3 seconds apart, and I assure you most of this time is power difference, not PDK vs. manual!