rusty22039

Hey Folks,
Long-time lurker here. I thought I'd come out of the closet and introduce myself. I'm not new to the 991 as I have a '13 C4S which is perfectly fine, but I've been salivating over a GTS since it was announced. I finally bit the bullet and put down my deposit on a 2016 GTS 4. I know, the purists out there will say I should get the RWD variety, but we get a bit too much snow and ice in VA for my comfort, and the intention is for this car to be a DD.

I find it hard to believe Porsche would ever take away the manual option in the 991. That being said, I've experienced 2 different versions of the PDK: '09 997.2 and the current '13. Although this post is not about the PDK, I will say that there was IMHO a huge difference rendered in the intervening 4 years. The '13 is brilliant and clearly the fastest way around a track, whereas, for me, the '09 version was not quite ready for prime time. Well, I'm not really interested in tenths of seconds, and the economy of PDK is less of an issue (Porsche should have left us the option of hydraulic steering). I prefer the involvement of rowing my own.

Akin to this subject, there is a great GTS manual review by the Getawayer (Guido) on You Tube who opines that this car in manual/NA guise may end up being a collectors item:


My configuration code is: PG4376Y6
Options:
GT Silver Metallic
Black Leather Interior incl. Alcantara® GTS Package in Carmine Red
Deletion of Model Designation
Rear Fascia Painted Exclusive
Side Skirts Painted Exclusive
Electric Slide/Tilt Sunroof in Glass
Power Folding Side Mirrors
Rear Wiper
ParkAssist (Front and Rear) with Reversing Camera
Deletion of GTS Model Designation on Side Doors
Manual Transmission
SPASM
Wheels: 20" Carrera S Wheels
Adaptive Sport Seats Plus (18-way) with Memory Package
Fire Extinguisher
Luggage Net in Passenger Footwell
Smoking Package
GTS Interior Package
Interior Leather
Sport Seats Plus Backrest Shells in Leather Exclusive
Door Panel in Leather/Alcantara® Exclusive
Heated Multifunction Steering Wheel in Carbon Fiber Exclusive
Gear Shift Lever in Carbon Fiber Exclusive

A Couple of points here:

I voted to avoid the centerlocks. As good as they look, they are are a PITA. I already own two sets of wheels including some HRE P101's for summer in dark brushed clear finish and a set of Carrera S winters. I like to change my own wheels. Let alone what will happen when you have a flat in bumf*** nowhere. You gonna call 1-800-Porsche? I'm worried about the choice of GT Silver with these HRE wheels, namely that there is not enough distinction between the wheel finish and the GT Silver. I'm not really interested in refinishing them in matte black or charcoal.

There is a picture of a 991 in Guards Red wearing P101's in brushed dark clear in the HRE gallery: http://www.hrewheels.com/gallery/ which is a stunning combo.
Other color considerations in order of preference:
Carmine Red
Agate
Guards Red
Metallic White

My current steed has the Sport Design Package. I'm not as sold on it as some of you. I think the duck tail detracts from the lines of the vehicle, and you sacrifice the blacked-out rear grill, which I really like and goes well with the sunroof in glass.

Unsure about PCCB... From what I've read, they are a great option for a road car, less so for dedicated track use unless you have deep pockets. (Scrimp on leather, CF, Sunroof, 18 way seats, color etc for them?)

Anyway, any and all suggestions/input are most welcome.

Rusty

Larry Cable

perfect spec IMO ... although I would consider PCCB - unless you track A LOT PCCB is fine.

HRE Wheels

For ease:

Larry Cable

those HREs are simply stunning

BenDiem

^^^Everything about that car looks great.

Rocket_boy

Hey Rusty, good to have you.....

Configs are always a personal decision, and yours looks pretty darn good.

My previous CS was Guards Red with black wheels, my soon to be stateside GTS is Carmine with the centerlocks. I'm not a huge fan of silver, I like something that sticks out just a bit more. As good as guards red is, I took Carmine this time as I think it is one of the best colors Porsche has to offer.

Agree with your comments on the duck tail for the GTS.

I like the center locks on this car, they are 1/2" wider all the way around and to me part of what makes a GTS a little more special. As far as having a flat with them,.....a center lock socket comes with the car and strange as it might be, most rural areas often have what is needed to change them, a big breaker bar and torque wrench,.....think truck stop or tractor repair, they always have such things. Not saying it will be as easy as a 5 lugger, just not as hard as most people think.

Power folding side mirrors,....why take away the sport design mirrors?!

No Bose or Burmester? (if your not into tunes, I can understand then)

Add auto-dimming mirrors, you will hate not having them the first time you drive at night.

Good luck with it all.....

jimbo1111

Nice build. I'm not sure those s wheels you own have the proper offset for the wide body. I would loose the folding mirrors in favor of the standard fixed. Since you opted for the heated steering wheel I would also get heated seats. I think you specked a nice car.

NoGaBiker

As to the above, I would ask the same about your 305/30-20 Pirelli that has a rip in the sidewall. Where ya gonna get one of those up in bumf*** nowhere? Now that we don't carry spares it's all kinda moot as far as that issue goes. But I agree from the point of view of tracking the car -- definitely easier to deal with 5-lugs than the CL, even if you have the correct breaker bar and torque wrench.

As for color, I also ordered GT Silver; have had it before, a great silver. But... I absolutely adore Guards and Carmine Red on the 991. I personally don't like to drive a flashy colored 911 (no problem with flashy colored utility cars, Jeeps, etc., but just don't want to do it on a car that's already flashy.) But I love to see them;

So if I were you and didn't mind being seen in a bright "look at me" kinda color to go with my "look at me" kinda car, heck Carmine is exactly what I'd go with. Or Guards. I'd really struggle with that decision. Love them both.

eg991

Those HREs are gorgeous and the OP's build spec is spot on. Will be incredible!

STG

Your brushed dark HRE's will look sweet ..

chuck911

That sounded wrong to me so I watched the video again and sure enough, he said classic. Not to split hairs, but its the difference between the guy who expects his car to just sit there and go up in value, and the guy who simply enjoys owning and driving a car thats an especially good example of a 911. If that's what you want then you found the right car. If you really do want a collector car though you should probably be looking at something like an Ultraviolet GT3RS.

rusty22039

Good points all.

I didn't realize the folding mirrors were the old stock ones. THAT wound have been a very unwelcome surprise. I'll be certain to change that. Thanks

As far as the wheels are concerned, I do have @ $13 K tied up in the two sets of lugged wheels , although I should be able to recoup 70% of that on resale should I decide to do so. I was thinking if I picked up a nail in the middle of nowhere, I'd at least be able to plug it on my own...Those CL P101's look great with the GT Silver! And the HRE pictures on the Guards Red are again stunning. That Aerokit with spoiler also looks the business. I've been flip flopping between the Carmine Red and the GT Silver on a daily basis.

Does anyone have a comment on foregoing the 18 way seats to make room for the PCCB's? I had the standard seats in my '09 C4S and they were just fine. Only downside is you can't get the Porsche Entry and Drive, nor the Light Design packages without them. And you cannot do the 14 way seats with the full GTS Communication Package.

Somehow the Burmester didn't end up on the list. Tunes are very important.

Rusty

sean7a

With the heated wheel / seats do we lose the alcantara options and have to go leather. Isn't terribly clear on the configurator, or I'm misreading it. Also, can you get the multifunction wheel (in alcantara)?

I have that wheel on the Macan Turbo and love it. Test drove the GTS the other day, the alcantara and heavy wheel with tighter steering was friggin beautiful. Totally willing to lose that functionality for volume, changing song etc for the experience and wheel on the GTS, but would be great to have both!

rusty22039

"If you really do want a collector car though you should probably be looking at something like an Ultraviolet GT3RS."

And not driving it. Conventional wisdom says never finance a depreciating asset. I made the decision that if my car is losing $800/mo in value, I had better damn well enjoy it. I'm not getting any younger, so it may well be now or never. The salesman has a pristine '10 GT3 RS on the lot with 1600 miles on it he was trying to get me interested in. This is HBL Tyson's BTW. The PO also has a GT, no doubt probably ordered a new GT3 RS, has @ 8 P cars in the garage. Allegedly he says he was offered $60K more than he paid for it. I should have such problems.

Jerry991

Here's my thoughts for what they're worth. No one has ever really justified the expense of the PCCBs and if you sell the car you will recoup very little of the cost. I love the 18 way seats. Porsche doesn't put AWD on the Turbo so it can go in the snow - wide summer tires don't work and wide winter tires aren't going to do that much better in 4wd versus 2wd.