There was a recent thread purporting to list spring rates on all versions of the 991.2, base, S, GTS, GT3, and the implication is that the base model was seriously under-sprung, very soft.

Now I'm on the hunt for a used 991.2 base, manual, sport exhaust, sport seats, sport chrono. Coming from a 996 Turbo, and looking for a drivers car. The .2 base is at the right price point, and I can definitely live without the bigger S turbos (will be putting Cobb tune on) and without the bigger brakes (by all reports, base brakes are excellent), but really cant live with marshmallow handling. As an additional note, I would probably also be adding a DSC sport controller for the PASM shocks which now come standard even on a base...

So any owners of 991.2 base models (or owners of other models that have significant seat time in a base car) that also drive their cars aggressively in the canyons (or lightly on the track) want to chime in and calm my fears that the base spring rates are too soft? Or pile on and tell me I have to suck it up and spend another $20K on a .2 S?

My expectation is that a 991.2 base with Cobb and DSC Sport would provide at least the equal of power and handling to my current 996 Turbo (mostly stock with Cobb tune). Not looking for a track rat, but a car that would be an awesome weekend driver and still hold its own on an occasional open track day.

Thoughts? Opinions? Ridicule?

 

I have a few thousand miles under my belt in a base .2 mainly driving like a rat bag. Suspension is a little softer than my .2 GTS with every handling feature. Not bad at all and lack of LSD makes it hard to lose control going ***** to the wall through twisties.

Tailing a 2014 V8 R8 with both of us going all out, I can say that the .2 was all over the place while R8 looked flat and composed. He still couldn't shake the .2 though.

The base brakes are phenomenal.

 

Thanks. Perfect experience comparison... .2 GTS with all the extra goodies vs. .2 base with the goodness of the underlying suspension design.

Curious, out of all the possible GTS extras like stiffer springs, spasm, pdcc, rws, lsd, ptv, etc., which would you pick first if you could add only one to a base car?

Not really much opportunity to take a test drive on a .2 and push it nearly hard enough to tell how it really drives... Nor would I want to push a borrowed car that hard.

 

Since you're getting a manual you don't have to care for LSD so much. SPASM IMO is mild and nothing crazy. It would definitely be PDCC.. That's not to say rws isn't amazing, it's subtle but it's there. Doesn't feel woozy/wobbly compared to other RWS features I've felt in other "sports cars".

Just rent a .2 base from Hertz and get insurance on it.


The PDK base .2 is really fun to throw around and no slouch. I could push it to it's limits and loved it. I feel like I need ***** of steel to push the GTS to the limits.

 

I would agree with the PDCC. Had it on my 991 4S and now on my TTS. Will help keep any roll to a minimum and the car flat and more surefooted in the corners. RWS is a nice add if you can do it that gives that little edge that may be the difference.

 

I have 12k miles of seat time in my .2 C4 and I hammer the car. I also have a 981 Boxster S so I drive them back to back on the same roads frequently.

The 911 rolls more for sure. 981 is really flat even in a convertible. I tried to get SPASM or PDCC added on the 911 through Porsche Exclusive in Atlanta when I built my car. I knew it was a long shot since they only do fluff stuff but I gave it a shot. I offered to pay twice as much for those options. No deal. PCNA wants you to step up to the S to get those options. I've driven three 911 Ss on a track (.1S, .2S and .2 C4S) but I really can't give you a good comparison in suspensions between them.

If you can, take out a .2. If you fly to ATL or LA, you can drive one on a PEC track. I'm flying to ATL next week for business and will take a 718 Base out for 90 minutes on their track. Can't wait.

 

The suspension on the base is softer as mentioned. The track behavior is significantly improved with the V2 box. My car is a cab, which is the second softest setup (allegedly, as the targa base is supposed to be even softer)

Lack of LSD is an issue is fast straights like before turn 5 on Road America. The car gets really shaky. I needed to brake earlier than GT3s or GT4s bc the car becomes difficult to control when added hard braking in this scenario. My car being a convertible doesn't help.

The brakes are good but won't take heat punishment so well. SRF improves that to a point.

I drove RWS back to back with normal GTSs at the PSDS, the difference can be noticed, but I would live without it.

If you won't track the car, I think the base is good enough as it will be hard to take advantage of the add ons on the S or GTS. Just my 2c

 

I thought the suspension was great on the 991.2 C2. Way better than the Boxster S without the GTS suspension that I drove. And very much acceptable coming from a 997.2 TTS. But probably not ideal for canyons.

I didn't like the brakes. Acceptable, yes, but not as good of a feel as the S brakes. It was at least one factor that was swaying me towards an S. I actually liked the base engine better. I'll probably eventually add a .2 to share DD duty.

 

 

So there's no doubt in my mind that the 991.2 S and GTS offer a fair bit over a base .2, but for the (admittedly arbitrary) budget I've set for my next 911 ($75K-$85K), a 991.2 S doesn't come close to hitting the target...

In that price range, I've considered these (all coupe, manual):

• 997.1 Turbo
• 997.2 GTS
• 991.1 S, 4S
• 991.2 C2 (base)

I'm leaning heavily towards the 991.2 C2, here's why:

997.1 Turbo: 997.2 GTS:991.1 S:991.2 Base:Course the really hard decision will be selling the Turbo after finding the right .2. Not sure I can do it! Pretty sure it would turn out to be yet another car I'd look back on in years to come and think 'I never should have sold it..."

 

Should have bought my base .2 at Bellingham, had all the right options and was CPO.

 

I agree it was a really nice car, but IMHO significantly overpriced at $90K! I'm happy for you as you got in trade about what I would expect to pay retail, and I suppose my value opinion is relative as I presume someone else bought it... But at $90K, I probably would be stretching a bit further to get into a 991.2 S!

I'm content to be patient and wait for the right car at the right price at the right dealership (or private seller). Lots more are starting to come off early one year and early two year leases, and I have another car I truly enjoy to drive in the meantime!

 

Base 991.2 owner here, coming from a 997.2 C4S with the DSC module. The new base car is compliant on the road, and I've participated in Auto crosses and a hill climb event. I've also many spirited back road drives. The car is stock form is pretty much perfect for the road. There is body roll but it's nothing really you'd notice terribly unless you were really looking for it. The suspension is soft enough to absorb bad bumps and uneven surfaces without jolting the chassis and losing composure.

I keep thinking about lowering it slightly, but then I'd lose the clearance which prevents me from scraping, so I don't want that either.

Sure the brakes on the base model are smaller than the 'S' , but they're the same size as the 997.2 C4S which I had, and I tracked that car running Castrol SRF and never had any braking fade.

The base manual car weighs less than my old 997.2 C4S, so the brakes should be fine unless you're doing repeated sustained high-speed braking. I've never had any issues with the brakes on the base car and during the hill climb I gave some ride-alongs to people who were genuinely shocked at it's stopping power (granted they were BMW drivers, but still )

 

I hear you! The car sold for around 85K. Patience is a virtue and the right car will come around.

 

I was going back over some old threads and noticed a post from Stout apropos to this thread... Hopefully he doesn't mind me re-quoting it here.

And from another thread...

OK, maybe I'm just loving his opinion as it's what I want to hear, but damn that's some high praise for the base suspension setup from a pretty respected source...