oooh, it's a PDK vs MT thread inside of one thread page.

This'll get the OP somewhere.

 

Heh my bad I just dislike my PDK so much it's easy to get me going on it.

 

Definitely your bad.

Look, I don't disagree about manuals being fun. I'm ordering a new GTS 4 cab because I found it absolutely impossible to purchase a used 4S cab with a manual transmission in a color I like. Any 3 out of 4 (AWD, cabriolet, manual, color I like) yes, 4 out of 4 no. Though sometimes I think I should have bought that manual yellow 2015 GTS cab in Arlington... anyway, I digress.

But stuff like "2 pedals are for posers" is kinda ugly and obviously false (as other posters have pointed out).

 

Maybe I went too extreme, but I do kind of feel like as a PDK driver I can kind of joke about it in an only semi serious self-deprecating way that wouldn't be as cool if I didn't have one. It's easy to lose the intent on a post though... I should definitely have at least added a smiley.

 

Here's another derail:

What's wrong with the Corvette Z06? On paper, it's a ridiculous amount of performance, like Turbo S levels of performance, for half the money. You can't even argue that it's a poorly-turning muscle car anymore, they apparently corner really well now. Sport Auto did the 'Ring in 7:14 in a manual transmission C7 Z06. It's not official, but it's still only a second and change slower than the official .2 GT3 time. For an unskilled driver like myself, it's got gobs of fun torque.

So why don't I want one? I look at it, I think about the badge, and I automatically reject it. Not that the looks are exactly bad, they just evoke that unrefined muscle car image, whatever the current reality may be.

Are there any objective reasons to justify my gut reaction? Build quality, for example?

 

I think when you go that far over, you really have to add a lot more than a smiley to make clear you're joking. You didn't mention the PDK ownership in the original post, for example, which you probably should have.

It's the internet, it's text, and it's on a forum where posters regularly gut each other on the subject. Best to assume that people will take you seriously if you don't include 4 pages of disclaimers.

 

There is plenty of data, particularly from Sport Auto in Germany that clearly show there is very little difference in performance if you accept track times as averaging devices (e.g. test all components of a vehicle).

Last Xmas, I looked very hard at a 488 GTB Spyder, the engine response was fantastic and the overall look was simply stunning. However, I quickly worked out (from my perspective) I couldn't make it work as a daily and that was the end of that.

There were other things that put me off e.g. the gauge cluster, specifically the rectangular units either side of the tach - I could only describe them as nintendo like (that is not to decry the underlying functionality and performance delivery).

In a straight line the 488 GTB is epic and will hit 200kmh in 9s but add corners to the mix, and as Sport Auto has clearly shown, it is brought back to the pack.

In terms of the GTS/X51 - I have pointed out from my own data and personal experiences that the 3l turbo is a very good unit and just a smidgin behind the 488 GTB in terms of response (but obviously down on torque and peak power due to capacity).

The bottom line is they are different horses for different courses - the Ferraris are about theatre and performance whereas the Porsches are about functionality and performance.

One is built in Italy, One is built in Germany -

 

Too harsh a ride? Need more space, since it's a 2 seater with only the frunk? I'm curious.

I just watched Doug DeMuro's 488 video, and man, he sure did make it out to be a very attractive car. Not that I'll ever have that kind of money to spend on a car.

 

Ferrari owners are rich. Porsche owners think they are rich.

 

Biggest difference?

The 991.2 is a better daily driver than the 488.

Why?

Because the 488 attracts attention like flies on day-old fecal matter. Every trip becomes an event, even if one is just using the 488 to grab some milk and eggs at the grocery store (which I've done, and it's a major PIA.)

 

It's unfair because it is a different car class comparison. 991 is a great car, but if you have the means to own a 458 or 488 or maybe P 918 don't hold back As for practicability for daily driver etc, you will forget all of that once you drive it.

PF

 

Is yours red? I wonder if red Ferraris get increased attention.

 

A combination of factors - it feels very wide and yet Cayman cramped with relatively poor over the shoulder visibility plus relatively brittle ride and poor clearance for the roads where I commonly drive (note I specifically selected PASM as opposed to SPASM because of this).

If I were elsewhere it would be back on my list - scintillating engine response.

Basically it wasn't so much the car but rather the environment and ultimately my X51 .2S is the ultimate compromise - it can do everything yet remain stealthy (relatively).

 

Think this is largely a function of the type of Ferrari (the low slung mid engine cars get lots of eyes), color (red or yellow over others), and where you live (Beverly Hills, not so much; Mayberry, more attention). Our Cali - ivory - is pretty fly under the radar here in the wilds of DFW.

The best solution is to have one of each, with a pickup truck for Home Depot, dog hauling, mother in law chauffeuring.

T

 

I had the pleasure of renting a red 458 spyder in Florence that I drove through Tuscany with my wife. It was one of the greatest days of my life as I fulfilled a childhood dream of driving a Ferrari and also had a blast ripping up the back roads of Tuscany with my girl. Man that day brings back smiles.

On our return to Florence at 6pm that Friday night the streets were packed and let's just say the attention was intense. Now this was certainly a unique experience since the roads in Florence are more for pedestrians but man was that attention awkward. And all day it was certainly a show wherever we went. Good and bad. Some liked it and asked questions and some were hatters. I could see how the attention would get old real quick. But damn, I would do my best to force myself to get over it and suffer through the ownership experience if I had the means.