nicholascanada

I definitely think you need to decide for yourself on this one, because you will get multiple opinions that don't all line up.

Like mine. I tested both the base and S extensively and I also recall a review mentioning my same feel..the base actually feels much more raw to me as you can exploit and use its power more fully in daily driving. It makes you feel much more engaged. The S is faster, but IMHO, and that review I recall, but it takes away the work to get to speed. I much prefer the base but of course I own one, so it's meaningless.

Gonzalo38

I'm on my second 991.2 base..... this time a Cabrio. Mine is a daily driver and I must say that for city normal usage, it is more than enough power. However..... we all like HP even if we don't use it fully most of the time, so I went and installed a APR Tune..... wow.... the car for sure moves. Now I have to be careful with full accelerations at low speed since the car tends to fisg tail a little bit because of the additional power.

This was always my plan. In my country the difference in pricing between the Base and S is ridiculous high and with the tune (cheap in comparison), I get a much better performing car.

But to everybody its own.......

Burnt Reynolds

I bought a '17 C2, decent options, 5 year/75k mile warranty, PDK etc. Fresh rubber and a Cobb completely changed the car, mind you, I was already happy with it. For a while when I was shopping I was "certain" I wanted a V8. I oscillated between a sedan or trying to find a slightly older coupe (M5's vs M6's). Then there was the beam of light through the clouds epiphany: I realized I could get into a 911 which I'd wanted since I was a kid. My budget was $100k +/- for the whole package. Started test driving different 997's, 991.1's - everything seemed to be around 50k miles and hard to get a feel for on a test drive. As in, "is this how a 911 is supposed to feel? Or is this particular example not the best to form an opinion?" I drove base, S, 4S cars. I also spent time in several BMW's and a couple Audi's.

Last spring I was still 65/35 leaning towards a V8 car of some type as I just wasn't getting the wow factor with the 911's I was driving which was a bit disappointing in and of itself. Talked to a couple guys I know that were close to my late father who are 911 & Ferrari types. I got a really good explanation as to how I needed to approach one of these little rockets. In a nutshell, keep the rpms in the sweet spot = smiles for miles.

I happened across my car about a month ago and just closed my eyes and wrote a check after hearing the price...a leap of faith that it would be a fit. I'm glad I did.

I daily mine from a rural acreage to a downtown center, curvy country roads most of the way. While I told myself there would be no reason to mod or tune whichever car I bought given my price point, my dealership linked me up with the seller and he wanted to sell me the Cobb AP he had, I said what the hell and bought it. Also glad I did. I think a large part of my decision to get a 991.2 base, outside of money, was the improved tech as compared to the .1's. Coming from a '19 BMW, my 911 still is a step down in terms of infotainment function and layout, but I can live with it. Another element of my rationale with the base was that if I wasn't super thrilled with it after a year or two I could park it and still have great weekend car but not a stepped up model wasting away. Alternatively, if I was loving it after a couple years, I could spring for an S, GTS, Turbo or whatever and still have my base as a daily driver.

With the cobb, according to what I've seen online I'm somewhere in the neighborhood of 430 whp and 440 lbs torque, mucho plenty in a 3200 lbs car. I've got a BMG filter inbound and at some point I may start messing around with the exhaust. I'll wait and see, I just finished tires, oil change, cabin filters, wipers and some other housekeeping items and am still getting acclimated to the new ride somewhat as we've had a ugly weather in recent weeks so I just want to drive it for a while and see what becomes a priority. Frankly, a 911 virgin such as myself would do well to have a 1 or 2 month test drive if such a thing existed. They are such a different animal from a rear drive front engine layout that you have to be able to "forget" what one is accustomed to, that said, I see why the 911 formula has stuck and they are such a timeless platform whereas most other sedan/coupes - while nice - quickly become dated and I get bored with them before long as they kind of feel/function the same.

Soul Performance

The C63S and 911 Base are certainly different tools for different jobs. The 911 is stunning backroads performer with daily driving comfort and enough power out of the box for many enthusiasts. Under the rear decklid (way under) lies a very well built, 3.0T flat 6 that is ripe for performance improvements. That's one of the big appeals of the base 991.2, there is A LOT of potential and given the reliability of the car - some bolt on mods and a tune will yield a more visceral experience without the worries of things breaking.

I would say the 911 will run more consistent and repeatable lap times than a C63S, but it sounds like that's not your goal. And while the AMG is faster, heavier, and more "luxurious", the Porsche as a platform is distinctive and dynamic with tremendous capabilities even in stock form. The community, as well, is second to none.

With PSE you will have a really nice exhaust note out of the box that we can certainly improve on. You can certainly find more horsepower without a tune and without 'voiding the warranty'. I'd love to go over this stuff in detail with you when you are ready.

One piece of mind - if you can't live with the Porsche you will be able to sell it for what you paid for it (within reason) and move on.

Dave @ Soul

pdkZ

This is bang on. I will likely lose 10k or so on my AMG.

The 911 will likely be faster on the track. The C63S will be much faster 0-60, 0-100, 100-200km, 1/4 mile and it's just a more visceral experience.

I want the S. The base is more than enough for the roads, but it just felt underpowered. I'm a no "headaches guy" - i'd rather just spend the extra money for the S then tune the car, which usually reduces the trade-in value regardless of what it does to the warranty.

It's a tempting decision, because id be getting the base for about 95k, which is a good deal TODAY. Now - will it have more downward potential because it's up about 10-15% from pre-covid? I don't know. I don't see myself keeping the base for >2 or so years, at which point i would want a 991.2 GTS/S or 992 S. Will the C63S hold value better because it's the last V8 c-class with the next-gen going hybrid-assist 4? We don't know.

Aesthetically, the 911 is just perfect & it has that WOW factor (for me). So does the AMG, but in a different way.

Gripster

From personal experience - If you get the base car it will be enough - but you will always wonder about the 'S'. If you get the 'S' that feeling goes away. There really isn't much more to it than that.

I had a 997.2 base as my first Porsche and it was amazing. Over time and after spending too much time on forums listening to others justify their choice of S over the base, I convinced myself that my base wasn't enough and I sold it. The truth of it was that it wasn't underpowered and it wasn't slow - at least not for street applications, but the whole base vs. S thing got to me I suppose. There is a grain of truth to it, but the reality is that the cars aren't that different. In stepping up to the 991.1, I did get the S, but the things that persuaded were things like leather interior over the basic interior and the sport chrono - which are harder to find on base cars.

I'm pretty sure that a 991.2 base is faster than my 991.1S - which is definitely enough for street use. BUT - the whole 'feels underpowered' thing really just comes from just knowing that the S has more, so if you're thinking that way now, just wait until the right S comes along. We pay a lot for these cars so be sure to get the one you want.

desking101

I come from a Hellcat Redeye and the base 991.2 doesn't really feel that slow. You need to pay attention to what gear you're in but that's it. It feels about as fast as my old 2018 Mustang GT 10 speed did when it was stock. Much slower than my Redeye (most cars are) but I don't find myself missing the power at all on the street. I couldn't even go WOT in the Redeye at 70mph without losing traction (on 315s) and the novelty of that wore off fast. C63s is not THAT much faster, it just feels faster than it really is until you get used to the power delivery on the Carrera. I considered a C63s briefly actually because of the engine and the looks, but couldn't get over the fact that it's really just a modified C Class. Kind of the same thing with the Redeye. Yeah, it was fast. It got a ton of attention everywhere. It sounded awesome. But at the end of the day it just felt like a cheap car with an expensive engine, designed primarily to be a rental car.

pdkZ

Yea it's not slow by any means. It's just slower than my C63S. It "somewhat" a modified C-class. I mean it has an AMG V8. That's like saying a URUS is a modified Q8 or VW.

I've never driven the S. It feels underpowered because my C63S is more powerful.

NI3

Curious about the sweet spot RPMs?

AlexZTuned

I think I can add here. I came from a C63S Coupe tuned (11.1 @ 127 mph on unprepped surface), bought it new and owned it for over 4 years.

Did the European Delivery experience driving through 4 countries (Germany, Switzerland, Italy, and France) and the AMG was nothing but a pure emotional driving experience. You’re buying an engine and an experience.

With that said, it’s not a sports car. I now have a base 991.2 C4 (has some goodies like FAL and SC), but it is on another planet compared to the AMG in handling and traction characteristics.

In the AMG, when I tuned it I could easily spin through 3rd gear to 90 mph. The engine is a torque monster. The issue was I needed drag radials to put the power down and it became cumbersome in that more power = sketchier and sometimes even slower if you don’t have proper tires.

When I first accelerated in my stock C4, I wouldn’t say I was underwhelmed by the power but impressed with how Porsche programmed the torque and power delivery to imitate the linear power progression to redline.

The C63S gives you all the torque down low and shoves you into the seat. If that’s what you’re looking for, tune a 3.0T base and it’ll unleash the turbos and the torque.

The biggest difference aside from agility and weight (my C63S Coupe weighed 4030 lbs with half a tank of gas), is the traction of the 911. The rear engine makes it a joy, especially combined with AWD (others may prefer the RWD purist, but I’m more of the Turbo PDK guy) which makes the acceleration amazing. Launches are hilarious. In the AMG, I’d be lucky to not spin the tires off in a blaze of smoke, or “accidentally” give too much throttle input around a corner and power slide.

It was a hoonigan car. A great one too. The 7-speed and 9-speed MCT’s (driven both on mine and the E63S) are decently responsive but not on the level of a PDK in Sports Plus mode in Manuals.

It’s a much more clinical and precise driving experience. If you’re concerned about power, these 3.0l’s are making about as most hybrid turbo M177 V8’s and are in a much better, lighter package.

For reference, I sold my Coupe in Feb and bought the 911 the same time, before the market went nuts. So it was a very reasonable upgrade for me at the time. Not sure I would pay todays going rate for what I have.

Gripster

Then make sure you drive the S asap before you go any further down this road - the base and S cars aren't all that different - despite what forums posts say. Plus that meaty torque from the AMG V8 may well mean that any 991 feels a little underwhelming to you - these cars are are a different kind of fast.

Burnt Reynolds

In my car, I've got this great combo of high torque and horsepower around 4500 - 5300 rpms in 3rd & 4th gear (PDK in manual mode). Gets me to that great zone on my roads where I'm scooting along with plenty of pace, but not at unsafe speeds. I get just enough engine braking if I let up on the throttle and have instant acceleration, right now, if I so choose. Then I go to 5th or 6th on the straights and slow my pace. I don't really care about outright speed on flat straight sections of road, I like stringing together curves and tossing the car around.

Graufuchs

Lost my shirt (and pants) on my last two AMGs.....one purchased new, one purchased used.

I have always been a fan of the 911 since I was a little kid, I had the matchbox cars and even a red 911 cabrio RC car. Blessed enough to be on my 3rd 911 and working towards my fourth.

Lots of opinions here, which is what you asked for, I think either way a 911 or 911S you will be pretty happy after getting some decent seat time.

pdkZ

The only variable that I don't know here is that this C63S is the last V8 c-class. So i don't know if it will keep it's value more.

pdkZ

Exactly this. I can't rev the car out until 3rd gear or else i'll spin the tires.

Most of my driving is highway driving.

It's just every time i look at a 911 it's like falling in love. Don't get me wrong - my C63S is a looker & i love it, + the performance seats & carbon fiber on the interior make it a great place - but just something about the 911 is reeling me in.