mdrums

Statman, have your brother go to the dealer and sit in regular seats, sport seats....he will not fit in the GT2 Sport Bucket seats that accept a harness....and the *** seats. That is really the only way to tell for sure.

KINGSRULE

Get what you want and forget what others are saying

rodsky

Order with Sport buckets and swap afterwards - so when time comes to sell in a year, he is covered. I'm sure he will enjoy the car. Good for him to be able to buy one.

WYD OPN

Opinions were solicited.

s4awd

I originally owned a GT3 with sport buckets. I upgraded to the RS but it had adaptive seats which I was worried about. So I went ahead and purchased sport buckets to swap for trackdays but I can tell you this. I absolutely LOVE the adaptive seats. For trackdays I will swap but for driving around for fun the car is so much more accessbile and picking up people and using it as a "regular car" is so nice. It makes it a very comfortable car. I drive my RS way more than my previous GT3 just because the seats. They're heated too . I can't bring myself to upgrade to a 4.0, but if I did, I would order the buckets and go on craigslist and buy a pair of adaptive seats. Even if it's just one. You will get more for your money simply because you just end up driving the car more. It makes a big difference.

quickxotica

But if you start with a Sport-Bucket car, won't some of the wiring be lacking that is required for the *** seats? Might not be a simple swap-n-go to get the *** all wired up & working if the car was built with Sport Buckets. Can anyone chime in?

orthojoe

Not that anyone cares, but I'm going to side with Pete/Savyboy on this one. Yes, they are street legal cars and driveable on the street. However, you cannot truely appreciate what the car is capable of on the street. Not without endangering yourself and others. If you're never going to use the capabilities of the car, why bother having the car to begin with? These cars were designed to peform at the track AND have the ability to enjoy a drive back home without having to bother with a trailer.

In regards to the sport buckets vs *** seats. Unfortunately my car was optioned with *** seats and there's not a day that goes by where I loathe those seats in my car. I got a good deal on a used spyder, but in retrospect I should have just paid up and optioned the car the way it was meant to be optioned. With sport buckets. I will also say that I've sat in both and really find both to be equally comfortable. This may be because I'm 5'8", 150lbs. Anybody out there that wants my *** seats, I will gladly trade and throw in extra $$$$ for sport buckets.

StatmanDesigns

I guess you don't know too many Carrera GT owners then. You guys are cracking me up. I guess some of you really think that the GT3 RS's really are race cars, and not just dressed like race cars. They sure are fun on a track, but so are all Porsche street cars (and almost all other street sports cars). You do realize that one rarely uses the capabilities of the most mundane cars on the street. Does that mean everyone should drive a Prius on the street unless driving to a DE? I realize that if you only read Rennlist and have no real world exposure to the people that buy high end cars, you might really believe these are race cars.

I find it amusing that some of you really care how a car is used, and would question anyones decision to spend their money how they want. As far as passing on the allocation so that somebody more deserving (whatever that means) could maybe possibly get the car, that just ain't gonna happen. Let's say you had a spare $250K sitting around and were a 30 year die-hard Porsche fanatic, would you pass on an allocation?

Nugget

I think it's just fantastic that you are able to find humor in every day situations. I think it can lead to a longer and happier life. Cheers. I do admit to being a bit puzzled, though, because nobody in the thread has said that they think that the GT3 is a race car and not a street car. So I guess I'm not sure who the guys are who have given you a case of the chuckles.

Ah, I think I've spotted the first miscommunication. I think we're all talking past each other due to different definitions of the word "capabilities." I guess you're using "capabilities" to mean speed and acceleration. I don't think that's how others are using the term, especially since people have specifically suggested the Turbo S as an alternative. By most measures, the Turbo S has higher "capabilities" on the street than the GT3 RS. It's faster, out-accelerates, and probably out-corners a GT3 on the street.

I think, perhaps, what people might be referring to is the track-focused features of a GT3 RS which actually cause it to be a worse car on the street. "Capabilities" such as:

The lightweight flywheel and aggressive gearing that allow for effortless rear-to-front weight shift for cornering on the track but make stop-and-go traffic a total pain in the ***. It's hard to drive an RS at surface street speeds without bouncing around at 5K RPM or nearly stalling the car every time someone turns left in front of you. The track focus harms its usability on the street.

The giant wing on the back which provides cornering downforce at speeds you'll never see on the street (at least not when cornering). That wing also blocks your rear view. The track focus harms its usability on the street.

The more adjustable suspension which lets you dial in crazy negative camber in the front. Invaluable on the track, but you'll never touch the settings on a street car because it would turn the GT3 RS into a tire-eating, tramline following, twitchy mess. The track focus harms its usability on the street.

An aggressive front splitter that will keep the front end of the car down above 120mph. It'll also scrape and get chewed up on every office parking garage and about half the parking lots you'll want to park in. The track focus harms its usability on the street.

A GT3 RS is more than just a Carrera with a goofy wing and vulgar paint. It's a collection of compromises which all harm the street usability of the car in favor of function which is only evident on the track. The track focus harms its usability on the street.

If you do not plan to track the car, it might be a stupid purchase. It's not just that you're buying "capabilities" that you'll never use or even detect, it's that you're buying "capabilities" which you'll grow to hate over time because they'll only be downsides.

None of that is the same as believing that the GT3 RS is a "race car" and not a "street car." But you're blind if you think it's as good a street car as any other Porsche. It's not.

Hey, I go to the PCA wine tasting events too, not just the PCA track events. I'm sure most everyone here, aside from actually being the people who buy high end cars also know a bunch of other people who also buy high end cars. And I'm pretty sure we all live in the real world. It's real over here too, not just in your back yard.

Similarly, I find it amusing that you started a thread by asking for our opinions and now appear to be grumpy and frustrated that we replied as asked. Isn't it great that we're both of such good humor?

Perhaps. I'd certainly be eager to hear from others who have owned one of these cars to see if I fully understood what they're like. $250K and die-hard Porsche enthusiasm might be enough to overlook the shortcomings of a GT3 RS on the street, but it might not.

The buyer who is already wondering about swapping out the seat for a 90lb electric thing sounds like the guy who is also going to get fed up with the giant wing in the rear view mirror. He's going to get sick of passengers and pedestrians asking him "what's wrong with your engine?" because the flywheel chatter is really loud. He's going to get tired of stalling the car because the Oldmobile in front of him at the light took 100 yards to get up to 20mph and the gearing and flywheel don't really move the car well until at least 30mph.

But don't look at me. I'm not grumpy that your brother might buy a car he'll hate. I think it just means he'll flip it for a loss in a year and I might be the one who buys it. So tell him to buy it, if he insists, and keep up with the maintenance. Eventually most cars end up in the right hands over time.

TRAKCAR

I have to agree with all Nugget said.

I use mine as a daily driver and can confirm the above and add some additional reasons the GT3RS is less then ideal then many other cars that are faster on the street.

The brakes squeel louder then a train it blows a big cloud of blue smoke and rattles VERY load at start up. Everyone not in the know is guarantee'd to think the car is broken. It will probably leak a little oil too, so then they know for sure. All stuff I would not put up with in a street only car.

I choose to drive it every day because I can put up with it and I like to practice my heel and toe daily.
I can't afford anything decent and fun as a daily driver. I bought a GT3RS because it is the most race car like street legal car I can drive.

If I would not track, the GT3RS would be gone and I would get a comfier automatic Turbo car that is likely faster on the street too.

Hey, it's your brother's choice, he can light his fire place with it for all I care, I just have to wonder how much he will enjoy it unless he just wants to look at it and leave it parked.
That might be worth the 200K in itself. It's beautiful!

StatmanDesigns

Sorry Nugget, not grumpy or frustrated. I asked a simple question regarding whether it would be better to spec the car with the buckets and swap them (but keep them for later resale) or just to spec the car with *** and have the next buyer worry about getting the elusive buckets. No more no less.

My brother is not a newbie when it comes to GT3RS's, he had a Gen1 997 RS and a 3.8RS, along with nearly every other variation of Porsche cars (you dont get a 4.0RS allocation unless you purchase a lot of cars). We were simply reviewing his choices on the Porsche configurator the other night and he was adamantly opposed to the sport bucket seats since it severely limited his use and enjoyment of his 3.8RS. Since I know that MANY people absolutely love those seats, I thought I would ask if it is better to get them and swap them or not get them. No more, no less, but feel free to keep giving opinions. I don't mind and they are free, problem is you get what you pay for.

I agree that many of the RS details make it a worse street car, but he has a lot of choices in the garage if he just wants a more comfy street ride

TRAKCAR

Ahh, why didn't you say so ;-)
Did he ever track those? Just curious.

Larry Cable

The sports buckets are readily available; I think it would be a LOT simpler for your brother to get the A.S.S specced in his order so he does not have to f*ck around buying them separately ... if/when he comes to selling the car let the buyer install Sports Buckets

I have had sports buckets in my .1 GT3 and have *** in the .2 ... and I have struggled with the question of installing the SB's ... honestly (and I must be getting old) I am sticking with the A.S.S as they are more comfortable on the
street, and I will put up with sliding around at the track ...

ORDER A.S.S AND BE DONE WITH IT ...

p.s
one thought, the only downside is that the RS 4.0 may come with "RS 4.0" stitched into the headrest, this would be difficult to get "after the fact" should a subsequent owner want to install the SBs in the car ... just a thought.

StatmanDesigns

I can't remember if he had the 997.1 RS when we did our last track days (been a couple of years), I know we brought the scuderia and the R8, but he may have already sold the RS at that point. He has serious car ADD (the scuderia is still around but the R8 way gone along with the 16M, California, and 458 Italia). The 3.8RS never saw the track and was dumped when the rumors started about the 4.0RS. His 3.8RS maybe had 900 miles and he bought a Turbo S cab for winter daily driving. The Turbo S is gone and for some reason he has a regular 997S black edition cab until he gets his 4.0RS. I don't know, he is nuts, but I like driving all the cars around, ;-).

StatmanDesigns

Now we have finally gotten through all the B.S., and you now understand why I asked the initial question. Does anybody know if the sport buckets in the 4.0 will be special to that car? I believe on the 3.8RS only the ROW cars had the 3.8RS stitched into the headrest, correct?