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As I was driving from LA to Las Vegas early this morning in my GT3T, I thought it would be worthwhile to create a thread dedicated to GT3 Touring owners and their worldwide traveling experiences with their Touring. After all, it is called a "Touring" and after having driven mine to San Diego, Santa Cruz and now Las Vegas, I can say without hesitation that there is no car that I would rather see the far reaches of the world in than my Touring.
I have said about my GTS that the sum is greater than the whole of its parts. I would say the same for the 991.2 GT3. The chassis, the engine, the nice balance of analog and tech within the interior, the steering feel, the gorgeous, classic lines of the car, the FAL (I think it is indispensable in metropolitan areas), the bucket seats, the PCCBs... All of these qualities taken in isolation are magnificent. But when you put them all together, the car is simply sublime.
I maxed out at 115 mph on the 15 to Vegas. 115 mph in my Touring and 115 mph in my GTS cab are night and day different. When I hit 115 in 6th gear in the GT3, the car seemed to be egging me on to push it harder. There were no rattles, the car was totally rock steady and razor sharp in its steering and handling. It was so tempting to floor it and to take the car to at least a buck fifty but I wanted to avoid jail time. In my GTS, when I get up to about 115, I start to get a little nervous. It is not nearly as confidence-inspiring as the GT3. I would not expect it to be, by the way... The GTS (mine is PDK) is perfect for running errands, for daily driving in ever-congested LA, and for top-down road trips up and down the coast. A surgical instrument in its own right, but a surgical instrument with a very different purpose (and far less technical precision) than the GT3.
I want to give another shoutout to Moe at Glistening Perfection in Costa Mesa and to Nick at Musicar in Portland for installing a brilliant Stage III Plus stereo system that puts the Burmester in my GTS to shame. And yes, having a high quality sound system in the GT3 makes total sense if you are an audiophile such as myself and if you would like an incredible musical soundtrack to accompany the screaming flat six. Further, Moe and Nick deserve kudos for the fully integrated laser jammer and radar detector which work flawlessly and give you two levels of defense from the highway patrol. I would highly suggest both the Musicar Stage III plus to the audiophiles out there and the laser jammer/radar detector to all of those who want the best technology for helping you avoid a speeding ticket while pushing your GT3 to your (and doubtfully its) limits.
I will be publishing more on this thread in a few weeks when I am going to take my Touring to the farthest reaches of Nor Cal, up to Mt. Shasta, Lassen National Park, Eureka, maybe even Oregon. Then head back down the coast with some beer and wine tasting in Napa and Sonoma, perhaps a round of golf at my favorite California golf course (Pasatiempo in Santa Cruz), down through Carmel and Big Sur and finishing in my old stomping grounds, Santa Barbara, to see one of my all-time favorite rock artists, John Fogarty, perform in SB wine country. If any of you guys or gals in Nor Cal have some suggestions on things to do and see, please chime in and/or DM me if you'd like to get together along my journey! Going forward, I am looking forward to sharing further insights on the car, to sharing lots of travel pictures and to seeing all sorts of great travel memories being made by my fellow GT3 Touring owners.
Car looking as good as new after 250 miles in the desert. Thanks for the perfect total body wrap and nano coating, Moe! What goes in Vegas, quickly (and I mean really quickly) leaves Vegas.
Great thread. I'd love to hear some more tales about how the radar jammer works against CHP and Nevada's finest. Are you using Waze as well? I'll look for you coming up (or down) the coast road at Pismo.
... If any of you guys or gals in Nor Cal have some suggestions on things to do and see, please chime in and/or DM me if you'd like to get together along my journey! Going forward, I am looking forward to sharing further insights on the car, to sharing lots of travel pictures and to seeing all sorts of great travel memories being made by my fellow GT3 Touring owners.
Dry Creek Valley in Sonoma is an absolute wonderful place to Tour. There are nice back roads to the coast too.
Enjoy, you really get what the car is all about!
When I first received my car I took it on a 950mile road trip to break in the engine (150 miles add 500 rpm). It started in Bend OR then the Oregon coast, Eastern oregon then back to Bend. Ended up being 1150 miles. I didn't get to drive hard or very fast since the motor was new but my son went with me and it was a great road trip.
Opinion- Car would be better at "Touring" with quieter tires. I am planning in try 4s Michelin on the next round. Other than tire noise (and only bad on certain surfaces) the car is great for long distance. I have the 4 way seat fyi.
96redLT4 - I am not using Waze. I tend to use Google Maps. I tried Waze but I personally did not find the cop warnings helpful and for me, I am content relying on the radar detector and jammer. Did not get jammed to and from Vegas. One car that sped by me got pulled over and yes, the radar detector warned me of his presence which is why I slowed down. Awesome technology!
Gasman85 - I am back in LA. Sorry - next time!
Perimeter - Thanks for the tip regarding Sonoma. I will do that for sure.
Chewylewis - Sounds like a plan. I'll be staying in Walnut Creek Friday, March 6th and I will likely be heading back down the coast across the Golden Gate Bridge early Thursday the 12th or Friday the 13th.
The near worst thing for our car for long distance drive is to keep the speed down to meet the legal requirement. Even occasionally you can have some fun but to worry about being pulled over is a mental stress. So how fast did u go?
20C4S - I topped out at around 125 in sixth gear on the way home today. I went into the mid to upper 90s in 5th gear which was pretty epic as well. It is amazing how tall the sixth gear is. I can toot along at 88 mph at around 2,500-3,000 RPM and if I want to gas it a bit, next thing I know, it is in the 120s but still with tons of room in the rev range. I'm up to 2,400 miles and I expect to put another 2,000 miles on the car during my trip to Nor Cal. I want to put at least 5,000 miles on the car per year. 10,000 on my GTS per year, 5,000 on my GT3.
So I am about 500 miles into my trip. LA to Walnut Creek on Friday. Saw Chris and Rich Robinson of The Black Crowes at The Chapel in The Mission District in SF last night. Today, I drove about 250 miles to Mount Shasta. You can just barely make it out in the picture below. It is fantastic smelling fresh, crisp alpine air. Tomorrow, I am driving 150 miles to Crater Lake, OR and then heading west to the southern half of the Oregon coast. The Touring just eats up the miles. A perfect grand tourer. So capable, the car. The noise the engine makes above 7,000 RPM is something else again. Most of my driving thus far has been straight and flat on the 5. More twists, turns and elevation changes in tomorrow’s drive. One observation is that I like the exhaust the way it is. Sure, I’d love to lose weight and to improve performance with Dundon’s offering but I would not want the car to be any louder. It is plenty loud for my taste. The buckets are so much more comfortable than the 4-ways in my GTS, not to mention they are more supportive and look sexy as hell with the houndstooth inserts. And the PCCBs are superior to the steels in my GTS as well. I know, no surprise there but in hindsight, I think the steels are fine for a daily driver but I think it makes sense to go for the PCCBs if you want the weight loss and the improved performance in a GT car. Since I have no track plans, I am not worried about thrashing the brakes after a few track days.
I do think the Bose is inadequate for a car of this caliber, for the audiophiles out there. I spec’d my car with Bose but upgraded to Musicar stage 3+. So glad that I did. It puts Burmester to shame. The fully integrated laser jammer and radar detector have also worked beautifully to date (knock on some serious wood). More to come!
Now up to 900 miles for the trip and over 3,000 total for the car. The engine just keeps getting better and better. I drove from Mount Shasta to Crater Lake and then on to Bandon, OR. I did not actually get to see Crater Lake as it was snowing at the entrance to the park. In fact, for about 30 harrowing miles, I had to drive along a road that was totally covered in about 2 inches of fresh powder. I have now officially bonded with my car. The car did remarkably well, under the circumstances. I stayed in 2nd and 3rd gear, went around 25-35 mph and I only skidded once, when turning right into the park entrance, but I was able to right the ship (with the assistance of the car's superpowers, of course). I did not go beyond the park entrance into the park because I would most likely have gotten stuck in the snow at higher elevations. It was 29 degrees at 6,000 feet at the park entrance. That was craziness. The tires get huge props. Mine came from the factory with the Dunlops. I have read about how these tires are not great for wet conditions. Well, I drove through rain and snow for the majority of my drive today and the tires did fantastically well. Here is a picture I took in Weed, CA. That is Mount Shasta in the background. Interestingly, Mount Shasta is a volcano that is still capable of erupting. Tomorrow, 500 mile coastal drive between Bandon and Santa Rosa, CA. On to wine country!
Here are some better quality pictures, including a shot looking back toward Mt. Shasta and a shot on the snowy road to Crater Lake. I expect to have some pretty spectacular pictures of the Oregon and Nor Cal coast tomorrow.
^^Wow. That is awesome. I wondered how you would get close to Crater Lake this time of year and with some now cold weather. The rest of the journey should be cake!
I was blessed with beautiful weather today during my drive from Bandon to Sonoma. It is in the low 70's in Sonoma today. Feels like So Cal! I am up to 1,350 miles over the last 4 days. Going to relax and drink some wine and beer in Napa and Sonoma over the next three days and then on to Monterey, Carmel, Big Sur and Santa Barbara for the John Fogerty concert. The Oregon coast is simply breathtaking. The farthest reaches of northwestern California are magnificent as well. The redwoods up there are a sight to behold. Here are some pictures of the Oregon coast and of the Carson House in Eureka (considered one of the finest examples of the Queen Anne architectural style). Had a nice mix of straightaways and twists and turns on the drive from Oregon to Sonoma. The Touring is such a capable car. To think I am barely scratching its capabilities is mind boggling. Sorry guys and gals, you will never see my car in the RL marketplace. I always planned on making this my forever car. This trip has sealed the deal. This is all and more than I could ever possibly need in a sports car.
02-21-2020, 04:03 PM
991.2 GT3 Touring Worldwide Travel Log
