TurboS

X2!

I drove the new Boxster with PDK last week at the Mosport DDT, lead follow exercise behind a professional in the current Cayman. His comment
in the pits was, " I thought I said 2 car lengths, Not 2 Feet" .

Next mid life crisis will definitely have PDK.

fc-racer

Don't the F430 and Scuderia share the same engine/platform? It seems to work well for Ferrari. It doesn't make any business sense to have a completely unique engine for the GT cars.

CRex

Allow me to throw in my two cents of nerd logic:

One might reason that the 430/458 is a "B" car for Ferrari (whereas the 599/F12 is their "A" product). Porsche, until the release of the mass-produced 918 derivative in 2015/6 (not the 918 itself, which is a halo car), uses the 911 to fill both the "A" and "B" slots: the former with TT's and GT's, and the latter with run-of-the-mill carreras. Up till now, that marketing ploy has been backed by a certain element of truth (GT1 block, tranny, suspension, weight, etc.)

I realize I'm at risk of having drunk too much koolaid myself, and I'm open to others challenging my assumption. I'm not remotely suggesting that a TT/GT is equivalent to a 599 (hell even I'm not that stupid), but one could reasonably point to very different products and price points within the 911 hierarchy when other manufacturers don't do the same.

If you accept the above logic, a Scud is a (superbly) refined product within the confines of the Fiat "B" car. All's well with customers and they know they're getting a superb B car within the Ferrari family. (Rad pls don't start flaming me, despite my love for Scuds they're just not the same thing as a 599GTO, right?)

Now, for Porsche to do the same and attempt to make an "A" car out of something that's not... that's one big bone to swallow for folks like us...

mooty

i think porsche worries too much about nothing.
if pdk is in cup and rsr, then wins. it will sell.
there are very few true enthusiast out there. we are the minority. hard to believe, but that's the fact.

Mike in CA

Another way to look at it is that Porsche doesn't really seek to play in the "A" market at all, except maybe when they have built cars like the Carrera GT and the forthcoming 918. This is reinforced by the price points they have chosen for their TT and GT cars which for the most part are nearly 6 figures cheaper than even the "B" cars offered by the competition from Ferrari, much less Ferrari's "A" models, and not much greater than their "normal" line models like the Carrera. For example, the last GT3 was priced within about $25K of a regular Carrera S; check a very few option boxes on an S and it was right in GT3 territory. This point is also borne out by Porsche's managment which realizes they don't really have an "A" offering, and have talked of a car to slot in-between the 911 and the 918.

One could argue that all 911's are really variations of the same theme. In that context, using the same basic chassis and engine for all the models in the line makes sense and no one should feel cheated by the fact that their supposed (but not really) "A" car shares design and some parts with it's lesser kin. Just my $.02.

Alan Smithee

Not to mention, the 996/997 is the only generation of 911 to not share drivetrain components between models throughout the range, from Turbo and RS models down to the base 911 (997 Turbos with 9A1 excepted).

sstjohn

I don't think I could order a 991 GT3 with PDK if manual is an option. I would feel like I was cheating. That being said, if PDK is the only option, it would not stop me from buying it.

TRAKCAR

If PDK only I would prefer the 4.0.

mdrums

You gotta cheat to stay up front in GT3DE Cup.

Targa Tim

+1.
Also, most young kids these days will not know how to drive manual.
So winning or not, PDK will still sell well and account for 90%+ of all new 911s.
I am very sure that I will be faster in a PDK car than my current 3.8RS. But since I am not tracking for money and prize and even pride, I am more than happy to stick with my RS for some shifting fun.

TRAKCAR

We could go fater today in a TTS PDK with all the go fater bits. (Mdrums!!)
YeT, I don't see many on the track.

Mike in CA

The price penalty for features of no benefit on track and the extra 500lbs the TTS packs around has a lot to do with that, I expect.....

Nizer

Interesting. Have a neighbor that owned an SMG M5. Loved the car but sold it within a year because he couldn't stand the SMG. To each his own.

Larry Cable

OK, if this is true (which I doubt), then why would Porsche offer a 7sp mt on the 991 Carerra (S) as an option?

there is no logic behind this, given all the existing generations have been mt only, and have sold to the likes of us and others, and given that the new car will be 9A1 based, presumably using the same (or slightly modified PDK box the other 991s are/will use) why would Porsche sell a "track oriented" car without the same options as the "regular" cars ...

I think this is all unfounded speculation ...

I'd be happy if they offer PDK for those that want it, I'd be unhappy for those that wanted a new 991 GT3 with mt if it is not available, but honestly, since I own the last generation of the 'real' GT3 ... do I care? - nope

Aerokitted

No one is going to give you a prize for hamstringing yourself with an outdated transmission.

Let the manual rip. PDK is the new order. Game over.