I will get slam on this thread...ahh maybe.

My automotive background is raw HP and more HP, had few to attest.

The Porsche Turbo is absolute my must have car...but every time i took my C2S out...always come back with question "is the Turbo really needed?". Yeah...the C2S has few mods, OEM ceramic brakes, GT2 CF seats, Aerokit, GT3 TB&plenum, X51 airbox, FDV exhaust (No tune). I don't know what RWHP it put out, but she screaming fast.

The hair is plenty grey, but not my driving. Really, how fast is a 997.1&2?Turbo? A test drive wouldn't satisfy my curiosity, doubt the dealer would let me drive it on George Bush turn pike at 4 am in the morning

Why do Carrera owners upgrade to a Turbo?

Thank you in advance...

TP

 

I always like the exterior look of a turbo but in my area a TT is an overkill. Can't open it up due to too much traffic plus Insurance company won't insure it.

 

it really gets down to what the car is used for, and what the owner wants?
The turbo is expensive from all angles, and the power can only be used so much on the street. Track use is a different story.
The NA cars are not a dog in performance by any means, and they put the power down real nice, I will take the NA over the turbo any day.

 

Not sure the speed, but I looked at a 2001 Turbo S and it was listed at 530HP which I'm sure will push the little car fast enough.

 

Yes. Drive one and tell me you've seen the overboost arrow on the dash. Then you'll want one.

 

Of the 40 Porsche's I have owned a few have been turbo's (all converted to RWD), as I look back to the person I was back then (vs the older and I hope wiser man I am now) I realize that everything I did was more about feeding my ego than the ability to use the power my cars had (no matter if it was a Porsche, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati, Merc, Corvette or BMW). Old age and arthritis have taken their toll on me and 4 years on stage with the dead has taken my hearing. I was once a very skilled driver (in a time when cars were not what they are today), and I do not think this statement will that off base. Most owners of these cars do not have the skill to drive their cars to anywhere near their limits, and I doubt most owners have ever even turned off the traction controls and let their cars behave the way they were intended to. So do you need a turbo? Probably not, but you don't need a Porsche either, so it really comes down to something more than need that makes people buy cars like these. Each of us knows our own reasons why we do.

 

yeah...the boost is very addictive. Perhaps my cholesterol filled veins make me shy away from the Turbo

 

The TT is almost another beast. Steering is a little heavier, but it is just so quick.

Drove a flashed 997/2 TT, about 560 h.p. No CELs, power everything, cruise, great leather, well finished car.

0-60 in < 3.0 seconds. 40-60 in 1 second. Woof.

It was cold coffee getting back into my C2S.

 

I think the last line above does a good job of stating the danger of test-driving such a fast vehicle. I spent years on hyper-bikes, my last a BMW S1000RR just three years ago. 195hp on a 450lb bike. It could do a 2.7 second 0-60, a 5.1 second 0-100, and a 9.9 second quarter mile. It and its predecessors (R1, ZX-10) ruined my perceptions of quick rides for life. I'm pretty sure I'd think my C2S PDK is really fast if I hadn't been tainted with these bikes, although to fair... for a car, I'm quite happy with my car's quickness and agility.

My advice is to stay away from much faster cars like the Turbo unless you are already convinced you have that need for mind-bending speed. I wouldn't even recommend test driving one unless you are serious. I declined a test-drive of a Turbo when shopping my C2S just so I wouldn't be tempted and the one I wanted was beyond my budget at the moment. It might go with a Turbo or GT3 one day, but then I'm already addicted and have trouble kicking the habit.

 

I think for the driving most Porsche owners do, ALL these cars are overkill. My base C2 is ridiculous fast for what I actually need and there's no normal driving situation that calls for what it can do or where I can use what it can do. And it's been that way for years - all the M cars I owned were overkill too since back in the 90s.

So those two voices in your head - one says, "maybe you need a Porsche", the other is saying, "but do you need THAT much Porsche"? The compromise...and rationalization begins...

MrPrice, above, nails my sentiments on this.

 

You wouldn't say the C2S is screaming fast if you lived up here at altitude. Every time I go visit California, I feel like a minivan is fast. Up here, the C2S doesn't have the same kick as sea level, it actually feels slow, like there are a couple of fat chicks sitting in the back. A turbo car brings all that speed back, you get that kick you don't get with a NA car.

 

After 37 years of flying large, heavy, turbine a/c, it takes a lot to get me off.


YMMV.

 

Frank and honest reply, Mr Price. Most of us do not turn that button off, and we think that we're skilled....... From my side, I love when the turbos kick in and she rockets forward.

Cheers,

 

I've only ever had Turbos, but I will say that an NA Porsche always seems like fun (my 914 doesn't really count in this discussion, I don't think). I like revvy, peaky power. In my opinion it takes more work to get right. That being said, I typically am not on a track, and just doing my own fooling around when it's safe. I've loved every turbo I've had.

 

It's all about the torque! The feeling of 505 pound feet of torque in overboost mode is awesome!