I went to my local dealer to test drive the new 991 S Coupe. (As I was driving back home, the ‘check brake pads’ in my 997 came on. So I went back to the dealer, left the 997 in the shop and the dealer gave a Cayenne S Hybrid to drive home.)
Here are some thoughts about my test drive and features of the 991:

Ride:
The 991 is a more refined vehicle than the 997. The cabin feels huge! The ride is actually much like a luxury car than a sports car. With the touch of a button (Sport Plus?) the car felt more like a sports car, but still there is no denying that the ride is more forgiven than that of a 997. The coupe is VERY isolated from outside noise. To save fuel, the vehicle literally turns itself off at a stop lights and restarts when you take the foot off the brakes (I was told that you can turn that option off). The electric power steering was fine.

PDK:
The 991 S had PDK. I am a manual transmission guy, but I have to say that the PDK is leaps and bounds better than Porsche’s old auto transmission scheme (Tiptronic??). With sports mode engaged, PDK managed the car more like the way that I would manage my MT car. Now, if I were to get PDK, I would make sure that I get the paddle shifters, NOT the counter-intuitive buttons on the steering wheel (I do not know why Porsche tried to reinvent the wheel on that!). The buttons seem to act backward to what everyone else has done. PDK is no slouch, BUT I am a MT guy and like to have the full control of when I want to shift gears, so my next P-car will still have MT.

Options:
The 991 S had several options that I could tell right away: Sport Chrono, PASM, PSE, Burmester audio, Premium package, multi-function steering wheel. Options are a very personal thing. Some people will prefer one over another. Porsche is aware of that so they offer all kind of options for us folks to choose. I personally don’t care for a lot of options, but will comment on a few from the 991 I drove. (By the way, I heard from one dealer that most options have low resale value).
· Sports Chrono. I have Sports Chrono in my current 997. I would not buy that again because what I liked about it (more aggressive acceleration) is now standard; I do not care for or need the clock on the dashboard.
· PSE. The sound of the PSE is very nice, but I bet that it can get tiring. My 997 does not have PSE and I like the way it sounds. In fact, with PSE “off” the 991S sounded pretty good to me. So talk about personal choice here! You will be noticed when you drive with PSE on; you may or may not like that!
· Audio. The 991 S had the Burmester audio option. Without a doubt, it was the cleanest sound that I have heard in a car, but the car was standing in a parking lot (I did not play the stereo while driving as I was concentrating on the car). For comparison, the loaned Cayenne S SUV has a Bose system. Although I can tell that it is NOT as clean a sound as the Burmester, the Bose sounded pretty good in the Cayenne (the cayenne cabin is VERY quiet). Both the Burmester and the Bose have the “surround” capability. I was told that the base stereo in the 991 is a Blaupunkt and that it does NOT have surround. I have a Bose system in my 997 Cab and I am ok with it. Would I put a Burmester in a Cab? Not sure yet. The road noise when you drive with the top down may be such that a lower grade audio may be enough.
· Multi-function steering wheel. I have that option in my 997 and stopped using it long ago because the actual dash controls are so close to you that it is easier to just choose what you want by just reaching the buttons than going through a whole bunch of menus via the steering wheel. Also, for anyone wanting the PDK, you definitely want the Sport Design steering wheel with the paddle shifters. The Sport Design steering wheel does not accommodate the multi-function controls (that should tell you something about how Porsche feels about the multi-function wheel)

In my opinion, the 991S is a luxury sport car (in that order). It has so much technology that it can make us think that we are better drivers than we really are. Would I buy one? Yes. I will be looking for a base cab with very few options soon.

I did not intend to write about the Cayenne S Hybrid, but I can say that it is a nice SUV.

 

Thanks for the review.

 

Thanks for the writeup. I agree with your conclusions, largely!

Would you agree that the new redesigned dash timer (which is now also a real analog clock as well) is pretty cool relative to the old one? I found it to be well integrated and functional.

 

Excellent, balanced review. The only point I somewhat disagree with you on is Sport Chrono. The Sport Chrono option ties together many of the high performance features of the car, including PDCC, PASM, PDK, etc... and turns a very capable luxury sports car into a beast. It's pretty much way over the top with all of the performance options. If you don't want or need way over the top, you shouldn't get Sport Chrono or some of the other high performance options. I, personally, am a fan of way over the top. It's a personal choice. If you won't use it, it is definitely a waste of money.

 

Mine thankfully came with the time already set and that's the only use I have of it so far.

 

I agree. Sport chrono is a bargain compared to other options (particularly now that DEMs are included). A no brainer option on a S model. The wart also looks decent, but is nothing more than a fancy looking clock for me.

 

You know SChrono is a system, right? *Not just an egg timer. *It gives you dynamic engine mounts (ala 997 TT) among other things. *

Cheers

 

Yeah and sport+ mode lets you go 100mph in 3rd gear. Or 80 mph in 2nd.

 

And then there's always launch control.

ChuckJ

 

exactly, lol

 

I remember my neighbor across the street bought a new 930 in 1977 and gave me a ride. I thought it was the fastest car possible- 5+ seconds to 60. Now the 991 base is 4, gets twice the gas mileage and takes corners on rails rather than starting with an initial plow and ending trying to keep the tail at the right end. Isn't engineering wonderful!

ChuckJ