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Wife wants a 997.2 Turbo: I think we should stick to NA S-GTS! Help
Hi there,
My wife really wants another cab (and to be fair, it is her money, mostly!). She fell in love with a $100k Turbo S in cream white she saw online. The car is simply badass. With that said, I see a lot more value in a GTS cab for $30-35k less.
What is depreciation like on the Turbo S? Insurance? Maintenance? My reluctance toward the Turbo S is that on the GTS or S, I know how bulletproof these cars are and how relatively inexpensive they are to own. Also, how great they drive (as as DD) and how good they sound (with PSE and SW bypass pipes, of course). The Turbo S is a lot more money and when I have seen them up for sale, I see relatively few takers.
FWIW, she has been DD'ing the GT4, and that won't work long term for her.
What are the pros-cons of this decision? How does the Turbo S drive in comparison to the GTS or S cab?
I think you and your wife should drive both cars and then decide. They are both excellent, but they have a very different character.
Many people believe that the 997 Turbo and Turbo S cars are at or near the bottom of their depreciation curve. Additionally, the 997.2 Turbo S cars appear to be quite reliable. I haven’t heard many negative stories about them with respect to maintenance, reliability, etc.
One thing to consider is the fact that the TTS is only offered with PDK. If you want a 6MT, then the GTS is the way to go. It doesn’t sound like this is an issue for you though.
You are going to receive a lot of passionate responses to this. Most forum members have strong opinions, and they spout them off like facts, even though there is often times nothing behind them aside from personal opinion. The reality is that the base, S and GTS are outstanding daily drivers and for the most part, bullet proof. I put 100,000 miles on my 2003 996.2 base and currently have 20,000 miles on my 997.2 GTS and they are terrific daily drivers. Very reliable and practical for a super sports car. The Turbo models have significantly higher maintenance costs simply from the fact that they have AWD and Turbos, along with a few other Turbo-specific requirements (look it up in the factory maintenance book) and frankly the excess speed they are capable of cannot be appreciated by most people in most situations. And think about it, there is a reason Porsche races the NA GT3 and Cup Cars. No matter how well designed, turbos always have lag. I’ve successfully raced in GTS2 and have driven sports cars my whole life. I’ve owned and driven many Porsche’s and in my experience, a base, S or GTS is the perfect daily driver. I actually had more fun with my base Carrera, but I love the special features of the GTS, including the fact that wide body rear drive Porsche’s are very rare and historically very desirable. Good luck with your new car, and it sounds like you have a cool wife!
You are going to receive a lot of passionate responses to this. Most forum members have strong opinions, and they spout them off like facts, even though there is often times nothing behind them aside from personal opinion. The reality is that the base, S and GTS are outstanding daily drivers and for the most part, bullet proof. I put 100,000 miles on my 2003 996.2 base and currently have 20,000 miles on my 997.2 GTS and they are terrific daily drivers. Very reliable and practical for a super sports car. The Turbo models have significantly higher maintenance costs simply from the fact that they have AWD and Turbos, along with a few other Turbo-specific requirements (look it up in the factory maintenance book) and frankly the excess speed they are capable of cannot be appreciated by most people in most situations. And think about it, there is a reason Porsche races the NA GT3 and Cup Cars. No matter how well designed, turbos always have lag. I’ve successfully raced in GTS2 and have driven sports cars my whole life. I’ve owned and driven many Porsche’s and in my experience, a base, S or GTS is the perfect daily driver. I actually had more fun with my base Carrera, but I love the special features of the GTS, including the fact that wide body rear drive Porsche’s are very rare and historically very desirable. Good luck with your new car, and it sounds like you have a cool wife!
Thank you! This is great information!
We can't drive either: both are pretty rare cars. The Turbo S she likes is in SoCal, and the GTS is in Virginia.
She likes the presence of the Turbo for sure: the wing and more aggressive spoiler, along with the side intakes, really appeal to her. She already drives very fast: I worry that I will be bailing her out of jail in the Turbo S!
Although we love our manuals, a PDK makes a lot of sense for a DD car.
To me the GTS is the ultimate Porsche 911 for daily use. It has better performance than the S but not as extreme as the GT3. It has all the practicalities of a std 911.
It's rear wheel drive but still have the advantage of the wide body (same as the turbo)
And as mentioned above - it has manual transmission as I believe. I have read many threads about PDK-issues. But manual might not be what your wife wants. Still I would go for a GTS PDK over a Turbo S.
I have a 997.1 C2S and wished I had the money four years ago to go for the 09 GTS. It's my perfect car. Does everything.
I have a 997.2 TTS.
The lag is minimal
The power is simply Awesome
The looks are awesome.
From what I've seen, read, heard, the TT's and TTS's are (997.2's) are bullet proof.
Easily daily drivable.
PDK is simply amazing and does not make me miss my 6MT Turbo (2001), although I love rowing gears too.
Not much on the road can out accelerate a TTS on the street.
Outright speed (195+) is NOT the point of a Turbo. It's the low end torque / HP and "QUICK" you get to whatever speed you chose.
Just my opinion, but if you can afford the TTS, I see no reason not to go that route. With exception to someone only wanting 6MT.
The TurboS is the top dog, to be certain. But as auto technology has progressed, the PDK and the Turbos are no longer the exception but they are the norm. If you think you want a NA, then by all means, don’t hesitate. They won’t be available for much longer. Oh and that sound is irreplaceable.
In your case, I'd forget about the actual differences in the cars. It's going to be your wife's car, mostly her money, and she wants the Turbo S. If you get the one she doesn't want, 6 months from now she's likely to start talking about how she wished you'd bought the one she wanted, and even if she doesn't talk about it,, it's still going to be in the back if her mind It's also not like one us a bad choice, like if she was looking at a base model Cayenne and a Macan Turbo - you can't really go wrong either way.
That's my 2 cents after 20 years of marriage and why I have a pink Porsche in my garage.
+1. Get whatever puts the biggest smile on the primary driver's face. Even if the tts depreciates a little more than the gts so what. I assume you are getting this for pleasure, not investment. My 47th anniversary is tomorrow :-).
It does not make any difference what others people say, buy what you want.
I am biased to both.
They are just 2 different concept.
I just dont know why people keep on saying there is lag on a Turbo or turbo S. I dont feel any. The torque is so high on low rpm that there is no lag as far as I am concerned.
Ived owned PDK turbo and turboS and GT3. A PDK is perfect on a Turbo. But I am a manual guy. So I made an excuse, I bought a 11 Turbo S for my wife. Now we are a happier family.
I drive my manual cars(or other toys), then she drives the Turbo S with the kids. Now she is involved with my Porsche experience.
10-14-2018, 12:30 PM
Wife wants a 997.2 Turbo: I think we should stick to NA S-GTS! Help
