I've been a 997TT fan for the longest time and it's really been a dream car of mine to own someday. Well that day has finally arrived! I've been a BMW guy for a long time going from a 330 to E46 M3 to E90 M3 and now finally a 997TT. I've been lurking on here and 6speed for a while trying to decide what was best for me and when it push came to shove the 997.1TT was more than sufficient for my needs. I tested the newer 991 and 997S, but neither got me excited. The 991 was amazing and refined, but I really want the raw power and I love the way the turbo with AWD performs. I'm very picky and it took me a while to find the right car. I considered at a couple 09s since I did favor newer tech, but there weren't many. None were Guards Red (only white, black or silver) so I gave up on 09s and really there was only one in the entire country that checked my boxes so it was a done deal. It so happens that the car was located in Arizona and I live in NJ so instead of shipping the car I decided to grab my buddy who was adamant about coming so we flew to AZ for a one way road trip back to the NE. We flew out Tuesday morning and did the deal, left Scottsdale at 2PM and got back Friday. So all in all it was a 3.5 day trip, 2600 miles, and we really made good time. We had one hell of an adventure and hit some awesome cities and random small towns. The turbo was an awesome car for a road trip really amazing highway cruiser and 100mph is probably the most comfortable speed. It held the road like a champ and we were cruising from state to state no problem with Mr. Valentine watching our back. I had done European delivery with my M3 and it was the best experience ever with a car and couldn't pass up a trip like this in a Turbo. Going from the M3 to Turbo, they are really two completely different cars with almost zero similarity other than being red. The M3 is obviously heavier and more comfortable, but it doesn't inspire fun in driving as much as I wanted and it does too many things well where I would rather have a short list of things that a car does great instead. The DCT transmission is super quick, but less engaging. When I picked up my roadster I was reminded how great a manual transmission was and you enjoy driving much more since I had been driving stick for 10 years previously. I also didn't like the fact that the DCT needs to warm up like the engine. In cold weather it's sluggish and needs time to build up response time. The M3 V8 is an amazing engine but you constantly have to rev the engine all the way to really feel the power and honestly for local driving the quick turbo power is much more exciting. Also the V8 eats gas like Cookie Monster eating cookies in a Keebler factory. This turbo has a good tune and just an insane amount of power, straight lines and turns it just eats the M3 for breakfast and I couldn't ask for more. I'm 110% satisfied with the car and must say that my M3 days are probably gone after 7 years of enjoyment and M3 obsession. I have a feeling that this is just my first Porsche 911TT of many in the future. Details: 2007 997.1 Turbo 20k miles (when I got it) Stage II ECU tune: est close to 600hp/tq Full BBi Exhaust (black coated) ~23lbs HJS 100 cell cats Aftermarket BT/USB Red seat belts Adaptive Sport seats (were a must) Black leather/Grey stitching Sportschrono Steel brakes (didn't want PCCB) 6-speed of course moonroof Carbon Fiber interior trim package Laser Diffuser & V1 prewired With the tune, the car is an absolute monster, seriously the fastest car i've ever been in. The power is monstrous and throws you back in your seat even at 70mph on the highway in 6th gear. It literally chirps tires rolling at 40mph. Apologies for the crappy iPhone photos. The Journey: Tuesday we made it from Scottsdale AZ to Flagstaff to Albuquerque New Mexico in about 7 hours. Talk about amazing views and awesome roads. We saw some state forests and landmarks. I have a friend in Flagstaff so we were able to meet up quickly before hitting the road. Once we left the foresty hills of flagstaff we were just a straight shot on 40 to NM. Lots of trucks unfortunately, but we were able to stop off at the painted desert and petrified forest and have a little fun in the hills before they closed. Luckily there was almost no one there so we had a great time in the twisties. We were also able to stop at some cool abandoned places and native american posts and really enjoy the landscape. Such gorgeous land, but don't think I could ever live there! Flagstaff and national monument area



Gotta eat Painted desert http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f7/ibanezgod/car%20stuff/GOPR1193_zpsc8aa84c8.mp4

 

Wednesday was a HIKE, we were dead set on driving the 1050 miles from Albuquerque to St Louis. 15 hours later we made it! Left around 9am and arrived I think at 1am. Legs were starting to feel it and the constant change in altitude on the trip was drying us out so we had tons of water on hand. I must say the AZ and NM drive was much more eye friendly, NM was great, but once we hit Texas, Oklahoma, and Missouri it was thing but flatland cluttered with jacked up Ford F150s. haha. We certainly saw some interesting people, landscape, etc. But made me appreciate the NE and the diversity in land we have between flatland, forests, cities and mountains not far away. During the trip we stopped at Amarillo Texas and Oklahoma City for food, but didn't spend too much time since the clock was running.




























interesting


even more interesting... wonder if it is toll free in Missouri






excessive bug problem



normal cruising


Arrival in St Louis









Gotta love waze... they have my car Well close enough

 

Thursday AM we got up early and ran a self-5k downtown in St Louis around the Gateway to the West and then went to the top of the 630 ft tower to check out the city. I had never been to St Louis but I was very impressed by how clean the city is and just the overall vibe I got. Also Cardinal stadium was gorgeous. What a great place to play ball. We stayed at the Westin right next door, cool hotel also. We spent a bunch of time walking around before we hit the road around 11 something. Our Wednesday trip really saved us a ton of time. Our destination was Pittsburgh, PA. It was about 25 miles out of the way in a direct route but again I had never been so we wanted to hit it up. We stopped at Indiana university for food and to check it out. We flew through Indy but stopped at Columbus. I have colleagues that live in Columbus and now I know why they aren't a fan. Not somewhere I'd want to spend anytime. We got food, filled up gas and left. I actually had bums starting to surround the car at the gas station asking what it was and if I had a dollar as they spiked their free sodas with small bottles of booze. Working in NYC for years it didn't bother me, but the other guy pumping gas was telling me to hold onto my wallet and high tail it out of the neighborhood asap as he pumped his gas, smoked a stogie and rubbed his bare belly with his hand. I was like WTF is going on around here and glady abliged. No more Columbus, ever.















at Indiana University







Lots of starbucks








Made it to Pitt around 11:30PM and stayed at the Westin downtown, then walked over to the strip district and had an awesome sandwich at Primanti Bros and pounded a few IPAs then was good to go. With around 2100 miles on the clock our friday excursion was going to be the shortest leg. Really liked Pitt from what I saw of it.










Friday we got up early again and hit up the town for breakfast and starbucks before heading out. Again a pretty clean city with awesome iron works. Bridges were very cool, but didn't get to see too much. With only 350 miles left we were pretty anxious to get home and take a break. My legs were starting to feel it and being in a small sports car like a turbo for so long can start to get to you. Amazing car but no where near as comfortable as my M3. We hit some ****ty weather on the way back but the rain came down so hard that it cleaned the filth off of it so you could see the pretty Guards Red again... oh and also wipe the 10lbs of bugs off the front. I conciously stopped about every 200 miles to clean off the front of the car so the bug juice didn't affect the paint. it has a 3M clear bra but just had to be safe!









making great gas mileage. I swear I was getting 350-400 miles per tank averaging a realistic 80-95mph almost the whole way



Serious rain



Home sweet home, in dirty jersey Sopranos style




To wrap up my long story and 2600 mile journey through 9 states, it was totally worth the road trip and would totally do it again!

Some extras

Exhaust



Cold start up




Pictures of the car finally home and cleaned up










Love the colored center caps








Nephew loves it, I let the shoes on the seat slide



My Fleet, but sadly the M3 so it's on it's final days



Here you can see the difference in Reds, (Guards, Imola, Melbourne)





Dyno (@wheels):
466 HP
575 TQ

 

Very nice car, great pics....where in NJ are you?

 

Thanks buddy, I'm near New Brunswick

 

Cool Bridgewater here..... love the BBI tips btw

 

Thanks man, yeah the previous owner put it on. Ran about $6k, it really sounds phenomenal. i'll put up exhaust clips later today.

We'll have to meet up, yours looks awesome too, black is menacing

 

Some vids


Cold start


some revs

 

awesome!!!

your neighbors really hate you now

enjoy!!

 

Epic adventure for a great road trip!

Ian

 

Sharp car and awesome trip notes.

Congrats!!

 

video of driving through the painted desert which is on the way to the petrified forest in AZ.

 

The car, the color, the pics, but the road trip!

Love to see this.

Going cross country myself in July.

 

Sounds good I usually go to c&c around chatham. I would like to hear that exhaust in person

 

Perfect! congrats