NJ-GT

Get a low miles 996 GT3. It has the same price as a BMW M3.

I like the M3 for what it's. A great DD, one of the best DD out there, and it leaves OG C-SixtyPig in the dust.

GTR, it's a Nissan. Walk to a Nissan dealer, and you get the idea of what/who you will be dealing with for the next few months/years. Do the same with a Porsche dealer.

Get a CPO 2005 996 GT3, and be happy.

zizu

I agree with NJ-GT. 996 gt3 would be a great car that does everything well. Much more unique than a M3.
Or... get a Cayman S, great little car that would out-handle anything out there.
Or a 993TT, always follow your dream.
You should stay with Porsche though. Like they say there is no substitute!

iLLM3

M3 hands down, can't wait to get mine, fantastic!!

But I have my GT2 for my real fun, but still if I were faced with it, M3!

C.J. Ichiban

Rad and mooty have given the advice I would give you-

If an RS is the endgame- don't waste money on stuff you won't like. 996GT3 is a GREAT platform for mixed use.

the only thing guaranteed about performance sedans such as RS4, M3, M5, e63, C63, etc:

you will lose your *** in depreciation.

GT3 Nut

996 Gt3 is a great car, but not a great dd in my opinion. I am currently without a Porsche street car because I feel it is almost pointless to have since you can only do so much on the street. That being said I would still have my RS if I could afford to keep both that and the 997 Cup.
That being said, I am picking up my new M3 Sedan with the DCT tranny later this week. It will be my DD instead of driving my beast of a diesel pick up truck every day.

C.J. Ichiban

matt those graphics on the cup are insane! btw- I loved your home track of VIR this weekend...

gt3cup98

M3 will be fun while waiting for the RS. I am picking up a M3 Convertible with DCT Tranny at the BMW Performance Driving Center this Thursday. It will be for fun for me and my wife and my RS for the tack.
Looking forward to the drive back to Florida.
Boyd

allegretto

as he said, once the RS comes he'll still need a DD. So get the M3 now and plan on keeping it.

CJ is correct of course, they'll all depreciate...ALL of them.

OG, I know you like the C63 but I was just at my M-B dealer getting my car washed and my salesman told me about an unhappy customer who just bought his 63 and decided to trade it for a CLS 63 and got the $20K bad news, after 6 weeks of ownership.

Right now it's just murder if you plan on trading in...

iLLM3

What deal are you guys getting on 09 M's, not to go off topic.. I got 2k off and .9% financing, 7k off an 08 but figured why settle for one that's not to my spec, and since its a year old that depreciation has set in anyway!

raysmd

done! it's the '09 M3 coupe for me. Just stopped by the BMW dealership to take a look at my car and it's perfect. white, black interior, black CF roof, DCT. I got $800 over invoice for a spec'd car. I thought the 0.9% financing was for 2008's.

anyway. This should hold me over until the 2010/11 RS debuts

Riz

I test drove the C63 twice, and the M3 twice. The C63's handling is mediocre, sure its got a lot of torque but it can't handle it. Coming out of slower corners, the backside is all over the place. The seating position for me was too high unless I reclined the seat. The M3 was far superior in every way IMO, especially in the handling department. One of my friends just got rid of his C63 with only 1600 miles. He hated the handling, liked the engine. He also had many electrical problems, and his rear diff fell apart. I guess I was expecting great things after the rave reviews from Old Guy. The C63 can't even handle the power is has now, forget about taking it to 550hp!

wilfred

Congrats! I was going to suggest the M3 anyways I think both are great cars but price alone would've made the decision for me. The M3 is going for around $60k? And the GTR is $90k? Unlike many Porsche enthusiasts, I actually like the GTR a lot, but it is not a $90k car to me.

raysmd

actually, the deal was for MSRP 76K on the GTR. The M3 was 66k fully loaded.

wilfred

Wow, so the GTR is finally selling for MSRP now? Or is this something you ordered months ago? I was under the impression they are selling for $5-15k over the new MSRP of $80k for the premium ones.

raysmd

MSRP is a little tough to come back, but I got lucky. That was my biggest concern. Only for a little more money I would've gotten a monster. BUT, it's not worth it since I'd still get a Pcar. So, I went for a more comfortable ride then a track car when it's available.

The GTR prices are going to plummet in the next few months. It'll be selling for below MSRP soon. Especially after Nissan raised the price.