997.1 tt 9-month review (vs C2 PDK)
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997.1 tt 9-month review (vs C2 PDK)
Newcomer here. This forum has been a fantastic resource for me and I wanted to share my experienceas well. Bought the car in March this year, it’s a ’06 basalt black tiptronic, 65k km (40k miles) with terracotta two-tone interior, PCCB, adaptive sports seats. I looked online for a long time but basically bought the one and only car I actually test drove. Wanted a manual initially but there aren’t any available in my market during the 12 months I watched the market (actually there was one but asking was 50% higher than any other tip so I ruled it out pretty easily). My lastPcar was a ’08 C2 pdk.
Maintenance/repairs/upgrades:
Changed all the fluids/oil/filters/battery/belts/plugs/coils, cleaned throttle body, replaced transmission pan gasket (some wetness underneath). Changed the PCCB pads (still life left but following advice here that it should be changed at 50%). They are expensive! Later also changed front lower control arms, new shocks and mounts all around (Bilstein B8). Put on H&R lowering springs but took them off a few weeks later because front lip keeps scraping. Installed RennKit 2” wings (stock hydraulic ram was leaking and faulty). Water pump went out so had to be replaced. Car wouldn’t start. First thought it was bad connection, cleaned it, was fine. A few weeks later again wouldn’t start, so replaced the starter motor. Installed Europipe Stage 1 and new engine mounts last week. I was organizing the receipts and it’s pretty scary how much I’ve spent just on regular wear/tear items (and how much more I could bespending in the future!). Hiding the receipts from wife, haha. By comparison, the C2 PDK was much cheaper to run (but I did lose an obscene amount on depreciation).
Drive:
95% of the time I use it to commute to and from work, so it’s mostly mundane drives, but I still love it. It just fees so much more special compared to the C2. In terms of pure driving experience, C2 was great, very agile, light, linear power delivery, sounds good (I had PSE), easy to get the tail out, but I don’t really do spirited drives very much. First gen PDK is also a bit clunky around town, and when shifting manually the gear change actually don’t feel that quick. There is usually a bit of delay between pressing the silly button on the wheel and actual change. Turbo is all about acceleration for me. The pull is addictive, esp when coupled with the enhanced sound with EP1, really an assault on the senses. Car does feel heavier and I have not been able to make the tyre break traction at all, even in the wet. The gear change is obviously not as crisp/mechanical compared to PDK, which dulls the experience a bit. But with PDK when you are in full attack mode, every upshift comes with this artificial shove in the back, which I didn’t like. Not sure if it was only in first gen PDKs. I love flooring Turbo on open roads and watching the wing rise in the rear view mirror. Tip is also great for city driving. A car mag review once complained that tip always starts in 2nd gear and that it’s very unbecoming of a sportscar. But that’s actually perfect for stop and go traffic, making the car very smooth. I used to not like the PCM in gen 1 cars with all the tiny buttons/screen and grey plastic. But I’ve gotten used to it now and never turn it on anyway.
Future plans:
I’d like to make the car drive and feel like new again so am planning on just replacing old parts over time. The A/C vents shoot out black sticky foams which is pretty annoying. I understand from others on the forum (and also my mechanic) that to fix it properly the whole dash needs to come out. Sounds like a big and expensive job so I’ll wait till summer to do it when I actually need the A/C.
I’m also a big fan of midnight blue so maybe a color change at some point down the line (Porsche dealer does it and would update database in Germany so that the new color is reflected in the VIN record, but it's very very expensive). For now I’mjust enjoying the car as is. I can’t stop looking at it every time after I park! Black by itself is not terribly exciting, but when contrasted with the terracotta interior and yellow PCCB calipers, I think it just looks gorgeous. Makes me forget, temporarily at least, how much I’ve spent on maintenance and repairs over the last 9 months. Oh well, at least I won’t be killed on depreciation, I hope!
Maintenance/repairs/upgrades:
Changed all the fluids/oil/filters/battery/belts/plugs/coils, cleaned throttle body, replaced transmission pan gasket (some wetness underneath). Changed the PCCB pads (still life left but following advice here that it should be changed at 50%). They are expensive! Later also changed front lower control arms, new shocks and mounts all around (Bilstein B8). Put on H&R lowering springs but took them off a few weeks later because front lip keeps scraping. Installed RennKit 2” wings (stock hydraulic ram was leaking and faulty). Water pump went out so had to be replaced. Car wouldn’t start. First thought it was bad connection, cleaned it, was fine. A few weeks later again wouldn’t start, so replaced the starter motor. Installed Europipe Stage 1 and new engine mounts last week. I was organizing the receipts and it’s pretty scary how much I’ve spent just on regular wear/tear items (and how much more I could bespending in the future!). Hiding the receipts from wife, haha. By comparison, the C2 PDK was much cheaper to run (but I did lose an obscene amount on depreciation).
Drive:
95% of the time I use it to commute to and from work, so it’s mostly mundane drives, but I still love it. It just fees so much more special compared to the C2. In terms of pure driving experience, C2 was great, very agile, light, linear power delivery, sounds good (I had PSE), easy to get the tail out, but I don’t really do spirited drives very much. First gen PDK is also a bit clunky around town, and when shifting manually the gear change actually don’t feel that quick. There is usually a bit of delay between pressing the silly button on the wheel and actual change. Turbo is all about acceleration for me. The pull is addictive, esp when coupled with the enhanced sound with EP1, really an assault on the senses. Car does feel heavier and I have not been able to make the tyre break traction at all, even in the wet. The gear change is obviously not as crisp/mechanical compared to PDK, which dulls the experience a bit. But with PDK when you are in full attack mode, every upshift comes with this artificial shove in the back, which I didn’t like. Not sure if it was only in first gen PDKs. I love flooring Turbo on open roads and watching the wing rise in the rear view mirror. Tip is also great for city driving. A car mag review once complained that tip always starts in 2nd gear and that it’s very unbecoming of a sportscar. But that’s actually perfect for stop and go traffic, making the car very smooth. I used to not like the PCM in gen 1 cars with all the tiny buttons/screen and grey plastic. But I’ve gotten used to it now and never turn it on anyway.
Future plans:
I’d like to make the car drive and feel like new again so am planning on just replacing old parts over time. The A/C vents shoot out black sticky foams which is pretty annoying. I understand from others on the forum (and also my mechanic) that to fix it properly the whole dash needs to come out. Sounds like a big and expensive job so I’ll wait till summer to do it when I actually need the A/C.
I’m also a big fan of midnight blue so maybe a color change at some point down the line (Porsche dealer does it and would update database in Germany so that the new color is reflected in the VIN record, but it's very very expensive). For now I’mjust enjoying the car as is. I can’t stop looking at it every time after I park! Black by itself is not terribly exciting, but when contrasted with the terracotta interior and yellow PCCB calipers, I think it just looks gorgeous. Makes me forget, temporarily at least, how much I’ve spent on maintenance and repairs over the last 9 months. Oh well, at least I won’t be killed on depreciation, I hope!
Last edited by AllanPac; Nov 28, 2017 at 01:45 AM.
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...and here are some random pictures: old/worn shocks, rennkit installation in progress, EP1 installation in progress, bad water pump, old vs new engine mounts, seats out detailing.