Alan C.

Going to look at an 08 Carrera S tomorrow and may trade my 09 Cayman S with PDK. The car I am looking at is a black/black very well optioned coupe with 6 speed. Clean history/DME with CPO till March 2014 and has about 16,000 miles.

I've owned several 911s in the past and think I might want to get back into one.

Of course my local dealer showed me a new 2011 Boxster Spyder in Basalt Black with sport seats and climate control which was pretty nice as well. But if I did that I might as well keep the Cayman.

I tried a GT3 but the clutch was just a bit more than my left leg could take. The 08 Carrera S is just enough easier to make it bearable. I've got the equivalent cost of two cup cars tied up in my spine.

EDIT: I now have an 09 Carrera S. Black/black 6 speed

f4 plt

Your comment about your spine prompted this reply. I would stay with PDK and or Tip ( not near as good as PDK) if you have a back problem. The rotation to push the clutch, even the mild clutch of the newer cars will fatigue you, trust me I'm missing three diacs in my lower spine. That said The 911 frame does offer more interior room than the Cayman and I drive both ( and both with PDK). I drove stick for over 50 years and you are not as quick as the PDK can shift. Don't trust me, Hurley Haywood will tell you that also. If you want to go back to a 911 I would look for an '09 with PDK you would also get the DFI engine and some other upgrades. That is my .02 cents worth.

MJones

The Spyder IS quite a car.
The GT3 clutch is not all that tough to get use to, it's the spoiler that gets most people!

Let us know what you end up doing

ADias

Great advice, on all counts.

robbonds

Go 2009 pdk. Worth the premium

RonCT

I'd consider sticking with your 09 w/ PDK or finding an 09 Carrera in your budget because 09 brought in the new DFI engines. An 09 Carrera with either manual or PDK gets you the DFI engine, Gen 2 PASM, etc.

mrzoop

Alan - I really find this interesting. Mainly because I'm 'thinking' of doing the same thing > just in reverse. I've got an 08 997S that I really like alot. But the look of the Cayman and the thought of the PDK just keeps making me wonder if I might want to give it a go. The PDK really has my interest. I know everyone will think I'm nutz to even consider it, but I've always just loved the look of those cars. There's a link in my sig with fotos.

jumper5836

I want PDK in my Cayenne not sure if I'd ever want it in a sports car. Seems like it will take 1/2 the fun of driving out of it.

Carrera06997S

Just having finished the Porsche Sport Driving school at Barber Motorsports Park, I can tell you that I am a convert to the PDK. I test dove the 911 with PDK when it first came out and I felt the same as you until I spent two days behind the wheel of a 2010 911S on the track. I had thought that removing the shifting out of the equation would equal a less than satisfactory driving experience, not true my friend. What I found was more focus on the actual driving of the car. All of the professional drivers love the PDK, to a man they said that there is no way to out shift the PDK. One might say that it was a sells pitch, if so, I am sold!

stevepow

So is the motivation to get a 911 or to get a 6spd? Or is the 6spd just a matter of budget and/or sales guy is pitching you a car?

Just be careful if you really have back issues. There's plenty of fun in a PDK and maybe with a little patience on your trade, waiting for the right '09 PDK at the right price, is worth doing. And don't get hung up with having to get an "S" - the base DFI car has plenty of power; about the same as '08 S - and can save you a good bit of $$$.

jumper5836

I don't disagree, PDK is faster but the brain and body doesn't have to do anything. In fact I've driven it and I didn't even need to shift. It was shifting and down shifting perfectly, so I just let it do it automatically. There was no need for me to think about it.
The involvement is way less, the satisfaction of a perfect upshift shift almost bordering on a flat shift or a perfect heel and toe down shift or the throttle blip in perfect sync while down shifting it something that is entirely gone. Hence 1/2 the fun is gone. Anyone can drive an auto as anyone can drive a straight line fast so what is the point in that when half the art of driving skill is not required anymore.
Every time I drove it I would lose 1/2 the fun. Actually probably more then 1/2 the fun. What really would I do if I didn't have to be engaged to drive my sports car. I guess I would want to have a coffee. Oh wait, then I would have to complain about cup holders that don't do a great job of holding cups. Then I have to complain about the suspension being to stiff, need to soften that up. Man with all the time on my hands I would want more gadgets so I could be more productive while in the car, need a Panamera console with a hundred buttons to push. You know where I am going with this.

stevepow

My PDK works great and the cupholders are pretty good too (after suffering with BMW for years, maybe I'm easy now?). And the suspension seems perfecty tuned to the tranny and cupholders. And most of the gadgets are cool, but not too bling or over the top.

And even at 1/2 the fun, if one believes that - and I don't having driven MTs for 30yrs - it is still loads more fun than any other car I have driven (other than maybe a Boxster or a go-kart).

And really, how much fun can a car be if it exacerbates back pain? That'd get old faster than "no spare tire".

But, yes, I see where you are going with this - it ain't your father's 911 no more...buy that ship really sailed with the 996 didn't it?

Chaos

Alan,
Update your avitar

Post a pic of all those cars in one thread

At your age a PDK should be standard

Pay me for the Indian giver Sumi III's

Get a 996 TT

Carrera06997S

Your point is well taken. I will say that there is nothing like a perfect downshift with heel to toe! I do think that the PDK allows one to totally focus on driving the right lines on the track. Perhaps the most fun would be to so both in my standard 911 of Cayman. No argument.

f4 plt

Not to nitpick but to be technically correct the Cayenne is not offered with PDK but instead up until 2011 it had a 6 speed tiptronic. Introduced with the 2011 model the tiptronic has added two more gears. The tiptronic being a true automatic transmission is better for towing.

Now back to the fun part. I have PDK in both my C2S and my Cayman and while it is fun to shift either with the paddles or the shift lever on the track I put it in sport plus and leave the lever in Drive. The computer makes sure i am always in the power band. If shifting with a clutch was so good why do F1 cars paddle shift and the Carrera RSR with sequential only uses the clutch to get going in first. MY SC that i track has a clutch and I enjoy shifting but on the track you can go so much quicker with more attention to driving with PDK sorry for the length.