how many of you 997s or 997 owners drive you cars everyday to work, with significant highway miles????i have only had dealer and friend test drives which are always too brief...how good is the new 911 on long highway drives??? is the noise level low enough to enjoy music or talk in soft tones on the cell phone??? is the ride compliant enough on rougher city roads and expansion joints??? i owned a 930 and a 993 911, and they were too noisey and rough for everyday commuting...too tiring after a long at work to drive 45minutes home..i know the 911 is more refined...what do guys think??? i know its not a lexus, but how livable is it for everyday , mondane stuff???

 

I drive 35 miles into and 35 miles out of Manhattan every day. I challenge anyone to find harsher roads then those. I have no problem doing it as far as road noise or comfort factor at all. Nothing is better then after a long day then winding out 3rd on the way home. I think it is different for everyone though and in the end you will have to be the ultimate judge. Now with that said if you are going to drive it like I do you need to know that in the first 7 months I have blown 3 tires and 2 rims. I know it sounds like a lot but actually they have been fairly spread out so not to aggravating. Hell it’s not like we are getting 20k miles out of these tires anyway. You have to be prepared for that and you have to know that Porsche road side assistance generally sucks. However on a nice day when nothing is out there to slow you down I challenge you to find a better way to work and back!!

 

Mine's a daily. I don't have nearly as much driving as Weissy, but I drive about 15 miles to work everyday and then the repeat trip home.

Totally in love with the car. If you have another car with utility, I'd say go for the 911. It's a remarkable car.

 

I drive a non S as my daily. IMHO, the car is the perfect answer. Handles my every mood, makes me smile at the end of the day, and looks great on w/e's in Home Depot and Costco parking lots. Actually holds an amazing amount of stuff. I have owned just about everything else at one time or another and there is nothing like it. My only regret: that I am going to have to trade up for the S.

 

hey Weissy, you must be living in central Long Island. By the way, in the city what do you do when people start to approach you with a spray bottle and squeegee on his hand and ready to “clean” your windshield?

 

I really can not comment on daily drives, but I can comment on long haul drives, , as I have just completed a 4,800 mi treck arount the US, my second in the 997, and that should qualify as significant highway miles.

In my opinion GREAT!! My longest stint was 12:31 hrs covering 911.1 mi and had some other days at 7 and 800 mi. For me the seating is GREAT, very supportive and my body is not fatigued even after 8+ hrs of seat time.

The noise level can vary widly depending upon the type of road surface upon which you are driving, and I think I've experienced the best and the worst.
I have the GSM phone option 666, and it works terrific! Normal conversations, and the sound quality is great on both ends. Due to the legnth of my drives I do wear Earplugs, and that does cut out a significant amount of road noise and the head buzzing at the end of the day...The plugs don't hamper the audio entertainment, I just crank up the Bose a bit.

I say yes! And I've experienced the best, billard smooth and the worst, that will pound your teeth out. Remember it is a Porsche (read, sports car) and not a luxo cruiser, what your tolerances are and how compliant a ride you you want, only you can answer.

I also did 4-6000 mi road trips in my '02 996 and the 997 is way better in the comfort and eroonomic areas, by leaps and bounds. The 997 also is a bit quieter as well..

Hope this helps!

 

I couldn't drive mine everyday. Too much intensity, driver input, car input, sensitvie to everything-- lots of information, cars all around who want to race, true-loser-idiots who hate you for spending $100K on a car. Nearly constant vigilence to avoid the eventual $1800 pot hole strike... .

The other thing I never thought I'd say, and let the flames begin, the damn engine and exhaust note get on my nerves sometimes when I'm tired. Seriously, everytime I touch the throttle I get some wild "voicing" from the engine. I start getting pi**sed that Porsche engineered into the car what is probably a focussed-grouped-fake engine sound. Hey, I already told you this mostly happens when I'm tired and not in the mood for excess BS.

You gotta be in a good mood to enjoy this car. Don't get me wrong, it's easy to get in such a mood when driving it. BUT sometimes, (especially with daily driving?) you just can't muster major mood and it's suddenly a PITA.

FWIW... .

 

Not a flame, but for you, the 997 isn't the right daily driver. For someone young and ready to deal with the low entry and exit, moderately rough ride, and moderately loud engine and exhaust (I can't believe I just called a stock Porsche "loud"), it's a great daily driver.

Maybe a Cayenne or A6 is more your speed, MMD.

My M3 wasn't ever my daily driver - I don't like driving it on the street very much - and that's why I have an F-150 crewcab. Best of both worlds. Until the 997S shows up, that is!

 

i don't drive my S daily but i do travel with it often on long trips sometimes 6 to 7 hours of driving. the car is comfortable with PASM on normal setting. it is also quite on the inside and significantly quieter than a 930 or 993. i have perillis on my car and these tire do become noisier as they wear out. i hear michillens are quieter. ask your dealer to take the car for a long test drive 30min or so and schedule it when you are tired (may be after work or something) and judge for your self.

good luck making up your mind.

 

thanks you ..good advice on the test drive whein i am tired...i usally test drive when wide awake and feeling good...any car seems nice then

 

Yeah! Good point. I forgot to mention I'm mid 40s and definitely don't have the [whatever the frick it is] that I had when 20-30. Back then we could probably drive a Lotus Elise all day all week. The Carrera is a sports car and not a sports sedan. I don't want to drive a sports car everyday; especially if it's been a long tough day.

 

My wife and I had two 996's ('99 and '02) that were daily drivers and both had about 55k miles on them in three years when we traded them in. They were great daily drivers; never gave us a moment's trouble. Our new 997S cab is not a daily driver as my wife changed jobs and can now commute by subway so we just use the car on the weekends driving out to the Hamptons from NYC. However, I did drive it 700 mi. in one day taking it back to NYC from the Cincinnati dealer I bought it from and it was a great trip, even in the rain.

 

I drive it everyday. I am out of the country a lot (120 days a year), but still drive to New York from Conn (140+ roundtrip miles) to the office. The 997 is a great everyday car....every mile is a joy. I'll hit 20k miles by the end of this week. I only wish I could afford two 997's!

 

Ideally, I would love Triptonic for daily commute particularly when I am stuck in traffic. Another S stick on the weekends when the clear road beckons for the need for speed.

I agree with MMD that sitting in morning rush hours in my 997S is not so much fun. I would rather be in my wife's BMW X5, 4.4, Triptonic. That thing got a lot of torque which is what you need in stop and go traffic.

 

isnt 295 lbs ft of torque enough for a 3100lbs car???...the test drives i did with the S it showed plenty of low end torque........