It's interesting to hear from 918 owners and I appreciate their sharing of ownership experience.

A Few questions and or thoughts.

Why is it called a Spyder?

Why do owners want a 1M daily driver that is dual purpose - there has never been a successful dual purpose car that hasn't taken a major hit on depreciation and regardless of how much money one has there is still a tolerance level.

Ferrai with the FF at least has four seats and trunk room we all saw the 918 where the ladies were struggling to use the 918 on a trip - perhaps an F12.

I just do not get the usability thoughts - we can all justify anything but a 1M dd in e-mode to commute is like buying a 100K Hermes Bag to carry make up.

918 cars worldwide is not a lot of cars - but Porsche taking out every Tom Dick and Harry seems to water down the appeal on the other hand it's cool Porsche shares their best production.

It's a very attractive package so I understand the appeal but for the price I would take a pair of CGT's and a Range Rover SVR which I ordered and looking for another CGT

No offense - it's not that I can not afford one so what am I missing ... maybe it's the fact Seinfeld is worth 800M and I am not!

After seeing the HRE 918 it does make me wonder about the sheer racing / track capability of the 918 which for me has a lot of appeal.

 

Or you can get 2 or 3 GT3 for the price of a CGT.

I liked my CGT but it wasn't a car I would take into any major city. Take off from red lights not to mention on a hill made it a car only for highway fun drives. I just don't have the time for a drive that was primarily only highway or backroads. The 918 has a greater dynamic range of usability capability.

At the end of the day, cars like these are not rational, any more than a watch that costs more the $50 and a bottle of wine for $25.

 

Its not a daily dd. It just is as comfortable as one. No one will commute in it. And the comparison to a ff is ridiculous. You know that.

I own a cgt and have a 918 on order and driven it on the track and around town. Its not an either or discussion. Lets face it most 918 owners can and might have both.

Depreciation quite honestly wont matter over the long run. Both will do just fine. Again, one wont hurt the others value in 25 years I dont believe. And the 918 marketing will be a distant memory in the future... no one will care or remember what porsche did to sell the car.

Blondes and Brunettes can both be beautiful at the same time in the same room. Just different!!!

 

The CGT is bespoke vs the GT3 especially the F1 design engine and CF body.

I think you are correct with the usability factor and many owners will use them far more than the CGT which is really a baseball cap and weekend canyon carver.

The wife tolerates the CGT when we go out but she would prefer not to.

I was just sent this via e-mail 784 hp 2.4 0 - 60 GT - R

 

The whole premise of the FF and 918 is more usability.

Someone posted a video of ladies in a 918 leaving a hotel and Seinfeld grabbing coffee yet no one has posted a video of it on the track outside of Porsche.

I guess my preference would be raw vs comfort with raw potential. In other words blonde or brunette I want the bikini version.

 

With the electric only mode and petrol mode, open top and closed top, I convinced myself I am actually buying 4 cars instead of 1, so in effect I am only paying 250k for a car. Very digestible price tag.

And with the 918, there is no compromises like in the P1 or the LaFerrari. It even has the biggest boot among the 3. Has AWD for foul weather, and arguably the fastest of the 3.

 

I couldn't care less about the comparison of the two cars BUT I am with you on you choice of the women

 

This is pure conjecture. I don't know where the term came from originally. But I think a "Spyder" (Porsche, Ferrari or otherwise) is a rear or mid-engine convertible. In that sense, the CGT may also be a Spyder. I would also think that the name "Spyder" is intended to connect the 918 to earlier Porsche cars, such as the 550 Spyder.

I doubt very many of us are considering the 918 to be their daily driver. Most of us have other cars. I doubt many of us are concerned about depreciation. If we were, we wouldn't buy sports cars in general (or we'd buy much cheaper ones).

I would bet most of us are buying the latest in high performance technology, in one of the fastest street packages ever available for sale to the public.

If we need something with four seats, we'll take another car. If we need something that holds lots of luggage, we'll take another car. If we need something that goes 0-100 in less than 5 seconds, we'll take the 918.

Here's my thinking on the production number of 918 cars.

1. I don't care how many are built. The fact that 918 were built means that the cost per unit is going to be lower, which means I can buy it for considerably less than it would otherwise have cost me.

As an aside, I think exclusivity is kind of a PITA. I used to own a not very exclusive Ferrari and that alone got way more attention than I wanted. I frankly don't want attention from anyone I don't know. In this regard, the 918 is going to be a PITA too. I like the fact that most Porsches don't get a tremendous amount of unwanted attention,. I fear I will only be able to drive the 918 at night or early in the morning to avoid the unwanted attention.

2. For those who do care how many are built, here's my thinking on that:

a. A build of 918 cars is about 10% less than the number of original Shelby Cobras that were built. Virtually all of them are still around and accounted for. yet I rarely see an original (I see lots of fakes of course). As a member of the Cobra Club and SAAC, I have at least 50 friends that own original Cobras. One friend alone owns 13 Cobras and he drives one or more of them weekly. Still I have to go out of my way to see one live and in person.

b. Like the original Cobra, most guys aren't going to drive their 918 much. Maybe a few thousand miles a year tops. (They have other cars they also want to drive.)

c. Like the original Cobra, many guys are going to crash their 918 badly. That will bring the number down quite a bit. And it won't be until roughly 20+ years later that the badly wrecked ones will be rebuilt... that is, if they can be rebuilt. The Cobra is a very simple car. As a result, even the badly wrecked ones were eventually rebuilt many decades later. Rebuilding a 918 will be incredibly complex, and likely incredibly expensive.

I went the route of owning multiple cars for a while and it drove me crazy. So I sold the vast majority of them -- anything without a warranty (except the Cup car) -- and putting the proceeds into the 918. That way, everything will fit under one roof and all will be under warranty (except for the race car).

P.S. I love the CGT. The only thing keeping me from wanting one (besides the lack of a warranty) is the vintage transmission. Porsche hasn't built a race car with an H-pattern manual in 10 years. While some like the "involvement" of a vintage H-pattern, I'm happy to be rid of them on the street and on the track. That's just personal preference of course. For those that like the H-pattern manual, the CGT may be a better way to go.

 

P.S. As a side benefit, the 918 luggage is "only" $17K for the regular model, $13K for the Weissach. I think I'll just buy something from Wal-Mart that fits in the boot just as well, for $50.

 

Just make sure to drive the 918 to Wal-Mart to make sure the luggage fits

And I want the picture in front of Wal-Mart for my screen saver - it is something I would do myself (if I could buy a 918). Pull up to Wal-Mart and get something cheap to put my clothes in for the frunk. You could buy a nice winter beater for the difference in cost of the luggage. Of course I would be parking way, way, way away from anyone else.

 

I think the CGT is great car but its not to the level of performance of a 918. Thats factual.

The 918 gets you into the VIP group of Porsche which is a big deal with access to limited prodution cars in the future. Thats going to be a great benefit.

And most importantly, I get to choose whether I drive a cgt or a 918. Thats the best so this debate or discussion I ll have in my head everyday when my 918 arrives. I ll let you know how it goes and which one I wind up driving more which is really the true test!!!!!!

 

I think it will be worth it for the picture alone!

 

Thanks!

16M - allows me to feel like Schumi as does the 360C on the track

69z28 - feel like a badass hippie - who doesn't love the sound of a DZ302.

Austin Healey Race rally car - 96% complete sitting for 8 years with a beautiful restoration. It's been awhile but it's one hell of a go kart.

A few other toys but the CGT - it's a rabie infested german sheperd.

This camouflaged F1 was designed for one purpose and it's never going to apologize for it's actions similar to the F40 / F50.

Appreciate the other posts on the 918 - perhaps down the road the inner circle has zero appeal.

I was loyal to Ferrari and they ended up closing the local factory service center now 300 miles for a service - prefer to stay a gypsy

 

If I have the money, I just buy it, don't need any reason for it.

 

check out on youtube a fairly recent video from Motor Trend - Randy Pobst at Willow Springs International driving a 918 (I think that one has the Weissach package). For those who know that track, the lap time is quite impressive, imo. Plus, check out the speed at the end of the 0.5 mile stretch before T1.

PS - These days, anything beyond Huber is irrational, so enjoy your 918's and other cars to the fullest.