Okay guys, due to various circumstances, I am back in the market for a Porsche. To give a quick background, I am coming from a Champion Motors Built 997.1 Turbo with their Full VTG kit and just about everything upgraded with the exception of motor internals. Full Race Suspension, Race Seats, Roll Bar, Exhaust, ect and all of the other supporting components as well. I am a track junkie that essentially built a race car that I can drive on the street.

Well as I have to replace my current vehicle I am in a bit of a decision predicament. It is roughly the same (or close) money for me to buy a 991 Turbo stock or to buy another 997 Turbo and spend the money to fully build it..

My initial thought is that i would much rather have a fully built race car than a stock vehicle, however I also realize that it is possible that the new 991 is such a far superior platform that it justifies buying one stock, and then gradually doing upgrades over time. As mentioned above, I am a track junkie that does 2-3 events every almost every month during the season with various organizations. I do also drive my car on the street very often (keeping in mind "streetable" for me is much harsher than most would find acceptable). Honestly when reading on the new 991, I am unsure as to if it really is a far superior platform. Don't get me wrong, stock to stock it's a no brainer, however does a slightly modify 991 turbo outperform a fully built 997 turbo?

I know that there are some of you who either own both or have experienced driving both on the track so I figured this would be a good place to come to get input. Long story short, for my vehicle use of heavy track with moderate street, is the 991 turbo platform with minor upgrades a superior platform to be a better buy/vehicle than a fully built 997 turbo platform? I would probably upgrade the 991 slowly and over time, but no where near as much as I would a 997 out of the gate.

What are your guys thoughts? Thanks!


-Sayajin

 

Buy a 997.2 turbo and don't look back. Basically same motor and Trans as the 991. With minor mods you can get them running really fast

 

Doesn't seem the bumps in HP from a tune for the 991 is as significant as in the 997.1 and 997.2tt. Many parts are similar. Imo, if you're trying to take advantage of pdk, go with the 997.2 and do full bolt-ons, similar to what member Longboarder did. If you want a 6mt, I would stick with a 997.1, as the 997.2, there are pdk and dfi limits before you reach the limits of the stock internals. Those 997.2's are great at getting the power down to the road too... I'd take a fully modified 997.2 over a 991 any day.

 

997 ALL THE way

 

I might be the exception here but I subscribe to the idea that you buy the newest platform you can afford and start from there (unless of course you are sentimental about a particular MY). Tracking a 991TT would be a blast, and while you can likely push HP & TQ farther in a "fully built" 997TT, top speed isn't everything on the track. On handling, a stock 991TT probably handles just a well as a built 997TT (or close to it)...nothing a few tweaks can't fix, you get a better transmission (PDK) and the latest in Porsche electronic gizmos. Finally, learning the 991 platform and "gradually doing upgrades over time" would be new and fun...you've already done the fully built 997.1TT thing!

This is one of those, "you can't go wrong" either way but for what you describe, while I love my 997.2, I'd vote 991.

 

The 997.2 comes with the PDK that the 991 has.

 

I think if you are a track junkie the 991 provides a much better platform to start with. If I were you, I would forget the Turbo and get a 991 GT3...that is an absolutely incredible track car. Probably the best street legal track car and at a lower price than a 991 Turbo.

Probably the best person to speak to about this is Tom at Champion. He knows all the cars from a Motorsports perspective and can provide you feedback based on exactly what your purpose for the car is.

Cheers.

 

I guess the real question is what transmission do you want in your race car? 6 speed or auto?

 

What Longboarder said, if your tracking it then the GT3 is the way to go. If I was in your position I would go with the 991. The performance upgrades are barely rolling out and from all accounts the 991 is simply a better starting point then the 997. Yes there are a lot of performance mods for the 997 but I would guess in the near future the options for the 991 will explode.

 

991 GT3 anyday

 

991 Turbo

 

Thanks a lot for the input guys. To answer a few things, I used to be a die hard manual transmission guy. However then I rode in a 991 on the track and I was shocked by the efficiency of the PDK. I still think a manual would be more fun to drive, but I also recognize that PDK is faster.

Regarding a turbo vs a GT3, I know that people say a GT3 is a far better track car and it is obviously cheaper, but coming from a Turbo, I don't know how I would feel about the lack of "power" that the turbo delivers. I lack experience in driving a GT3 and that has always been a major concern of mine. Yes it would be faster on the track, but what about the other 20 days a month I am driving it on the street? I don't care at all about the "comfort" aspect, but about the driving feeling and exhilaration I feel.

If I was going with a GT3, I think I would definitely go with a 991 over a 997. Its only if I stick with the turbo platform that I am considering between the two.

Thoughts?


-Sayajin

 

I think if you really enjoy driving and want the low end power for daily duties, get a 6 speed 997.2 Turbo.

 

Okay, so after doing some reading on here, am I missing something about the 991GT3? Apparently they are impossible to find used and the dealers are not taking any more orders until the RS Models come out in 2016? Is this correct?

-Sayajin

 

Yes, there was a problem with the rod bolts in the 991 GT3 and a bunch of them had catastrophic failures and started fires. Not pretty.