I'm in the market for a used 991.2, either a GTS for a T, in a manual. I'm torn between the two and would love to hear any real work experience. The car will be a weekend toy and be used for spirited drives. I love the simplicity of the T but the GTS HP keeps swaying me. Plus, I don't love alcantara.

Ideal spec would be simple - BOSE, RWS, and a manual.

I'd love some real world insight between the two if anyone has owned both.

Todd

 

Driven both, extensively, ok? Or only owned?

Both are great, and it comes down to more power or "more" simplicity. I prefer the 370hp, narrow body Carrera/T to the GTS, but it's hardly night and day. I find the 370 cars little more fun and frisky on back roads, more placeable too. GTS starts feeling "supercar," and into GT3 territory. Which is awesome. But I find all of these cars are "too fast" anyway...and I rarely find myself wishing for more speed than the 370hp engine has to offer. On the other hand, I always appreciate its even more NA-ish character, much in the way I like the way PCCB. It's a little thing, not explainable. Kinda like Alcantara vs SportTex (I prefer the latter, but some don't!). If I was going to track the thing, I'd take a harder look at the GTS over the 370 cars.

YMMV, which is why we have choices...which is a good thing, even if it can be agonizing! I remember spec'ing the 370hp cars, whether Carrera or T, and my "ideal" spec always came within $5k of a stripper GTS I could live with, which made the GTS seem like the much smarter buy. But not sure this is supposed to be about "smart." It's supposed to be about good and fun. The good news: You can't go wrong here!

 

For the OP’s purpose, I think you would enjoy the GTS more. The T is great, and you don’t feel any turbo lag, very NA like, but, for me, it lacked the power. The GTS has noticeably more power, and you definitely feel it. But, there is a slight lag in the GTS, not much, but it’s there. I had some good seat time in both cars this year. Both really are great, and as noted before, you can’t go wrong with either. But, again, I think for your purpose, the extra power and wide body would give you the enjoyment you want.

 

Yup. The struggle is real.

 

In 2019 I drove my NA'd 2011 Boxster Spyder out to the dealership and took a PDK 991.2 GTS for a long good romp in the countryside. Amazing experience. But afterwards went and spec'd, for less money and less weight, a Carrera T. I describe the T as "GT esque", with it's GT bits and bobs and the nice and snappy 7 speed MT mated to the small turbored, NA-like 3.0. It's a super fun car, especially with a MT and PCCBs. The perfect combo.

I'd go and drive both. Let your heart decide.

 

What he said. The 370 is so enjoyable on the street.

 

Completely agree. And if you want GTS power, you can get a tune for a few grand that will get you almost there. It really brings the T alive....

 

I say GTS... But a couple of thoughts/things...

Where do you live? And how much speed do you really need? Each car is stupid fast when you want them to be. One even stupider... If you live in a police state ( yes, I'm talking about you People's Republic of NOVA ) where anything over 80 is an automatic court appearance, you'll just be asking to be frustrated. And keeping the car up above 3k to avoid lag, and not look like you're posturing, gets old.

If you have not read it, find Herr stout's thread from several months ago 'when 370 is enough'... May prove helpful.

Lastly, if budget is a thing, you'll get a T (if you can find a MT now) for much less. Even with more leather than alcantara. A GTS is definitely going to come with a premium for that spec.

Good luck!

ẞ

 

Many of us with GTS cars do not have alcantara so look around...I ordered mine with full leather and love it, and it is always better to have too much power than not enough, even if it does not get used all the time.

 

I had an 18 Carrera base manual and traded up to a 19 Carrera GTS manual. The power difference is very significant and the GTS feels much tighter all around. Also I much prefer the more aggressive look of the GTS, especially the fatter butt.
You need to drive both to see what hits you. You will know immediately after a drive.

 

As a 4 GTS owner, I can say that I truly enjoy it. The power is truly amazing. Some will say though that a slower car driven hard is more fun than a fast car driven slowly. Stomping on the gas in the GTS gets you above speed limit in 2nd gear. The Miatas have a strong following since they are cheap for sure but you can drive them hard as well and not get in trouble as quickly as you would drink the GTS at 8/10.

 

T is awesome but GTS, final answer. Arguing for less power is blasphemy. Also wide body, nicer bumpers etc etc

 

I'm sure one would enjoy both. Hard not to like any 911. If GTS, GTS without centerlocks.

Personally, the GTS doesn't do it for me. Power is not really my thing. The T is the only Carrera I'm interested in of this outgoing gen. No Carrera feels special in the GT magic sense, but the T feels a bit closer to that balance of qualities. It transcends a bit of the "Carrera" in a way no Carrera cars I've sampled do. Carrara's generally feel quite Carrera, if you're used to GT. I'm fond of the car not because I have one, but because I think they baked something special into the car and I can't exactly figure out what makes it feel the way it does.

 

It’s a good thing that Porsche makes so many variants. Everyone has an opportunity to find something they love. And if not, then we don’t need you kind. 🤣

 

You can’t go wrong either way here. The GTS is a great package car with more power. The Carrera T is perfect for driving on the street and can easily handle that occasional track day.

As a performance car owner I can see the argument for the GTS but rest assured the Carrera T is no slouch.