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This past weekend I was able to get my first real drive on my new to me GT4 and it was simple amazing! I received a set of 19" wheels from a good friend of mine which had 5 day old RE71R tires on which I am very familiar with. Right out of the gate, I was able to hit my previous PB in traffic without a single clean lap on old tires. Obviously I'm going from one end of the spectrum to another so there will be an inherent difference.
If anyone is looking to make this jump, then I would say by all means do it! It's better in every single way from compliance, accel, brake, turn in, etc, with the exception of steering wheel feedback. I found myself trying to learn the car's feedback before pushing and it is slightly different. I feel like the window for the limit is a bit wider than the 987 which is more confidence inspiring. By the end of the day I dropped 1.4s on old tires so I'm super happy.
Here's my speed trace for you data nerds. (I was behind another car so I broke early into T2.) Even with older tires, I was able to pull similar G's and corner speeds, which is amazing in it's own right. If I were to take an educated guess, the wider tires and aero played a huge role into this.
Blue - GT4 (tires day 6, session 3 in PM)
Red - Base Cayman (tires day 1, session 2 in AM)
Traction Circle
Blue - GT4 (tires day 6, session 3 in PM)
Red - Base Cayman (tires day 1, session 2 in AM)
Added some wheels, bolster covers, and finally removed some sticky sticker residue. Goo gone works like a charm with a paper towel (I tried olive oil, alcohol, and a plastic scraper which all failed).
This is the ghosting left behind from removing the sticker. I didn’t use heat as it sits on top of ppf and I didn’t want to accidentally lift the ppf.
Next up was olive oil (didn’t work) then 70% alcohol, plastic razor, and lots of elbow grease. I didn’t have 90% on hand but it removed a good amount of the glue. The photo below is after a couple hundred miles.
Goo gone + paper towel rubbed away the rest either minutes. A slight dab, wait 20 seconds, then gently rub away just like magic. I also tested it on tire marks in random spots and it wipes away immediately.
Just like anything else, you have your consumables. Tires are wider which correlates to $ but costs aren’t too wildly different ($150-200/set). I went with Falken RT660 this time as we can’t buy the RE71R anymore . I went 265 based on the track wiki, hopefully it’s not too wide up front.
Changing the rear pads is slightly different than the 987.2. With the 987.2, I didn’t need to remove any calipers to change pads which makes it super easy and reduces risk of stripping the hub. The GT4 requires you to remove 2 bolts which hold the brake line brackets, a screw for the brake wear sensor, and obviously 2 caliper bolts. The next part is slightly tricky as I held the caliper by hand instead of thinking ahead to suspend it on something. The rest is a piece of cake. (I removed the rust with a wire wheel after taking photos).
Pro tips: Brake sensor is $20/each from FCP Euro and has a lifetime warranty, otherwise $60/each from the dealership. Line up all the holes very carefully before threading your bolts.
Congrats - great looking car and looks like you're already putting it to good use on the track.
Thanks! Porsche did a phenomenal job dialing performance to their whole lineup.
That being said, she’s also a garage queen. I like to detail my cars a couple times a year. I still need to do the dash which will likely be next month.
P&S interior cleaner then 303 to liven up all plastic and rubber.
First time out on Sonoma (with this car) and man was it a blast! The first session I just couldn't help but say, "Damn this car is so good!" and instantly dropped 4 seconds. Learning how to drive this car is going to be so much fun. I'm gunning for you Orthojoe (#1 spot on track wiki)!
As usual, some data for the nerds...(I swapped colors this time)
Speed Trace Red- GT4 (RT660 Day 1, lap 2 session 3 in AM) Blue- Base Cayman (RE71R Day 3, lap 6 session 1 in AM)
Traction Circle
Red- GT4 (RT660 Day 1, lap 2 session 3 in AM) Blue- Base Cayman (RE71R Day 3, lap 6 session 1 in AM)
Again, I don't know what this data means, but I guess I can pull more G's.
Last edited by 9eight7; 10-01-2021 at 05:11 PM.
Reason: Correction Session 3 not 2. Session 2 was cut short.
First time driving the GT4 on track with fresh tires so I don’t have much to compare to…
Pressure: 32 hot. At 35+ you’ll slip and slide everywhere (2+s slower at this pressure).
Warm up: They warm up quickly at the 2nd or 3rd lap, depending if you have enough space to run at pace. Very similar to RE71R. They do get really hot so monitor your pressures and release air add needed mid session is you want to still be quick.
Feedback: I don’t know if it’s suspension or tires, but it was very easy to feel the limits of traction and to dial back when needed. The last 2 sessions were about 2s off pace as I was sliding everywhere. That’s usual with most tires as things heat up.
Traction: This is hard to compare again as I’m running 3 sizes wider on the GT4 compared to the 987.2 and better suspension. Comparing the data, I was able to pull higher Gs around the track and could take turns 2-3 mph faster pretty easily. I didn’t make use of that quite yet as I’m still familiarizing myself with the car and Sonoma is real sketchy to push limits. The drop off does not feel as steep as the RE71R. I felt like those really dropped off 2-4s where the RT660 is about 1-3 late in the day (traffic, etc plays a role).
Wear: I had good tire wear but could increase my camber a little. These seem to last a little longer than RE71R in terms of rubber flying off.
Heat Cycles: I did 2 days on RT660 in the 987.2 so not sure how long they last. I’ll report back for the GT4 after I run these out. If I get more than 3 days I’ll be super happy!
Cost: I think they’re marginally less than RE71R, depending on size you run. I ran 265 and 295 on 19” as a recommendation from the track wiki (forgot aspect ratio).
08-04-2021 | 02:14 AM
From base 987.2 to 981 GT4
. I went 265 based on the track wiki, hopefully it’s not too wide up front. 
