My 2 cents.

Every week there are threads asking whether to get a C2S vs GT3, or GT3 vs Turbo, or Turbo vs GT2, etc...While car discussions are always entertaining to read and write, at the end of the day there will never be a definite answer to the OP's question and he will remain confused.

After many years of cars buying, I learned that there is no way to justify any car purchase, especially a sport car. The only limiting factor is money. And that's all.

If you can easily afford the GT3 and you obviously want one, just go for it. It's not like you are stuck with it forever. How many cars you think a typical car guy will own during his lifetime? Probably too many to count.

As for me, I still cannot justify to myself or my family why I need to order a GT3RS.

I think NorthVan and RonCT will still be faster in their C2S on any given track than me in my RS. I really should spend my money on more drivers education instead of the RS. But...I want one, and that to me is enough reason to get it.

 

Tim just summed up probably a thousand posts. This one should be stickied and anyone asking the same question should be auto-directed to this thread.

Money no object, I bought what I wanted the past several years, including a 2007 GT3. Fantastic car - if I were keeping it as a track-only vehicle. As one could tell from reading my years of posts, I strive for as "pure" a Porsche as I can get, but in their most modern chassis. I went so far as to order 022 Black Dials for a more classic look on my dash. Many would think the GT3 is just thatm, the "purest" Porsche, but I disagree because my definition of "purest" might be different from yours. Perhaps the most memorialized Porsches are the early ones, where owners would drive to the track, race and win, and then drive home, clean up, and take the wife out to dinnner - in the same car. That's a really cool thing about how I use mine. Night before I swap pads and wheels/tires and pack in my track gear. I usually get home around 5, tired but happy, unload, swap back, wash (me and the car), and take my wife out. Not many other cars you could do the same thing. And this one (C2S) isn't stiff to drive around town, doesn't scrape on every driveway, is understated (no wing), etc.

For me the 2009 C2S manual with Sport PASM is that "perfect" Porsche, like the ones of old, but brought up to date.

But the only way I could discover that for myself was to go through the process of owning a variety of 997 cars. 2007 C2S to 2007 GT3 to 2009 C2S. Now that I've owned the GT3 I realize that it's not the perfect Porsche... for me. But for you, it very well may be.

I think the point I'd like to make is that everyone has a different set of goals and objectives. I discovered through ownership of the various models that mine were met most by the 09 C2S, but tweaked. Cup control arms for sufficient street / track camber for example. Yes, it took the $82k purchase price up to $83.5k, but still well shy of GT3 territory for a new car. And for me it wasn't about the money. The Sport Bucket seats would have added to either car, same with other track-oriented items like roll bar and harnesses.