I flipped on the television yesterday to see a CNBC interview where the question was posed to a Hyundai exec regarding spending 60+K for the Equus . His reply was very interesting and part of what he expressed is that (paraphrasing) "the older generation felt that technoloogy gets in the way of driving whereas the new generation feels that driving gets in the way of technology " .

Later in the day at the supermarket I had a conversation with a 21 year old who just got a new car -- a Nissan. Almost his entire focus about the new car was on how impressed he was with the technology gadgets .

I have never felt that Porsche built gadget cars . In fact I still love the simplicity of the 993 . But .. I am older . I don't have an iphone . I didn't even buy an ipod until two years ago . I don't text mesage at all . I don't even like to carry my old and dated cell phone. In mky M3 I don't use any of the functions .

BUT --I do see that the new crop of shoppers want these high tech gadgets . I just don't know how the new 991 can offer all of that plus the driver based car that made the Porsche 911 such an icon .

Any thoughts ?

 

I think that you should get an iPhone, they are great.

As for the Porsche, how much technology do you have in your boosted 997TT?

 

Porsche needs to make a base model sans all the gizmo gadgets. There would be a market for it. Back to the OP question, yes the 991 will be more technology based. The market is the market and one has to keep up with or surpass the Joneses. And current buyers (generally speaking) have been brainwashed to think they need the latest App to tell them to scratch their ****.

 

I overpaid some serious dough just to get a newer car with a touchscren PCM and voice control. So, yes, gadgets matter.

I swear to god, the first manufacturer who "invents" a search box and Google maps on their dashboard will get my business.

 

at 31 but I've never been a gadget guy. I'm all for technology if it enhances my driving experience such as launch control, but I could care less about having self dimming mirrors, automatic head lights, or anything else that does not allow me to drive my car faster. I know this stuff is coming because I'm not in the majority but the great thing about Porsche is everything is an option so I won't have to check all those boxes.

 

I would buy it. In my dream world there should be a "clubsport" version of every Porsche with no computers, no gadgets, cloth seats, light weight. But yeah I do want ABS and AC and a simple stereo please. No PSM or a true PSM disable switch. No brake egas cutoff.

 

Hmmm ... interesting replies .. I have comments/questions ....

I know that I can be a little noisy on the forum but in real life I am actually kinda quiet . I can enjoy a bite to eat at a busy cafe but if i added a laptop and an iphone with text messages it would seem a bit overwhelming on the senses . I probably would pay less attention to the meal.

I realize that some people love the activity and want to incorporate the information access into a car . So my questions are ...

1) Can Porsche compete ? For years the Japanese cars have placed all the gadgets in the cars for a lot less and Porsche gave simplicity and focused on driving.

2) Will the technology evolve faster than both the car's design and engineering ?
I debated this topic years ago on a BMW forum when those who loved the newer Bangle cars sqaured off with those who wanted the older BMW cars. Look a 7 series .. the body and engine has changed but not nearly at the rate of the technology . Then look at resale ... and compare it with equally priced Porsche 911 cars .
So what good is placing all the gadgets in a 100K car only to find it dated so quickly ?
At least BMW offered short term leasing to cater to those who wanted rapid progress . My feeling then as well as today is that I want to buy a car that isn't dated by the time i change the oil for its first service.

3) Does the techno gadets take the driver off the primary task of driving and present more of a multi task scenario? Is that even ideal ? Isn't there anyone who would miss the old school Porsche with just a few modern updates ?

 

PCM definitely lacks technology but costs (and weights) more than comparable offereings from other companies, so, there is no excuse there.
Porsche simply does not invest enough into this branch, who knows why.
PCM by itself got all required interface features - big touchscreen, OK location but voicecontrol is none, integration is so-so, they could definitely do much better.

From other perspective after I added mobridge and got bluetooth for hands free calls and ipod connection for 16gb of music, well, it mostly suffices. still, i just helped to buy new subaru outback for my father in law - it got way superior electronics than 997.2 porsche, i do not even mention my 997.1.

 

I have a 2005 C2S. IN 2005 I had a 2004 WRX that I had an Eclipse GPS touchscreen put into. If I pit the 1.5k option (at the time it was one of the only aftermarket GPS setups so it was very expensive) from my WRX against the stock PCM from the Porsche, the winner every time no matter what you are doing is the Eclipse. I cannot figure out why for a 90K car they put in such a terrible setup. Bose is a stupid company and a major waste of time. But with that said almost all GPS setups, until very recently, that were built into cars from the factory, have stunk. Touch screens have been the way to go and most companies are still catching up to that.

Today people LOVE gadgets. The man behind www.engadget.com (Joshua Topolsky) has been on many late night talk shows, multiple times. Gadgets are part of our life at this point. I know there are lots of people who don’t need them, and don’t use them, but most people want them and look forward to the new stuff.

Cars will never be as good as they should be. Some companies will be better at it than other. It is too bad that Porsche is not up to par for their price range. If you look at the new Audi MMI setup it is quite nice. I don’t know enough about the new stuff in the 997.2 but I would assume that the new 991 will HAVE to be better. People want that stuff, and if they don’t have it they WILL start to look in other places.

A good read http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/03/editorial-im-ready-for-my-car-of-the-future-and-it-doesnt-ev/ . It covers more than just gadgets but there is an interesting idea or two in there.

 

I have wondered if part of the interest in gadgets is fueled by traffic.

Years ago, back roads were more available. If you're exercising your car on a back road, there's a lot less interest in a touch screen.

I think about car commercials that tell me how their car "will put me in touch with the road"--and they show it as the only car for miles on a smooth road. Then I think about the slow, heavy traffic on rough roads near Seattle, and I don't find that pitch to be compelling.

State laws that make it illegal to modify the engine also encourage you to look for other sources of entertainment.

That said, a street version of the 991 that helps you avoid bad traffic and gives you easy connectivity would be a plus.

 

My last '07 e60 BMW had every gadget they made on it. I like gadgets. And I worried that the 911 would be a come down from that, but...

In almost every way the 997 is better - better implementation of the same gadgets - mostly due to 4 years of improvements in technology (I'm assuming the new BMWs are improved as well).

What the loaded 550i had that I don't have in the 997:
- HUD - and I wouldn't order it if I could - didn't work well with sunglasses and the Porsche instrument cluster does a better job of it as it is
- NV - that technology is new and I just don't know about it - off on a separate screen, it was hard to monitor while driving and in every case when I did see an animal in it, I had seen it already from the windshield - don't miss NV
- rear window screen - that was nice - if I could get that in a 997, I would
- keyless entry and start - I miss that, but not so much
- auto-dim mirrors - I wish my car had them as the 997 implementation is better
- spare tire (donut) and runflats (not crazy about runflats) - now I gotta 986 donut too
- adaptive cruise control - worked OK, but I don't miss it too much - maybe the new stop/go is better?

differences:
- 997 PCM3 is easier to deal with than iDrive - just a bit, but I prefer the 997
- Logic7 in the BMW was a better audio system, but it couldn't play surround audio (DTS and DVDA) which sound great in the 997
- iPod integration in the 997 is leagues better than the e60 (initially not available on my e60 - had to add it after 1st month)
- heated seats, wheel, and venting seems better in the 997
- memory seats - comfort is better in the 997 over the 20-way BMW comfort seats - I rarely futz with the seats in the 997
- PDK - so far ahead of the SMG that it is not even funny.
- XM - much better in the 997 than Sirius in the e60.
- NAV and GPS better than the e60

My point is the 997 is already a well-appointed car with regards to technology...

They have already managed to do that with the 997 - I just wonder if you don't notice it because you don't use it or aren't into it?

 

More technology based? What does that mean? Car tech is a great chassis and a great motor. Anything else is fluff. The 'tech-laden' cars these days are lounges on wheels with part-time drivers. A very bad thing. Their intrinsic car tech is nothing to write home about. Good grief!

 

More gadgets=more stuff to break.

Lighter weight and more HP is what I wish for.

 

While I agree with you in principle, the fact remains that we must share the road with others that can't drive. I look forward to the coming day when technology drives these cars for them and it's coming sooner than we think (already have self parking, distance controlling cruise control, etc.). But that is not what Porsche's are about, they are designed for people who can drive which is probably why they haven't put emphasis on the gadgetry. However, I'm sure the new Porsche/VW combination is going to lead to more and more technology gadgets. Heck, just look at how many buttons are in a Panamera!

Having a career in tech, I honestly believe the coming decade is going to be about tech integration, usability, and efficiency. The iPhone has already got the ball rolling in that direction and it's going to make a lot of lives better.

 

But that is NOT what sells cars. True car fans that want light and fast are a very, very small amount of who cars get sold too. So cars will get better gadgets over time, they just have to keep the weight down in other ways.