I am a BMW loyalist who has been driving M cars since 2009. Presently I drive a 2015 F82 M4.
I am seriously considering getting my first Porsche. I am 51 years old living in Miami, FL.

I have been doing European Deliveries since 2006 flipping my cars every year and taking awesome vacations driving throughout Europe. Now I think I am financially ready to purchase my first P car but I need to decide between a well optioned Carrera S or a basic GTS. This is a big financial commitment since I have a fixed budget of around $112,000. I have driven a 991 S with Sport Chrono and I was ok with the power compared to the E92 and F82. Living in Miami torque is more important than light weight and handling. I have not driven the GTS. I am considering the GTS in manual and the 991S PDK.

I wonder if the horsepower difference will be worth sacrificing some options that I can get on the Carrera S like Premium Package Plus, 14 Way seats, PDK (my wife will also drive it and she commutes to work in rush hour traffic).

Porsche is behind on technology compared to BMW. I love most of the new driver assistant features, BMW Apps, BMW Connected Drive, Headsup display and two M Buttons to choose your driving style setting.

Planning to keep the car for more than 5 years. I would appreciate opinions from people who had made the change from 991 S to GTS.

 

If you are looking for increased torque as well as better tech, you might consider waiting for the 991.2. Especially if you have a new M4. Seems it might be worthwhile to wait a couple of months for the next generation.

 

+1 - 991.2 for torque and tech

 

You missed the part where he said he has a fixed budget of $112k and he wants either a well optioned S or a base GTS. That budget won't buy him either of those new, so ordering a 991.2 is out. He will either need to find a leftover '15 S that a dealer is willing to deal on or a used GTS.

OP, my advice would be to look for a leftover '15 S optioned the way you want it or possibly order a new 991.1 S if you can get a dealer to give you a sizable discount. My guess is you'll be struggle to stay in that budget on a 991.2 order at the moment. Also, if you're thinking new, you might want to look at the pictures of the 991.2 posted on here to see if you like it better than the 991.1.

 

Since the OP is in love with technology but only drives in Miami traffic I suggest that he buy a simulator for $54,000. He can drive any car in the world on any track in the world and even hook up with people on line all over the world and race against them. This would leave the OP with about $70,000 to get himself a real Porsche...perhaps a 996 tt plus some on track instructions...or he can buy a 993 and have all the money he'll ever need to repair it for the next 20 years.

If Porsche is behind the curve in terms of BMWs technology I can only wish they were even farther behind. Driving is not about pushing buttons. You don't drive with your thumbs, you drive with the seat of your pants.

 

We don't know 991.2 pricing yet, but I can't imagine a 991.2 S will be more than 112,000. Or anywhere near that much.

So his options for new cars at that price are:

991.1 S with $12,000 worth of options.

991.1 GTS with zero options and begging his wife to loan him an additional $2500.

991.2 S with some amount of options, likely fewer than the 991.1 S but greater than the 991.1 GTS.

 

I have had several BMW's and based on what you are saying, you should NOT be looking at a Porsche. They are low on torque and won't hit the horsepower band until 4,000 rpm. They are a driver's car, and Florida is a boulevard town, flat land and straight lines. You will not be happy with either an S or a GTS, it will feel like a Camry in your driving environment.

Go drive an Aston Martin. Its like an M3 on steroids, with great gobs of low end torque and delicious engine noises. Low on tech though, but the interior builds are fantastic. Or a Merc AMG series, that's really where you probably should be.

 

Buzzkill!

 

Couldn't agree more. AM Vantage V8 for about the top of your budget (stretched to maybe 120k well-equipped, about like a 991S). Beautiful, V-8ey, sounds good, cabin is snug but wonderfully built, won't see very many of them compared to the much more pedestrian 991.

That said, I didn't even consider one when replacing my 911 Turbo this year; love the way they look, but I don't think it's nearly the car dynamically that the 911 is, or even your M4. But if I lived in Miami, meh. I wouldn't care about a car's dynamics. I'd be looking for other qualities.

 

You run almost the exact car budget I do. I went with 2 cars instead of one over-priced vehicle. Have you looked at the new Shelby GT350? Your 112k budget would allow you to purchase a used 991S and brand new Shelby GT350 with the optional Technology package.

You'll have a vicious high revving flat plank V8 to go with a precision German icon. I know from experience you'll never get bored.

Or for about the same price as a Shelby you could get a used Aston Martin Vantage V8 to pair with a 991S....

 

I rather have a naturally aspirated car since I will keep it for a long time and I won't be able to flip them like my BMWs. Also, I am able to get a significant discount on a new ordered car which will put me around $110,000 on a well optioned 991S and the same on the GTS but only with Bose, PASM, Parking/ Camera and Manual Transmission.

 

That's a beautiful car but I only drive German cars and I am a BMW Loyalist, Merc is out of the question.

 

If you can really get either for $110k, I'd just consider how important the other options are to you. I considered the GTS, but every time I configured it, I couldn't keep the price under $125k with the options I wanted and I don't care for the wheels offered, so I was looking at another chunk of change and hassle to swap wheels. And out here, dealers wouldn't deal at all on the GTS, while they would give a bit of a discount on the C2S, so that was another $4k+ difference.

I think you'll probably be happy either way. Honestly, I think one of the big considerations should be which transmission you prefer.

Also, if you're not dead set on a specific color or planning to order specific options, and you intend to keep the car, you might consider shopping nationally for a leftover car. There are some great deals to be had that way.

 

Take the GTS, theres no such thing as a "basic" GTS.

 

I agree, to a point. You get a lot with the GTS package, but most buyers will still want to add some of the same options they would on an S, and they do start to add up.