rileyracing1

I would like to drive my 911 every day unfortunately ... the roads and traffic during the week especially here in Downtown Toronto not to mention the drivers / e-bikes etc are morons and my car being a manual is not conducive to a enjoyable drive except early mornings on weekends.

I took it out to run some local errands yesterday and it just reaffirmed how unenjoyable city driving is midweek in traffic with a 911 so I put her back to sleep. I find my Cayenne much more enjoyable in such environments than my 911 although I do look forward to either nice drives or weekend blasts with my 911.

The reality is urban driving environments are only getting worse and are not much fun in a sports car , regardless I will always have fun rides just have to pick when to use them unfortunately.

biggreek

This feedback is great, I'm not planning on pulling the trigger anytime soon, just trying to get a feel for the waters now. And set my mind one way or the other so I don't drive myself crazy (no pun intended. Haha) when I'm ready to get my next commuter. And no, a Camry or Accord isn't the right answer.

NevilleNobody

I'll say it. I think it's a terrible idea. You're worried about tyre wear but willing to fork over what, 40k on a decent 997.1? A car with two known potential catastrophic engine issues? And that many miles in a 997, period, is gonna wear you down.

If not emotionally invested in the 991, id just run that. A second, exciting car, try a 2015 to 17 pp2 mustang. Pp2s are well sorted, lots of grip, just a heavy nose. Much cheaper to buy and run than a 997.1 and still tones of fun.

Petza914

I don't know, my wife's 05 997.1 C2S is our second most reliable car (second to our GMC Sierra c3) and she DD'd it for about 5 years and 60k miles. Water pump is the only failure we had with it. Still on the same clutch we bought it with at 40kiles and it's at 110k now.

NevilleNobody

OP doesn't strike me as someone that can wrench on his own, the Porsche Tax thing is real. A set of rotors and pads plus labour is eye watering. I just had plugs, MAF sensor and two o2 sensors replaced and I am out the best part of $2,500, at an indy, dealer wanted more. Not to mention you're a bore score or IMS away from a calamity.

A set of fresh rubber every year will be cheaper than an additional car.

groovzilla

As you age, the idea of commuting in a Porsche 911/997 doesn't sound thrilling. Especially if you are a manual transmission lover like me.
Maybe fun exciting the first week. But then bending down, doing the "entering the Porsche" seat body/hips maneuver with sore back and knees, dealing with traffic, door dings from A-holes in parking lot or front rear bumper rubs/scratches from morons parking on street all factors in my thumbs down.
I'm for a more comfortable SUV like my Mercedes ML320 CDI ---->28mpg on hwy, easy to enter, wonderful comfort. At least that's my opinion at 63 years old - A hip 63 I may add.

Petza914

Maybe. I haven't had one of my y Porsches worked on outside my own garage in about 4 years and on my two 997.1s have done oil pressure senders, water pumps, brakes, timing chain tensioners, variocam solenoids, plugs, coils, and some other stuff, but honestly, on my wife's car haven't done anything but tires,.oil changes, and the pressure sender in 3-4 years.

NevilleNobody

Oh I 100pc believe you, sometimes cars are just wired a bit odd and give you zero grief. Reality is, grinding it the way the OP says he will, stuff is gonna need replacing and a fresh set of MPS4's are less than $2k a year. I guarantee it costs more than just to run a 997.1 let alone pay the loan down or the opportunity cost of the trapped capitol.

sandwedge

Bruce....I don't think I've ever disagreed with you on any of your opinions but there's a first time for everything. It's not just my opinion but going by all the 997 reviews I've read and my ownership of three of them, the 997 is widely considered a true sports car and an iconic one at that. Some say maybe the best version of the 911 but that's another discussion.

I see what you're saying though. The 997 can be used as a daily commuter, for a Home Depot run and then at the weekend, beat the hell out of most of the bunch at the track with a skilled driver. Many sports cars don't have those bragging rights.

I think this video sums it up really well:

I've driven both 991's and 992's and with those I would come closer or even right with you the grand tourer label.

Carreralicious

I think it’s cause he came from 986 Boxster ownership as I have (I used to see his posts in a Boxster forum), and he is a big fan of that small sports car, mid engined feel where you can just toss that car around. The 997 is larger and with the engine in the back, handles differently. He feels the Boxster was more of a pure sports car I think. I think the only reason he left Boxster ownership was because he had 2 engine failures on his 986 Boxsters and so he moved onto the 997.2 which no longer used the IMS design.

After moving from a Boxster to the 997 myself, I agree that you can’t toss around a 911 the same way you can a Boxster because you have to be aware of the weight all the way in the back, but overall, I like the 997 way more than the Boxster I owned because it still has crazy high limits, more power, more interior space (I felt cramped in the Boxster), and the feeling you get from powering hard out of a corner is amazing. I certainly don’t think the 997 is like a GT car. I feel the ride is still kinda harsh compared to my daily driver tuned Audi that can gobble up miles way more comfortably. Heck, I have even driven a 991.2S and even that car didn’t feel GTish to me (maybe because it was a coupe and I feel I have more room in my 997 cab with the top down. Lol). 911s are awesome sports cars and I wouldn’t want to go back to a Boxster, but I can see how he would think the 911 is more of a GT in comparison to his previous cars.

yelcab

My wife daily drives her 2006 Carrera S. Two differences, it's a tipt and her commute is only about 30 miles round trip. Many years ago, I commuted in an 84 Carrera with a 150 miles commute. Looking back and compared to today, the 84 did not make a good commuter. Mileage was poor, too much wear and tear, tires, brakes, oil changes, valve adjustment were constantly coming up. The wife's 997 is doable as a daily driver because the commute is not too long. Even then, tires are an annual event. Brakes are every two years. Oil changes every 5K miles.

In the end, I bought a brand new E36 M3 to replace the Carrera for the daily commute. I suspect I would do the same today in this scenario and not buy a 997S.

RacerWannabe

I've DD'd my 997.2 S for 3 years now, but not as far as you're planning; typically 45 or as much as 90 miles round trip. I average 17k/year. My car has Bilstein B16 coilovers and that is about as aggressive as I would want to get with a DD. I think it's what you get used to though as I find the suspension comfortable but my wife sometimes complains if pavement is bad. For now I'm happy that I get to enjoy it every day - it's nice to get at least a grin at some point during my daily drive. I take good care of it, but I intend on keeping it long term and have no issue piling on miles. As for rock chips, I have full ppf on it, so I don't worry too much about the typical road rash. Just clicked over 100k yesterday. The only thing I worry about is salt. I have a car on order now (have had for 6 months...who knows when it's arriving) that will start taking the salt and likely the middle of summer commutes, with the 911 reserved for fall and spring.

sandwedge

Good points. As I've said before, I've had both Boxster and Cayman loaners from the dealership and although I can see how some may think that both of them, smaller in size and lighter in weight may feel more like the traditional sports car that as you say can be tossed around and played with in a way that doesn't come as natural in the 997 with all that weight in the rear of the car.

And like you, I felt cramped in both the Boxster and the Cayman with the seat full aft and full tilt till there was no more room. I'm, 6'3" and 187 lbs so no giant but there's no way I would buy either of those two cars because of the smallness inside. To each their own but I need a good driving position to get the most out of a sports car (or any car for that matter).

propchef

^^^ my experience as well. My 997.1 has been very reliable with only a water pump failure. I fixed that myself.

I daily mine, taking it to work to Home Depot to Costco to long trips into far northern California for hooning and camping. I have a Tip car with extended leather, 18" wheels, and a seriously upgraded entertainment system put in specifically because I knew it would be a daily driver.

- round-trip to work is 60+ miles, mostly highway. I do this commute 2-4 times a week, 30 weeks a year.
- gas mileage is poor (around 21 mpg) but I don't care
- I put Michelin PS on in March of 2020 and they're only about half-way done. It doesn't get really cold here so I can drive on them year-round. They probably have 15k miles on them.
- maintenance costs are less than my 2019 X5 and most maintenance items are an easy DIY

Petza914

21 mph is great. That's better than all but 2 of my 8 cars (daughter's 6 cyl X5 and wife's 997 C2S at 23).