Good luck and safe driving. You WILL NOT be dissapointed.

 

Porsche does have a unique feel due to the engine in the rear or mid section(Boxter/Cayman/ Carrera Gt). Performance wise the c6 z06 value proposition is so much more than a Porsche it isn't even close. If I had to choose, the Vette gets my vote over the Porsche( I have a 2003 996tt with Evo stage I & a 2006 Lingenfelter C-6/A-6/F-55 with maggie supercharger equivalent to C-6 Z06 peformance)

 

Interesting topic considering i am trying to decide on my next car.

In my interest list:

Z06
997 's'
Viper
996 GT3 / Turbo


Personally i am not sure if i can pay $100k for a car (997 's') that is becoming increasingly dated in terms of it's power, and i don't want to spend more money on it, voiding a warranty just to stay ahead of the curve like some have mentioned.

The HP standard is increasing with every model a company is producing, and i am not so sure that a 997 's' (and yes i am a p-car fanboy...) is worth 30k more for the experience it gives you over a viper or vette if money isn't in an abundance, it is too perfect as some have stated - i prefer the raw feeling of a car such as the gt3, which is why it is a car i am considering.

My apologies if that offends any owners, i have had a great deal of experience with the 997 (and perhaps that is why i don't want one so badly when i have easy access to one as my uncle has one in his collection).

Things that even bring the Viper & Vette into consideration are the fact that here in West LA 911's are dime a dozen and i always like to be different, hence the s2k, which is relatively sparse around here.

I believe the viper is extremely expensive to insure, so i am sure that will be out of the picture and i will be making a choice between the c6 z06, 996 gt3, 996 turbo and 997 's'.

We'll see what my choice is next April, it changes on a daily basis!

 

It comes down to this. SOOOOOO many people who buy vettes regret it because it not a good car in anything but straight line performance. Porsche is going to give you an experience that is UNMATCHED by any company in the WORLD. you get things that you couldnt even imaging having in other cars. You all keep saying, 'oh 355 hp is not much'. PORSCHE DOES NOT NEED 500 HP TO MAKE A FAST CAR. 355 hp in the C2S runs MID 12'S at 112-114 MPH! Most people have never even driven a car that fast. not only does it move fast in a line, it brakes better and handles better and give you the best feeling responsiveness of any car you can buy. Plus is has top notch quality and customization.
LABRIT-the reason you see so many is because you are in LA. Porsches are also status symbols! thats why u dont see(no offense) 35k S2ks all over. you are in a nice town with a lot of people with plenty of cash to buy them, and they do! the reason, because Porsche is the most recognizable sports/exotic car in the world! more than anything else you are considering.
If mid 12s isnt fast enough for you. get the evo supercharger that puts you, as scott said, at 470 hp crank, and z06s and vipers will eat your dust ALL DAY LONG!!!!!
The amount of hp doesnt mean ****. its only to say you have 500 hp. look at the lotus elise, that car has 198 hp and runs low 13s. so dont tell me you need 500 hp. i keep saying this and maybe you will realize it. there was a top gear episode that compared the 997S, AM V8 vantage, and the 500 hp M6. Well, the 997S spanked them both by a good amount on a track set up they did. and they concluded, the porsche is by far the best one. and they said that even though the m6 had 145 hp more, it didnt do anything to help it. its more about how you put the power to the ground than how much you have. So dont try to say 355 hp isnt enough. thats not a valid excuse to buy a car that will not satisfy a true driver.

 

It is kind of funny that you say the ZO6 is only fast in a straight line and then all you talk about is how fast the Porsche is in a straight line. Also, you claim that the Porsche outhandles and out brakes the Vette. Where did you get this info? The 997S is closer in performance parameters to a standard Vette. A ZO6 will crush a 997S. Its performance parameters are on par with the Turbo.

Like me a lot of guys simply cannot avoid the fact that for 75K you get a world class supercar. We all know you don't get the 65,000 optional full leather interior and it does have a few issues but again the performance per dollar is unbeatable. 75K is sticker and is 10K less than a really good discount on a decently option 997S.

 

I agree with some of the points made on here. I recently had my 996tt in for service & they gave me a Cayman S as a loaner car. Probably due to the light weight, Michelin Ps2 tires & mid engine design, I found it to be one of the most intuitive handling stock cars with awesome telepathic feedback. It really hauled up thru about 65/70 mph & that was with a tiptronic which was the first time I had driven one & worked quite well shifting up & down with the buttons. I've driven a 997(non S) when they first came out & was very impressed especially with the the shifter(non short throw). Best Porsche street shifter I've ever driven.
I've considered, like others on here, just for something different going from my 2003 996tt with Evo stage I (480 hp/500lbs) to the 997s or waiting awhile & going to a 997gt3 or 997turbo on the used market after someone else takes the big hit on depreciation like I did on my 996tt which I bought new in 2003. My 996tt has 10,000 miles on it (lapis blue/light grey 6 speed) & is in mint condition. When I get all thru running around in that great big mastabutory circle, I come back to the fact that a fun 500 or there abouts horsepower street car like my Porsche or Vette has ALOT more going for it than either a Cayman S, Carrera S, or any other 295/355 hp fun street car. That isn't to take anything away from either of those cars(Cayman S, CarreraS)
especially on a race track(road racing) where lighter weight will make the experience that much more rewarding. Incidentally going from the runflats that come standard on the Vette to Michelin ps2's will go a long way towards leveling the playing field & doing away with that "wooden" feeling that the Vette has from the factory.

 

I was trying to make the point that the Porsche can do straight line but will also do everything else well also.
This is what i found on handling and braking:

997S(no PCCB): 71.7 MPH slalom, and 60-0: 108 ft, 80-0: 184 ft
z06: 69.6 slamom, and 60-0: 109 ft, 80-0: 197 ft
Roadholding was about equal, i saw .98 for both cars.

Im not trying to argue with you, but that shows over 2 mph better slalom for the 997S, which is A LOT in terms of slalom speed. without PCCB and weighing 200 lbs more, the 997S beats the z06 in 60-0 braking by 1 ft(would have been more with PCCB) and from 80-0 it KILLS the z06 by 13 ft(and also would have been more with PCCB). So where are you figuring the z06 does anything better than straightline performance? it doesnt do anything better besides that and thats a fact. also, the 997S goes 0-100 in 10.2 sec, most people dont need anything faster than that. So that proves all the z06 does is goes fast straight, whereas the 997S, goes fast straight, it handles amazingly well, brakes equally as well, etc, etc, etc.

 

Those numbers are off, where did you get them?

 

Theyre def not off! R&T is where they came from.

 

Really? I have seen different numbers from other mags, i'll search for the issues.

Not that i don't believe you now you stated your source, i am just surprised!

 

UH yeah.

You cannot be serious. Are you sure you are comparing the ZO6??? In any case there are now volumes of info on the ZO6 and its prowess on the track. 997S is a great car no doubt about it and I agree it does a lot of things very well, but in this case the ZO6 will out perform it in a straight line or on a track.

The Nurburgring which I think most of us consider the gold standard for ranking a cars ability on a track was lapped at 7:43 on the OEM runflats. The 997S is about 20 seconds slower if I remember correctly.

 

Drive them both and decide for yourself. In end you'll have to live with the car.

Obviously, you will get porsche bias here as you would get corvette bias over on the corvette forum.

 

Lots of arguments here....however I have seen how fast the new C6 Z07 is on the track at Sebring. Even the plain jane C6 is fast around the curves. I drove my friends C6 this spring and it was a very comfortable car and strong torque. I still bought a new 997S because that is what I wanted. I do not go around with my nose stuck up against Vette's though.

 

Supercharge yor porsche !

 

Geesh, you are really worked up on this thread huh? Who said I was even talking to YOU?