Quote:
RC said:
Quote:
Barrett said:
Seeing as how handling is such an important part of a Porsche, does anyone think that Porsche made a big mistake in moving away from traditional, linear steering?




No. The new steering on the 997 is a great achievement, it is different from the BMW system and it works great.
Apparently some drivers prefer to have a nervous steering feel when driving straight, especially those drivers who were (or are still) used to the older 911 models.
The steering feels smooth and disconnected when driving on straights but as soon as you turn the wheel, you get a kart-like feeling which is impressive.
Have you ever driven a 964 Turbo S at top speed? Well, you might get an idea of what I mean about a nervous steering.
Some people even had complaints about the 996 C2 at top speed and the 997 steering is a huge improvement over the 996.

Or to try to explain it with numbers: a Porsche testdriver recently told me that he achieved with the 997 S (20 mm suspension/LSD) the SAME lap time as with the 996 Turbo (420 HP version) on the Nordschleife.
The new steering plays a huge role in handling improvement.

BTW: I read several car magazines where journalists testdrove the 997 and NONE said something bad about the steering. As I said before, maybe the Autocar writer was used to older Porsches and some people really like that nervous drive feel, calling it "challenging". Well, if I want to have a challenge, I drive a Trabant.



RC, I'm still puzzled. Sounds like this new steering is great for when the wife/girlfriend wants to street-park the 997S and possibly at 150MPH+ where a very precise steering can be nerve-wracking during that inopportune sneeze, etc. (on top of all the other risks of 150MPH+ running). But for those of us repressed non-Germans (BTW, I greatly envy the autobahn's logical approach to speed) who are legally forced to largely enjoy our P's at sub-150MPH, does this steering provide a sub-optimal luxury car steering feel near-center (up to 30 deg on either side of center)? Could P not have achieved these N-ring times for 997S with a traditional steering rack? It's curious to me that P didn't saddle the flagship CGT with this wondrous variable-ratio steering. Given my low regard for anything an inherently conflicted auto journalist would write (essentially cheap shills for any major auto co.), please enlighten us on whether this steering was really driven by marketing or engineering at P. Thanks, RC....always appreciate your candid insights.