Manifold

A fellow driver was kind enough to let me do a few demo laps in his 991.2 GT3. I didn't push his car the way I would my own, but I think the pace was sufficient to gauge the car. After doing thousands of laps in my 991.1 GT3, here are my impressions of the differences.

- The .2 shifts a bit faster, closer to instantaneous.

- The .2 is a bit louder at higher revs. The quality of the soundtrack is similar.

- The .2 has an increment more power and torque, but it's not a big difference.

- The steering of the .2 feels a bit lighter, and I think it's slightly better overall than the .1.

- Brakes might be a bit better on the .2, but not sure, since we had different pads and my pedal was a bit spongy.

- The handling of .2 is significantly better. My guess is that it's mostly due to better damping control. The car is planted during braking, including in bumpy brake zones, and generally soaks up bumps better without rolling or pitching much. This makes the car easier to drive and inspires more confidence and control, including during corner entry.

Overall, I would say that the .2 is a somewhat better version of .1, not a fundamentally different car. I find them to be much more the same rather than different. My learning curve with the .2 was close to zero, felt immediately familiar yet better in some ways. I don't feel a strong urge to upgrade to the .2 GT3 at this point (especially give the extended engine warranty on the .1), but if I could get my hands on a .2 GT3 RS at a reasonable price, I might be interested (I was on a list, but never got an allocation).

I expect that the 992 GT3 will be pretty bonkers.

robmypro

Sounds like a .2 to me. Thanks for the feedback! Waiting for details on the 992 as well. The jump from the 997.2 to 991.1 was pretty huge, so expecting the 992.1 to be a similar leap, which should be insane. Plus, lots of special GT models coming for the 992 gen. Should be interesting.

RDCR

Thanks for the report. Are you running the DSC controller or any other suspension mods in your .1? I have no reference to compare my .1 to other then to a GT4 and GTS and I've never tracked my .1 without the DSC (I moved it over when I bought mine last fall.) I felt my car is much more stable under braking then the GT4 or GTS other then fighting the worn out cup 2s.

GrantG

Yep, I've been expecting 50th Anniversary of 73 Carrera RS for years, but also realized that same year (Model Year 2023) will be 75th Anniversary of Porsche (1948). So lots of excuses to build lots of interesting/limited models (which they've already said they plan).

Manifold

No DSC in my .1, and I don't think the .2 had it either. Overall, the cars are like twin brothers, where one of the brothers works out more frequently than the other, and is therefore a bit stronger, more agile, etc.

I forgot to mention that, even though this particular .2 is really pretty, I still think the .1 looks better.

Akunob

"... I don't feel a strong urge to upgrade to the .2 GT3 at this point (especially give the extended engine warranty on the .1" I share similar sentiments. I'm looking ahead to the 992 GT3 as well. If I did upgrade, in the interim though, it would be for that engine!! The 4.0L is just insanely good.

Tom@TPC Racing

Manifold, which color 991.2 GT3 did you drive?

Manifold

It was the chalk white one.

DK7

991.2 - 4.0 is a different beast !
suspension much better.

Tom@TPC Racing

That's a beautiful car. We did track alignment, no DSC(yet), sway bars in factory position- middle/middle. If your front bar is set stiffer, it may be why this car's steering feel lighter.

Manifold

Yep, definitely a beauty. On track, I didn't notice an obvious difference in the steering feel, but in the paddock that was the first thing I noticed. The overall balance of the two cars felt essentially the same to me - same inputs gave pretty much the same outputs, except that the .2 was more composed.

After the first lap, I said something like "this thing is so easy to drive, it pretty much just drives itself," which is of course what owners of 991 cars hate hearing from owners of older Porsches!

Cay_PI

I made the same experience. When I test-drove the .2 I expected a WOW-moment regarding the engine but it was totally different. I don't felt a power difference, .2 is a bit more meaty at lower rpm but .1 feels more racy because of the sharper power development / topend rush. But really not much of a difference. I also missed the gear-rattle and the brutal upshifting. .2 PDK is faster but softer.

What I noticed emmidiately (and I was very surpriced because I dind't expetetd it) was the much more planted ride. The difference is much more noticable than the light power difference.

isv

interesting that comment. I agree the 991s and especially the .2 is very well damped the general stability of the ca s makes them pretty easy to drive quickly..... But yet when one drives say an older 997 refitted with really top class dampers which work every bit as well if not better than the factory .2gt3 suspension one never gets the 'too easy to drive' feeling.

Manifold

Have you guys compared a .1 with DSC versus a .2 with no DSC? I find the handling of my .1 to be excellent at every track except Summit Point main, which unfortunately is my home track. So I haven't been super motivated to put in the DSC box, but if it makes things better at Summit, it could be very worthwhile. Maybe we can arrange to set up a DSC trial at the next event we attend together.

You make good points, I agree. Overall, the .2 feels smoother and more refined, whereas the .1 is a bit rawer. The power difference is probably less noticeable on track because the revs are kept up on track. I do prefer the rattling sounds of the .1.

Now that my warranty is done, I guess I can consider options like the DSC box or other suspension upgrades.

I should qualify my 'easy to drive' comment by clarifying that it's 'easy' up to about 8/10ths. Reaching for 10/10ths, I don't find the 991.1 GT3 to be easy to drive, and I imagine that the 991.2 wouldn't be either. And of course, the challenge is a big part of the fun!

GrantG

Yeah, definitely the biggest change in the .2 was the offering of a gearbox that invited the rest of us to the party (who have to have a Manual).