BGB Motorsports

Whoa whoa whoa...we have a 3.8L 981 owner on here of a car we did not build. Please offer your unbiased opinion! And...begin...

P.S. Thanks for calling the PorscheWhisperer!

BGB Motorsports

The future of the 991 race car and the GT3 class is what is the catalyst for a potential different car in a smaller class. In North America in 2016 and beyond, only a specific model of 991 race car is legal and it is a purpose built homologated FIA spec GT3 car for worldwide competition. Therefore it's UNDER REVIEW for a different focus of a different platform for the first time. I am just guessing but I would assume that car we all saw testing is an NA version of whatever this car MIGHT be. If it's a go and a certain number of road going units need be produced for homologation then boom...born is your monster Cayman road car which you all seek!

rosenbergendo

Just bought my M235 toy!! 400hp with chip and exhaust. LSD isn't a big deal for a street car (thats what the GT3 is for). I absolutely love the car. PM for more info if you want some.

FrstPorsche

Im glad you are enjoying the Beemer but that car is a little fugly.

GrantG

Cool car, but I would absolutely need the LSD for the mountain driving here in Colorado. Fortunately it is now a port-installed option on the M235.

Hoopumpers

M2 out shortly - still needs a diet

GrantG

Yes, but will be good bang for buck. GT4 will cost much more for not much more performance, but should deliver more driving pleasure with a smaller and more nimble mid-engined chassis and immediate throttle response.

ranger22

And not so fugly

mundman

Gt4 is a true sports car. The 235M is a sports coupe with 4 seats and some practicality. Perfect addition to a stable that also contains a gt3

CAlexio

The NA engine is worth at least $20k over competitors in my book. Recently drove the new m4, and have owned both e92 v8 m3 and the e46 m3... All that extra torque from that turbo engine meant nothing without that sound and mechanical gritty engine feel of the older cars. If gt4 cayman is the NA engine we all expect, it will find its $ premium easy to sell I think.

stout

Very interesting to me in terms of the premium. Horses for courses, maybe, but I sometimes wonder if the stigma some attach to turbo cars doesn't stem from "bad" ones, i.e. laggy ones with poor response.

Drive a Ruf CTR, Ruf CTR3, recent GTI, Fiat Abarth, and a host of other machines and they not only sound great, but drive quite similarly to NA cars and sound great, with all kinds of mechanical noises. The original CTR sounds like a 3.0-liter RSR, which a friend challenged me on until he sat down in it weeks later and said, "Holy S---!!! This thing sounds like an RSR!!!!!!!" But it went a whole lot faster than any 3.0-liter RSR.

Don't get me wrong: I love the CGT and GT3 and on and on, but...I've driven some flat out wonderful turbo cars.

Petevb

They might both be good "bang for the buck" and similar on paper, but if history holds they will be on opposite ends of the philosophical performance spectrum. The gulf between them likely won't be obvious until you take traction control off or get beyond about 7/10ths, but as you approach the limit they will be completely different cars, and that's largely intentional.

Porsche tries to turn every last bit of twist in to forward motion, almost to a fault. You don't get a modern Porsche sideways casually or easily. In recent baby M cars, however, you absolutely can. The easy sustained slip angle offers a whole different dimension, and can be hugely addictive where you've got the space to play with it.

The downside of being able to boot it and grab an arm full of lock at 5/10ths is that once you get to 8/10ths things get ridiculous. Not only does the tail always try and step out, but the suspension stops keeping the body in check. Things get ragged and eventually you just hold on, forgetting about lines and simply trying not to get bucked from the horse. Meanwhile a modern Porsche at 8/10ths is just coming alive- the tail gets moving, the suspension is in the zone, and suddenly you feel like you're really driving.

I find both distinct personalities hugely enjoyable at different times. At 5/10ths, where I spend more time on the street, the accessible adjust-ability of the BMW is as asset, and it stays lots of fun until about 9/10ths on a closed course as long as you have plenty of space. But there's no question that from 6/10ths up the Porsche is faster, and gets dramatically so as you get towards the edge.

Thus I suspect the GT4 and M2 will play out similarly, both sharp and confident until 5/10ths, but diverging from there. Both are fun in different ways, and they would compliment each-other in a garage, but they won't be interchangeable far beyond four seats and turbochargers.

A final thought is that I've found the Carrera and the Cayman also seem to separate around 9/10ths, the Carrera just getting better but the Cayman getting slightly ragged. Thus the true measure of the GT4 won't be the M2, but its big brother. As it always has been.

CAlexio

Great post.

neanicu

All becomes obsolete if there's a manual in the M2 but not in the GT4...

CAlexio

Says the man with a gated manual in his sig!!!