Marine Blue

Drove the Spyder today, incredible car. Definitely something I want to add to the stable but not something I would buy to replace the 928.

Those of you picking one up will love them. The carbon fiber seats are really nice and surprisingly comfortable. It takes a minute to get used to them but once you're comfortable they're amazing.

The sport exhaust is an absolute must, don't buy one without it.

BTW, local dealer has a white one with A/C, Radio and Sport Exhaust in stock and available if anyone is looking. White exterior, black interior. PM me and I can send you the name of the sales guy.

renvagn

Thanks for all the info and article links. Looks like if you add AC, radio and PDK you loose @ 100 lbs of the weight advantage. If you add stiffer springs with tender for compliance, bigger front bar and tweak the alignment, sounds like your 987 will be very close to the spyder in handling crispness.

Do spring changes require a special type do to PSM? Anyone know the diameter of the front bar?

85Gold

Seeing as how a 996GT3 will roast a Cayman at an AutoX and the 997.2 GT3RS has better gearing, more hp and bigger tires I would expect in the same hands a Spyder would go down. Now is the GT3RS worth twice the Money.

Peter

renvagn

.

Did you mean Cayman S?

blake

I am really intrigued by the Spyder, and this thread only adds to the interest... Time for a test drive.

Great post - thanks.
-Blake

Alan Smithee

I had been planning on a Speedster/GT3 combo as well (always have my eye out for a nice Speedster, either an '89 or '94, and was looking at new and used 997s), but ended up with a Spyder instead. While not the perfect substitute for both, it does provide the minimalism and uniqueness of the former with the modern feel of the latter, performance somewhwere in between, and amazing balance of neither.

However, that amazing balance and accompanying terrific grip is the opposite of old-school 911, which I am personally having a tough time with after over 20 years of 911 ownership. And the Spyder's modern engine is very different from any of the dry-sumped 911s, for better and for worse. Don't get me wrong...the Spyder is a keeper...but I still want a 911 Speedster.

blake

I remember you Alan - we exchanged Rennlist posts a few years back regarding Speedsters. As a college student, I dreamed of a two Porsche garage - 911 Speedster for the weekends, and a 964 RSA as a track car. In time, the GT3 replaced the RSA as the weapon of choice for the track, and I am now looking for a "fun" daily driver with a bit of punch... The Spyder really conjures up the image of my Speedster, though clearly provides a more modern and agile platform. It is a great looking car, and would be one fun commuter vehicle!

Thanks for the comments, and good luck with your Speedster search! Enjoy you Spyder - great car!

-Blake

Polarporsche

+1 for the Spyder/GT3 combo. I feel like I have the best of both street & track P-cars available.

cparkin

for what it is worth, we were turning 1:21s this past weekend at summit main... One of our clients was there in an ex koni GS 911 on slicks and he couldnt shake our spyder w/just a swaybar upgrade and alignment.

Riz

I just drove the Spyder yesterday - wanted to see what the hype was about. The handling was great but I was not impressed with the torque delivery. I drove the 6 speed car, I think it needs the 7th gear and PDK. I might just be used to faster cars. My 05 Carrera felt much quicker. There was a guy who was comparing this car to the GT3.2 RS and said he was getting similar lap times - I don't know how this is possible, except maybe in an autocross. I can pretty much kill this car with my 996 GT3, 997 turbo, and definitely my RS. It needs the 3.8L from the Carrera S at least to take advantage of the great chassis.

mooty

^ depends on track
at infineon, it will be faster than 6gt3, on the bumper of 7.1 7.2RS

Marine Blue

Did you get the car into the higher RPM's? I also noted that the torque down low was not very good. Being used to the 928 doesn't help!

But the dealer had taken me out in a PDK Boxster earlier to show me how it works and the acceleration was astounding. Since I didn't wind out the RPM's on the Spyder (new car 40 miles) I just made the assumption that RPM's had to be up to get the acceleration.

race911

In showroom stock form? If Johannes set the gold standard for such with that GT2 (it was one of those, wasn't it?) at about 1:48, a typical 997 Cup driven by a good driver, but not certainly a pro is in the 1:42 range (http://www.mylaps.com/results/showrun.jsp?id=1572326), and even I ran the stock class RSA on Pilot Sport Cups in the 1:52 range..............I'm not seeing a Boxster whatever fresh off the boat ahead.

Also, note the Boxster race car in those race results in P15. And that car is running radial slicks, power well past what any new stock Boxster has, and is likely not more than 2500 lbs.

Riz

I kept the revs above 5K and redlined it in the lower three gears. It is a great car but I guess I was expecting a little more. The Cayman version interests me but that won't be any faster. I see the possibilities of the chassis but I guess Porsche doesn't.

mooty

i ran my cayman, with just roll bar harness and pagid, 1:54 in 2006 (RA1's), the spyder has less wt, more hp and as good a tire as RA1 off showroom floor. assuming i improved a bit over the years, probably can do 1:52. i am not much faster in 6gt3. and keep in mind that most ppl drive harder in box or cay as they are more balanced.