Levy

had the same experience when i was 911 shopping. had a budget range i really wanted to stick to but after driving both (991.1 base and S), i knew an S was the only answer for me. nothing worse then spending this kinda money and not being 100% happy. needless to say i stopped looking at base's and ended up stretching the budget for an S. zero regrets. the money spent is forgotten about quickly but the driving joy keeps going

life is full of compromises. don't let your 911 be one of them. if the base puts a giant smile on your face, get one. if not??.....don't and go with an S

barncobob

i bought a 2006 base years ago...i always wondered what the Swould be like...next Por i got was an S and very happy

thesaintusa

I had a C63 (507 trim, w204) a few years ago and loved it. Looked great! Was a blast to drive and sounded AMAZING. I drove it year round including in the winter with winter tires. The ground clearance in the winter was an issue, and as we often went to the mountains preferred anything but RWD for those trips. Upgraded to an e63s for the 4matic, still has terrible ground clearance.

Not an exact comparison, but I prefer my 991.2 GTS in ALL aspects except the sound. The PSE is nice, but MB AMG have definitely sorted out the sound of their V8, and the road noise is definitely more pronounced in 911 versus the C63. I have read that the GTS is louder than the non GTS 911s, but it doesn't bother me that much as it is still quiet relative to our Jeep or my RX-7.

As mentioned, if you need more power just get an ECU tune.

The 911 is a completely different driving experience even though it is RWD. The balance of the car is obviously very different, and the rear grip is amazing. You definitely need to learn to rotate the car and trail braking (or lack of) enhances this aspect of driving. The front end is much lighter due to the lack of an engine above the front end), and the PDK completely blows away the of the MCT 7 speed transmission of the C63/E63. The PDK shifts quicker, responds quick to input (if in 'manual mode'), and on the track is telepathic. Switching just for the PDK is a worthwhile jump. I was a on the fence with the PDK, but it is a blast.

Driving on the street you will never exceed what the base 911 can do, or even the S, GTS etc. If you can you are definitely driving like a fool. Even on the track I suspect that I am driving only at 6-7/10 while I feel like I am on the ragged edge. haha.

If you can manage the 911 base get it! If you can get the 911 S, get that.

pdkZ

nited.

I have a 2020 - they’ve changed the trans BIG TIME. I’d say it’s the closest to PDK I’ve ever driven.

Twozter

Both my water cooled (997.1 and 991.1) 911s have been base Carrera 2s with not a ton of options. Maybe I'm weird (well, I know I am actually...) but I prefer them with a little less power and a little lighter and less complicated, but every Porsche I've ever owned had one thing in common: smiles. You can't go wrong with any of them, but if you have doubts about the power, go with the S.

BSO

The base is plenty quick, few cars you see on the road will be able to outrun it.

I wanted a base '19 and drove one (had plenty of pep), but the available allocation was for an S and Porsche wouldn't downgrade. Ended up getting a C4S, the dealer increased the discount to 7% plus threw in the Atlanta delivery as a bonus to make up their inability to fulfill my initial request.

I would have been perfectly happy with a base as I am with the S.

shockedcape

I have a 991.2 base with PDK and PSE. I've also had an M5 and an E63. The porsche is the most fun car I've owned and frankly feels much faster than the others (if only because it's so light)

pdkZ

Update:

I spent a good 25 mins test driving a base (note that the one i test drove did NOT have sport chrono and only had the stock 19 ugly rims)

Feelings:
- Coming from a C63S - the power felt VERY underwhelming & it felt it needed to fully compress the pedal for it to move
- The turbo lag was pretty evident at the lower range
- The car feels more NA than turbo (but you can feel the turbo lag)
- The burbles in sport are nice (obviously - it's not touching the 4.0L twin-turbo V8 of the AMG but good stuff here)
- The steering wasn't the "precision" that I was expecting from a Porsche (yes - it handled great but i feel MB has come soo far - feel the S would be a big difference)
- The PDK is great, but only when you're REALLY on it, i honestly think the Mercedes MCT in the C63S is right there with it - note that my C63S is a 2020 so it has the upgraded 9-speed) - the transmission in the Cayman GTS i drove felt faster and better than the one in the Carrera (don't know if it's gearing or something)
- The setup & cockpit of the 991 is just perfect & gives you a ton of confidence
- Surprisingly, the ride was VERY SMOOTH and not the stiffness i would expect even in sport with the sport suspension
- The cayman GTS (not the 4-liter v6) is a better car than the base carrera that shifted better - sound goes to the 911
- Aesthetically, 911s just captivate me so that's hard

I say this about the power, but I will note it's still pretty easy to get up to 80-90 MPH on the highway & the gearing is longer than my C63S

Really wondering if i would feel a difference in the S model

Ultimately, i'm not sure if i want to pull the trigger. I feel it may be wise to wait for a 991.2 S or a 992 base to see. I have about 12-15k of equity in my car and the S payments would put me around $1500 per month, which is about $250 more than a base spec and the top of my budget (for now)

I really want to get into the Porsche brand but this is difficult. I would pull the trigger on a Cayman GTS but i do have a newborn so the ONLY 2 seats is just not at all practical compared to the *somewhat* practicality of the 911.

NF4710

Honestly it sounds like you’re looking at the wrong 911. If you crave more power then a turbo may be more your speed. Also I’m not sure which mode you used but the PDK definitely seems to shift faster in sport+. I’ve driven a 20 C63 and the transmission wasn’t in the same universe as PDK…that said I’m an MT owner so maybe my opinion shouldn’t count lol.


NF.

ICU991812

Unless you test drive a "base" and S back to back, same road, same condition, you won't feel or remember much difference between the two. I think if you went Turbo S, then you'll notice a big difference. When we were shopping, we test drove a few S, base coupe, base cab, and ended up just getting a base cab because it was the right price and we don't regret it. It all depends on what you plan on doing with the 911. Are you going to track it, run it hard on highways, or just slow daily driving? We use ours as a weekend, back roads cruiser, and we're plenty fine with how it behaves and performs.

NI3

My brother has a 992 4S
I have a 991.2 Base

We swapped cars for several months. There certainly was a difference, but for public road driving the base has more than enough power and handling.

bakerphoto

Before I ended up with my 991.2 GTS I drove two base models with SC and one without. SC made a HUGE difference at least in the perceived performance. Any without SC were banished from consideration.

Graufuchs

I have a 17' Base with some options including SC and PSE. I traded my 19' 718 GTS for it and have not looked back. i would definitely recommend SC as a minimum.

The car is perfect for me and have plans to add a base 992 w/ SC and Aero to sit beside it (whenever my number comes up on the allocation list).

If I want more power, a tune will put you well over 400+hp for chump change.

I paid around $95K for mine with 11K miles and 2yr CPO this past August so that is the going rate for clean/ low mileage cars with CPO. For an S you are looking at $115+K CPO.

Do what makes you happy.

thesaintusa

The 2020 C63S is a completely different beast than the w204 C63 507 that I had, so my comparison is not valid for your perspective.

But.....

Base 991.2 with a tune will transform the vehicle and likely check off the boxes regarding driveability / power delivery / power.

pdkZ

Really? I honestly think the MCT is right up there with the PDK and even more responsive in the lower gears. It's a torque converter but not a torque converter. Basically, MCT is like a dual-clutch but a wet-clutch instead of a torque converter and i think there are 3 clutches.

Turbo S is out of my budget (for now). My driving is 75% highway and 25% spirited drives. All errands i use the tesla.

Yea makes sense. The 992 and the S make it totally different,

Oh wow - how so? Did it accelerate faster?

Yes - the one i'm looking at is certified and i can get it for $94k with 22k miles. Good deal. $115k sticker - i think i would prefer an S

True here - the 507 is a legend but the w205 is a better car in every sense of the term. I wouldn't tune the car. Not my thing and would void the warranty i think.