sparetireless

the clock and steering wheel saaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhuuuuuuuccccck hard.

Tour18

I think KWC4S hit it on the head. Change ain't easy. And this one is here and that's that... And considering what $85,000 will buy, I think the 997 is pretty much in a class of it's own.

I hope the 997 and it's variants are a hit and drive the price of everything down. I'd love to have a 996 GT2 beater for the price of a pristine 993 turbo... hehehe...

BiggerTwin

Most everyone is focused on how the car looks compared to the one they own. Isn't this really about how the car drives?

From the information Porsche has released, it seems like the 997 should be a better handling car with a wider track, shorter shifting 6-speed, and new suspension options. My only concern is the variable ratio power steering. If they do a better job than BMW in this department, I don't much care what the car looks like. To the casual observer the 997 will be hard to tell from the 996. To the real enthusiast, it is the driving that matters most.

If I had a 996 and was happy with it, I wouldn't lose any sleep over the 997. As someone in the market, I wouldn't buy any Porsche until after I drove both versions of the 997. This is not like a Chis Bangle 5 Series where people will be running out to buy the old car before they are all gone. I was most interested in the 996 C4S but with the 997's wider track, a C2S has my attention now. However, this is all gleeful anticipation until I actually get to drive the cars and figure out which one I like best.

Alan

KWC4S

biggertwin,

yes, it' is about the driving, but we all know what it looks like...we'll talk about the driving after we've driven it.

sparetireless

Brilliant comment, I predict Porsche will be more sought after than the BMR!

Not much of an endorsement though. The new 997 is the perfect sales tool to spark sales of a nice low mile 993.

But this is not new, I will take a 66 Mustang Mach 1 with low miles over the new one, not sure this has good impications for cars in the future.

Same for the ford GT 40 vs. the current Ford GT> Why can't they just break out the old blue prints and use the old tools, call it a enthusiast series??

adsc4s

Personally, I like the way the 997 looks, both the exterior and the interior. I also like the 996 but have a preference for the wide bodied ones. I also like the 993, 964, 911, etc. As much as we compare models, complain about water, air, etc, they are all really nice cars. Will I buy a 997? No. Like others have said, I love the driving experience I get with my 993TT.

500

The first pictures I've seen of the 997 have made an overall good impression on me. I remember likeing the 996 less when I first saw it. I think this shape will evolve well.

Carrera GT

Both 3.6 and 3.8 engines change from the 996.
The 997 interior could not resemble the Carrera GT cabin because Porsche has chosen to respond to criticisms of "generic" design (where the Boxster and Carrera were indistinguishable.)
The 997 will re-test the success of offering a normal and wide body Carrera at launch. And Porsche has chosen to leave pricing all but unchanged. I think Porsche wants high volume sales to reverse the investor impression of slow sales.
I've never liked the 996 body in any model short of the GT3 and my initial impression of the 997 was poor, but the 997 is a "grower" that becomes more appealing each time I see it and some angles are quite inspiring.
There are pics of the "Sport Chronometer" and some nice "Carrera Classic" wheels etc. at www.autospies.com (no affiliation, just another Web site)

Adam

KWC4S

1357 views (lots of duplicates of course)
192 votes

I enjoy saying it again: most of the readers on this forum are wimps. you probably can't drive either and your momma wears combat boots

jumper5836

So your saying that there won't be the 996 RMS problem with the 997 engine.
And they are going to offer a narrow body option for the Carrera?
Where did you get this news?

Carrera GT

I'm just starting to learn about the technology in the 997, there's some good improvements in the engine and transmission design. I think we'd all be astonished if the 997 didn't bring the "usual" set of "version 1.0" product weaknesses that Porsche appears to have grown accustomed to allowing into its new models. But the "all new" 997 is largely based on technology from other models.
As for "news," there's not much except the first cars arrive in the US in October with most dealers apparently just now having ordered their first cars (ready to change to customer order specs) and the '05 Carrera is widely publicised in "normal" and "S" models, if that's the question.

Cheers,

jumper5836

My question was regarding the narrow body carrera.
I was under the impression both the Carrera and S will only come with the wide body and there wasn't a narrow body.

And concerning the engine. You've wrote that both the 3.6 and 3.8 engines change from the 996. If it is only some improvements on the same engine as the 996, then it will continue to have the RMS problem.

jbdmd

I am all over an S!! in a couple years!!!

Great looks in and out and more refined!

sic6sense

I tend to believe the 997 is made with a view to increase flagging sales of the existing 996 until a more 'revolutionary' 998 is in place. Current 993 and pre 02 996 owners are more likely buyers than owners of other 911s. Of course, there's the new money who wants a fresh take of the 996 as there are plenty of other alternative eye candies on offer.

What I'm really curious is really apart from the business/money reason for the 997, is the tie over to the 998 an engineering and design issue as rumours are circulating of an 8 cycls rathing boring further in the 6s?

sic6sense

And whether I would buy the 997? Nope for the simple reason I like my 02 TT and would wait for the 997 rendition to do a comparison.

The insignifant variation on design does little for me.