What is a TT really like on back roads?
#31
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Originally Posted by Boost Crazy
Vic,
I drive a both a slightly modded TT and a 04 GT3 RS. I previously owned an '87 930 and an "86 930s so am very familiar with the handling traits of the older cars....and i know that you cant get the RS in the US but just to comment on a couple of things.
1. Purity - these are both so far apart in feel and drive and yet BOTH are about as pure as you can get. The RS feels like it is an extension of my hands - the TT the same - BUT the track is for the RAS - no doubt about it - and the margin for error with a GT3 is so so slim at the limit. They really are almost heading back to the old days ( although maybe not as precarious) and the sound is just intoxicating......The TT (with muffler by passes) just sounds .... ANGRY.
2. For carving up the backroads....IMHO i would take the TT over ANYTHING! We have a famous (and deadly) road here called "The Old PAcific Highway" which has surfaces from billiard table smooth to off camber with broken ashphalt and i just LOVE it in the TT. The feeling of boost (ok i am a boost junkie!) on top of the surefooted handling (due to the AWD) when accelerating out of bends is UNMATCHED by anything i have driven on these roads.... I say you cant beat the TT and i will never sell it....
3. The 993RS would be another of my favourite drives - just and only just comparable to a go kart for feel and feedback... but as they seem too hard to really get in the US i would still go the TT....
4. As nice as a NA 993 is (whether wide or narrow bodied) and as nimble as they are (or you can make them with mods) they will never feel as light or as feather touch as the 356. As for greater error margin - it really depends on how much faster the TT will be going when something happens....
5. Suspension mods - Although finely tuned from the factory - as mentioned by you - these cars are all getting older ( at least 8 or so years ) so the shocks will be shot. No matter how many miles. Also technology moves on - and some of the stuff being made todays is just so good - and talk about transforming a car by changing nothing but old suspension.....
Best Regards,
Simon
I drive a both a slightly modded TT and a 04 GT3 RS. I previously owned an '87 930 and an "86 930s so am very familiar with the handling traits of the older cars....and i know that you cant get the RS in the US but just to comment on a couple of things.
1. Purity - these are both so far apart in feel and drive and yet BOTH are about as pure as you can get. The RS feels like it is an extension of my hands - the TT the same - BUT the track is for the RAS - no doubt about it - and the margin for error with a GT3 is so so slim at the limit. They really are almost heading back to the old days ( although maybe not as precarious) and the sound is just intoxicating......The TT (with muffler by passes) just sounds .... ANGRY.
2. For carving up the backroads....IMHO i would take the TT over ANYTHING! We have a famous (and deadly) road here called "The Old PAcific Highway" which has surfaces from billiard table smooth to off camber with broken ashphalt and i just LOVE it in the TT. The feeling of boost (ok i am a boost junkie!) on top of the surefooted handling (due to the AWD) when accelerating out of bends is UNMATCHED by anything i have driven on these roads.... I say you cant beat the TT and i will never sell it....
3. The 993RS would be another of my favourite drives - just and only just comparable to a go kart for feel and feedback... but as they seem too hard to really get in the US i would still go the TT....
4. As nice as a NA 993 is (whether wide or narrow bodied) and as nimble as they are (or you can make them with mods) they will never feel as light or as feather touch as the 356. As for greater error margin - it really depends on how much faster the TT will be going when something happens....
5. Suspension mods - Although finely tuned from the factory - as mentioned by you - these cars are all getting older ( at least 8 or so years ) so the shocks will be shot. No matter how many miles. Also technology moves on - and some of the stuff being made todays is just so good - and talk about transforming a car by changing nothing but old suspension.....
Best Regards,
Simon
I read your post and completely understand. I live in Sydney and am regularly on the Old Pacific Hwy in my 993C4S or my Yemaha R1. Whilst I love my C4S and it can be driven quickly through a road like the Old Road I would love more punch out of the corners. Its not that I need to go any quicker its just that rush you get accelerating out of corners. I am getting a big hankering for a 993TT. By the way, no lack of power with the R1.... it simply kicks **** any gear any speed!
Cheers
G-Man 993
#32
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Crownvic....I had a mint 97 993TT and it was a great street car and I miss it. I wanted more track time so I moved to the GT3. While I had the turbo my business partner had a C2. I found the C2 to be very boring. Yes the steering was lighter but other than that I didn't think it was much fun comprted to the turbo. The brakes were not as good and the car just didn't beg to driven hard in the same addictive way as the turbo.
He dumped his C2 in about 5 seconds when I got the GT3 and LOVED the turbo. He also wrapped it around a tree and was almost killed in it. That being said drive them both, but make sure you really have the commitiment to drive the turbo well and deal with a bit of extra maintence. The 993 TT is a car that is tough to get tired of day to day....i also drove the 996TT and found it to be a bit dull compared to the older car.
When you test drive them, make sure the turbo gets pushed so you can really tell the difference. Good luck!
He dumped his C2 in about 5 seconds when I got the GT3 and LOVED the turbo. He also wrapped it around a tree and was almost killed in it. That being said drive them both, but make sure you really have the commitiment to drive the turbo well and deal with a bit of extra maintence. The 993 TT is a car that is tough to get tired of day to day....i also drove the 996TT and found it to be a bit dull compared to the older car.
When you test drive them, make sure the turbo gets pushed so you can really tell the difference. Good luck!
#33
Why do I feel so left out!
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G-Man,
I also ride.... i have "stock" ZX7RR that i used to run up and down with all the boys on the weekends... regularly stopping at the Mt White Cafe to compare war stories.... I dont ride it much these days - not just due to the safety factor ( i have been off once on the Old Rd and have had some meates have BIG ones up there) but becasue the TT is just so f*cking good around there.... The way the thing punches out of the corners on full boost..... it is as good as getting it right on the bike.... aqnd then some...
Simon
I also ride.... i have "stock" ZX7RR that i used to run up and down with all the boys on the weekends... regularly stopping at the Mt White Cafe to compare war stories.... I dont ride it much these days - not just due to the safety factor ( i have been off once on the Old Rd and have had some meates have BIG ones up there) but becasue the TT is just so f*cking good around there.... The way the thing punches out of the corners on full boost..... it is as good as getting it right on the bike.... aqnd then some...
Simon
#34
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Originally Posted by Boost Crazy
G-Man,
I also ride.... i have "stock" ZX7RR that i used to run up and down with all the boys on the weekends... regularly stopping at the Mt White Cafe to compare war stories.... I dont ride it much these days - not just due to the safety factor ( i have been off once on the Old Rd and have had some meates have BIG ones up there) but becasue the TT is just so f*cking good around there.... The way the thing punches out of the corners on full boost..... it is as good as getting it right on the bike.... aqnd then some...
Simon
I also ride.... i have "stock" ZX7RR that i used to run up and down with all the boys on the weekends... regularly stopping at the Mt White Cafe to compare war stories.... I dont ride it much these days - not just due to the safety factor ( i have been off once on the Old Rd and have had some meates have BIG ones up there) but becasue the TT is just so f*cking good around there.... The way the thing punches out of the corners on full boost..... it is as good as getting it right on the bike.... aqnd then some...
Simon
Aaaahhhh, that all sounds very familar.... I was up there on the bike with my wife and a friend on Sunday afternoon. What colour is you tt and I will keep and eye out for you?
You obviously like you toys too and have a great collecction of cars. I have often wondered just how much more fun my car would be with almost 50% more power that the tt has.
Cheers
G-Man 993
#35
Why do I feel so left out!
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G- Man,
The TT is in the thread below on wheels.....
So let me get this right - you are wondering what it is like with a car that has 50% more power then the TT????
MAN -- i want a drive in that!!!
Simon
The TT is in the thread below on wheels.....
So let me get this right - you are wondering what it is like with a car that has 50% more power then the TT????
MAN -- i want a drive in that!!!
![jumper](https://rennlist.com/forums/graemlins/jumper.gif)
![jumper](https://rennlist.com/forums/graemlins/jumper.gif)
Simon
#36
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Originally Posted by Boost Crazy
G- Man,
The TT is in the thread below on wheels.....
So let me get this right - you are wondering what it is like with a car that has 50% more power then the TT????
MAN -- i want a drive in that!!!
Simon
The TT is in the thread below on wheels.....
So let me get this right - you are wondering what it is like with a car that has 50% more power then the TT????
MAN -- i want a drive in that!!!
![jumper](https://rennlist.com/forums/graemlins/jumper.gif)
![jumper](https://rennlist.com/forums/graemlins/jumper.gif)
Simon
Sounds great but I actually meant that the tt has almost 50% more power than my C4S.
Your car looks fantastic with those wheels... I will keep an eye out for you on the road.
Cheers
Graeme
#37
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CrownVic writes, "So if I get the gist, the TT is hairy and brawny but will stay glued to the road no matter what you throw at it." Hmmmmmmm..let me ponder these words, in the interim, I'll verbally drool over the car. My only 993TT experience has been in a straight line....friend's cars...don't break friends cars. But that was enough to convince me the 96 to present day Porsche TT cars are one of the finest cars in the world...regardless of price. They are fast, reliable and extramely well engineered. ABS-5 helps as does AWD. I may just get one some day, hopefully soon!
Now a little wake up call...you can't change the laws of physics. When any car exceeds its polar moment of inertia, it will be spinning...its gone. At this point ABS and AWD won't be of much help...you are out of control and are in peril until the car stops spinning, and God help you, it does not hit anyone or anything. If you are going 100 mph, too easy to do in a TT car, you are in for the ride of your life.
We had a Rennlist drive out in Cali last summer, the NoCal SoCal Rumble...cars started in SoCal and NoCal and headed to Paso Robles. In the process, two (2) cars were seriously damaged, thank God nobody was hurt...that was even more evidence that spirited street driving is not risk free.
I love going fast, faster, fastest as much as the next guy. I just don't do much fast driving on the streets...those that will, will. Whatever you do, just don't run into me or anyone in my family or my friends, or pets for that matter.
Fortunately I live in SoCal and I can go to the track 3 to 4 weekends a month year round. That is where I like to go fast. I am off the thread...I hope I didn't bum anyone out....I suppose its the Rice Rocket cars with their megaphone mufflers going by me at 100mph on the 405 that have soured me a bit.
Now a little wake up call...you can't change the laws of physics. When any car exceeds its polar moment of inertia, it will be spinning...its gone. At this point ABS and AWD won't be of much help...you are out of control and are in peril until the car stops spinning, and God help you, it does not hit anyone or anything. If you are going 100 mph, too easy to do in a TT car, you are in for the ride of your life.
We had a Rennlist drive out in Cali last summer, the NoCal SoCal Rumble...cars started in SoCal and NoCal and headed to Paso Robles. In the process, two (2) cars were seriously damaged, thank God nobody was hurt...that was even more evidence that spirited street driving is not risk free.
I love going fast, faster, fastest as much as the next guy. I just don't do much fast driving on the streets...those that will, will. Whatever you do, just don't run into me or anyone in my family or my friends, or pets for that matter.
Fortunately I live in SoCal and I can go to the track 3 to 4 weekends a month year round. That is where I like to go fast. I am off the thread...I hope I didn't bum anyone out....I suppose its the Rice Rocket cars with their megaphone mufflers going by me at 100mph on the 405 that have soured me a bit.
#38
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Originally Posted by pole position
A : a chip in a 993 cab will get 5-10 hp max, in other words nothing.
B : all the talk about serious driving should not involve a cab because once pushed it is not
in the same league as a coupe.
C : the 993tt is a competent car, but in stock or lightly modified form hardly a rollercoaster ride and
the law of physics still apply
D : AWD handling is not better
E : participating in a top notch driving school will make you realize what you and a car can do or not.
B : all the talk about serious driving should not involve a cab because once pushed it is not
in the same league as a coupe.
C : the 993tt is a competent car, but in stock or lightly modified form hardly a rollercoaster ride and
the law of physics still apply
D : AWD handling is not better
E : participating in a top notch driving school will make you realize what you and a car can do or not.
Thanks for your comments. I appreciate your clarifications as I obviously have some fundamental misconceptions about 993 models.
A : I thought of flashing the chip in a 285hp varioram C2 because having done so on a very different car made a world of difference in driving performance. However, the other car is obviously in no way comparable. It is a 2005 Mustang GT convertible, and while its horsepower is similar it came from the factory with default settings which are practically defective. A custom tune turned it into a fun drive, with adjustable cam settings for more torque at low rpm and more horsepower at higher revs. I understand however that flashing/swapping the chip in a 993 won't be worth the trouble, but I guess they already come "pre-flashed" by the factory.
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B : I think you are right about not getting a cab, as I already have the stang and want the 993 for its far greater road gripping and driving oneness with the car. But which coupe to get? I've seen a 993 RS for sale in Europe, but it costs about twice the price of C4S. I would have to ship it over, drop in (blasphemy) rear seats for my 2 kids, and whatever. Would it really be worth it, in terms of bringing me as close as possible in a far more modern Porsche, to the nimbleness of the good old 356 coupe?
C : And I thought it was the closest thing to the Rock'n Roller in Orlando. I guess I should stop reading all those car magazines.
D : Ever since the first Carrera Four came out I heard legends about how its four wheel drive made it handle better than a supercar. Maybe folks felt that way because it was less tail happy than the Carrera Two of yesteryear? If the more recent 993 Carrera 2 is nowhere as tailhappy (got scared more than once when the 356 would spin out) as older Porsches were, and remains the best handling of the bunch, then it would mean that a true handling fiend would want a narrow body (not an S version) C2? What is your take on that?
E : While I agree that driving school is a quick way to familiarize oneself with the handling limits of one's car, I had my own baptism ditching bank robbers in the Italian alps, and in a car chase in the Moroccan Rif mountains which scared me a lot more - and I'm not talking about the close calls with oncoming trucks. Driving at the limit is NO FUN. Fun driving is driving within the car's limits, but not being scared of where they might be...
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#39
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Originally Posted by Woodster
993 RS is what the doctor ordered for this man of
purist bloodlines...
![burnout](https://rennlist.com/forums/graemlins/burnout.gif)
purist bloodlines...
![Big Grin](https://rennlist.com/forums/images/smilies/biggrin.gif)
![burnout](https://rennlist.com/forums/graemlins/burnout.gif)
I've located an "expensive" 993 RS in Europe. Is it really worth double a C2/C4 in terms of driving enjoyment?
Thanks for your advice,
Vic
#40
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Originally Posted by Boost Crazy
... The 993RS would be another of my favourite drives - just and only just comparable to a go kart for feel and feedback... but as they seem too hard to really get in the US i would still go the TT....
...As nice as a NA 993 is (whether wide or narrow bodied) and as nimble as they are (or you can make them with mods) they will never feel as light or as feather touch as the 356...
Simon
...As nice as a NA 993 is (whether wide or narrow bodied) and as nimble as they are (or you can make them with mods) they will never feel as light or as feather touch as the 356...
Simon
Thanks for your helpful input. I see you are quite experienced over several generations of Porsches. I now realize that I shouldn't have expected to resuscitate my youthful experience in a 356 without the inherent risks of driving such a light vehicle on today's SUV infested roads. I have also become used to considerably more power, although the 300hp of my mustang doesn't leave me frustrated for more. Never having driven supercars, I am used to going flat out without extra unused reserve power, such as that of the TT, so I don't think I would miss it.
It seems that with instinctive light handling being my main pursuit in back roads, a C2 or RS would be what comes closest to rekindling the affair started years ago before the days of the 901 (saw it at the Paris show before it got renamed 911 due to Peugeot having registered rights to every three digit number with a zero in the middle).
Would you advise against the widebody C2S? I once read a review in a French car magazine where they tested it against a narrow body and they said the cornering dynamics were better on the original, but they loved the cool looking widebody when cruising the Riviera for babes. Since I'm already set girlwise, which do you think would handle best:
C2 / C2S ?
Or should I hold out for a 993 RS...........?
TIA
/Vic
#41
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Originally Posted by Gordon Attar
Just a couple of things to add from overhear in the UK.
The 993TT is definately the one to have, if the 'Boost' turns out to be 'to much' try the C2S and C4S and the car sticks like Glue when its dry....... but is down right scary when its cold and wet and comes unstuck when the boost kicks in
The 993TT is definately the one to have, if the 'Boost' turns out to be 'to much' try the C2S and C4S and the car sticks like Glue when its dry....... but is down right scary when its cold and wet and comes unstuck when the boost kicks in
I guess the C4S might be better than the TT in the wet due to power surge, but does the wider bodied S version make for better grip in corners? Does it still feel plenty nimble in small English country roads?
Thanks for your comments,
/Vic
#42
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Originally Posted by ST
I started with a 964C2, then a 993C2 for 3 years and in the last year a 993TT. we (about 8 other porker lovers) do a drive up into the hills on a B road most sunday mornings at 7am when there are no cars. The route goes from about 200ft above sea level to about 3500ft over 35miles, there are tight twisty sections and some long winding fast stretches. i thought the C2 was really good though somewhat under powered, turned in really well and contrary to popular (or misguided) belief, wasn't tail happy, and when it did understeer, was very easy to correct....but after a year with the TT on the same route, i wouldn't trade it for anything else!! You are just so much quicker out of corners and the 4WD is just incredibly stable. With the exception of an autocross, i don't see the C2 being the better car anywhere else. My 2 cents worth.
Yet another unconditional TT owner - I guess I should expect it in the TT forum.
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I appreciate your candid comments on the C2's qualities, and those about the TT seem to come from its greater stability. Wouldn't a C2S have similar stability due to the widebody, even if in your estimation it remains underpowered? I don't know Malaysian roads, but in Vermont many of them wind and curve every 200 to 300 feet, making for shorter stretches to accelerate in thus requiring better entrance into corners than acceleration out of them.
/Vic
#43
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Originally Posted by Wasatch GT3
Crownvic....I had a mint 97 993TT and it was a great street car and I miss it. I wanted more track time so I moved to the GT3. While I had the turbo my business partner had a C2. I found the C2 to be very boring. Yes the steering was lighter but other than that I didn't think it was much fun comprted to the turbo. The brakes were not as good and the car just didn't beg to driven hard in the same addictive way as the turbo...
Your comments are already starting to hurt my wallet. I was just in the process of convincing myself that I could come closer to a purist Porsche with a far cheaper narrow bodied C2 than with a TT. What kind of roads do you drive your cars on? Do you like slaloming or accelerating more?
/Vic
#44
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Originally Posted by Martin S.
... I love going fast, faster, fastest as much as the next guy. I just don't do much fast driving on the streets...those that will, will. Whatever you do, just don't run into me or anyone in my family or my friends, or pets for that matter...
Actually, despite my rhetoric, I am quite safety conscious. If I'm in bad shape, I'll pull over and sleep it off. If there is poor visibility, I'll go slower than most folks attentive to any peripheral movement. If I don't know the road, I'll expect the worst and unexpected obstacles to boot. This may be why I've kept out of trouble for many many years of "sporty" driving. I get angry when people take foolish risks, especially with other people's lives. Like that nutcase who took me down a dirt road at 120mph in his 4wd BMW. I kept screaming "what if a kid rides across on a bike" but he wouldn't let up on the pedal.
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#45
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Crownvic,
as you see you will never find it out if you do not drive all of the 993 models.
I think as you are not into too much power (yet) a 3.8 ltr. 993 C4S would be OK.
I have seen one with a nice setup suspension (Bilstein PSS 9) driving a slalom and it was very fast.
What I do not understand is that the C4S is not too much cheaper than a Turbo.
So I would never buy the C4S but it is nevertheless a great car.
Regarding the 993 RS it is not exactly in the league of the 964 RS but a very capable sports car.
For the additional money that the 993 RS will cost you can easily modify any 993 to your like and still have money left. (but no RS)
The 964 RS (do not know if you have that in the US) is a hell of a car and the suspension has about zero comfort. My friend sold his 98! 993 TT with 450 hp Porsche factory kit and bought a 964 RS for about the same money! to drive it on the F1 Hockenheimring race circuit almost every week.
He is so happy with the feeling of the car even if it is not faster than the Turbo. It is all about driving sensation and a good feeling.
For me the small cabin of the 993 is one reason of the special driving fun and the 964 is even smaller inside I think. The 356 is the smallest though.
Do not read, drive! You will only get a very incomplete picture of the Porsche models just by reading.
You will not narrow the decision down by reading, perhaps you are even missing your dream car.
I am always very suprised after driving a new (for me) Porsche model.
as you see you will never find it out if you do not drive all of the 993 models.
I think as you are not into too much power (yet) a 3.8 ltr. 993 C4S would be OK.
I have seen one with a nice setup suspension (Bilstein PSS 9) driving a slalom and it was very fast.
What I do not understand is that the C4S is not too much cheaper than a Turbo.
So I would never buy the C4S but it is nevertheless a great car.
Regarding the 993 RS it is not exactly in the league of the 964 RS but a very capable sports car.
For the additional money that the 993 RS will cost you can easily modify any 993 to your like and still have money left. (but no RS)
The 964 RS (do not know if you have that in the US) is a hell of a car and the suspension has about zero comfort. My friend sold his 98! 993 TT with 450 hp Porsche factory kit and bought a 964 RS for about the same money! to drive it on the F1 Hockenheimring race circuit almost every week.
He is so happy with the feeling of the car even if it is not faster than the Turbo. It is all about driving sensation and a good feeling.
For me the small cabin of the 993 is one reason of the special driving fun and the 964 is even smaller inside I think. The 356 is the smallest though.
Do not read, drive! You will only get a very incomplete picture of the Porsche models just by reading.
You will not narrow the decision down by reading, perhaps you are even missing your dream car.
I am always very suprised after driving a new (for me) Porsche model.