moswissa

I say go for the .2, its better in every way except for sound. I am a .1 owner and im coming from a turbo bmw and tesla. I really miss the low end torque in city driving. The NA just doesnt have the room to stretch its legs.

Tangerine

To clarify, this isn't a choice for me. I have one of the last 991.1 GTS manuals, so I'm happy. If I were to go 991.2, my ultimate goal would be GT3 Touring.

The question cane from the silly prices I've seen, because I expect the value is about the same between the different models right now. The 991.2 is objectively the better car no question, but there's probably more of them available. So supply and demand comes into play.

mrneef

I was in this same dilemma.

As a first time Porsche owner. I was torn between the 991.1 of 991.2 GTS.

well I settled for the .2 and went a little too far by getting every single bolt on upgrade I could from Tial and Kline with the exception of upgraded turbos. She rips, purrs, and sounds perfectly fine for me. The only thing is the PDK rattle noise when it shifts from 2nd to 1st just makes me paranoid.

C60Record

I went through same process 18 months ago. Owned a 2015 Mercedes E63S AMG wagon. Test drove in short succession an ‘18 C4 GTS manual, ‘15 Turbo S and ‘15 C4 GTS manual. Turbo S was missing sound (compared to AMG) and otherwise not materially better than the wagon. 991.2 GTS wasn’t fun driving rationally on back roads (no real opportunity to wring it out on account of great low end turbo torque). 991.1 hit sweet spot for me, quick enough, sounds great and can rev it up without getting overly stupid.

na4life

Honestly the main improvement in the 991.2 is the low end torque. But it’s a totally different powerband and the throttle is nowhere near as direct (the turbo lag is minimal but definitely there).

as for PCM… you can get a CarPlay retrofit in the 991.1. Works really well actually.

The steering feel? Get a DSC controller, some good coilovers, delete PSP, and do an alignment.

I think a lot of people that prefer the 991.2 use their 911 as a DD or like the low end torque for eg; passing on the highway. In an NA car like the 991.1 you have to rev it out. Totally different style of driving and one that most people aren’t keen to do on the street.

Carving canyons I’ll take the NA engine hands down. Both are way more than enough power to get you into trouble if you don’t know what you’re doing.

CarAholic

I would personally choose the turbo model for my use case (dd). That torque just makes the car more enjoyable everyday. For a fun car the NA. As far as value is concerned I would put money on the NA being worth more years down the road.

d--

Good axiom, it's also true about Tesla... Same pattern of consistent improvements. Now, Porsche is well along in the process so their overall quality is leagues better than Teslas. Perhaps with another 50 years Tesla will get there.

NF4710

Personally I think the .2 is a step back in aesthetics. More cheap black plastic on the front bumper (at least it’s more noticeable), the overwrought rear tail lights, the black grille, and the double sport exhaust pipes all appeal less to me than the 991. Again this is just my opinion and many feel the opposite.

As for the driving experience I thought I would upgrade a few years after buying my .1 but having driven a few .2 Carreras I don’t think that’s the case anymore. I really love the sound and linear feel and the .1 just does better in those areas. The .2 is blindingly fast but just not as much fun for me.

NF

R N M

As an owner of 991.2 T - the base engine has sufficient power but is not some HP / TQ monster. The tuning setup from the factory really makes this seem like its NA. The power builds progressively through RPM range and the smaller turbos on base engine eliminate any turbo lag. Its really the best of both worlds.
When you drive the car aggressively, you can really use all of the throttle pedal and push the car on the street/back roads. I think in the straight line, it could use some power especially over 100mph.

My F80 M3 has much more “turbo” car character where you get massive power/tq at low rpm and you can’t really push the throttle. The car is just really too fast on the street to push it close to full throttle.

I would definitely recommend a base 991.2 if you are looking for NA feeling car - its an amazing motor and tuned to feel NA by Porsche.

Live Steam

There's no going back to NA for a non-GT 911. That has obviously influenced the pricing of the .1 as we've moved into the next gen of turbos.

Pb Pedis

This is a fascinating thread, but even more interesting are the current poll results! I'm a fan of polls to gauge popular opinion, and I would not have guessed the majority of this forum's 991 enthusiasts would prefer the NA option for a non-GT car - I thought it would be the turbo motor getting the most votes.

Dgags

I own a .1C2S and have no desire to go from 0-jail/dead any faster. My ego says get a TTS but every other criteria keeps me in a .1 manual. This might be the last 911 I own and reliability is a major factor. If a person was planning on putting 200,000 miles on a car would you buy a turbo 3.0, or manual 3.8? I’m not a Carplay guy and really don’t care about newer tech in my fun car. I’ve rolled my dice.

TSO__

Approximate cost of the upgrades? 1. soul exhuast/sports cats, APR tune, pasm upgrade? Thanks!

Imola02

For me it is a matter of being a daily driver or weekend warrior. I have a B9 S4 (tune, IC, exhaust) with all the electronic wizardry one could ask for and plenty quick for me. My .1 manual (first Porsche for me) is very engaging and fun for weekend play - very analog. I couldnt be happier. I test drove a .2GTS PDK prior to the purchase which I like a lot, in fact would have chosen that if it was my daily driver.

Zylinderkopfdichtung

I have tracked both a 991.1 Carrera S and a 991.2 Carrera T (which I own).

They are very different and both good. That said, I think if you’re longing for the penultimate NA experience a Porsche flat 6 isn’t it. E46 M3? COOOOL! Ferrari 458? YES! A Shelby GT350R? OH HELL YES!

991.1 is…. fine.

The flat 6 991.1 engine is good but it’s not anywhere close to the naturally aspirated greats.