Porsche 997 CarreraS "Facelift" with PDK
This is more of a comparison between the new CarreraS Mk-II with PDK transmission and the 997CarreraS Mk-I, specifically my 997S with manual tranny and -20mm/rear LSD Sport Suspension. Instead of talking about the general stuff about the 997 that we all already know I will concentrate on the differences with the pre-facelft version which I think is more interesting to us. Many of the comments will be subjective opinions (sensations, impressions, preferences, etc) so take it in the context that many of the things are the impressions of one person and do not necessarily apply to everybody.
OK, here we go.
EXTERIOR
The exterior changes are subtle since it's a facelift only but it takes some getting used to coming from a 997.1. The front with the new lights and intakes are not bad and they give it a more modern look, but they could have made it a bit more aggressive in my opinion.
But when we look at the rear, the rear tail lights do not fit the lines of the car, they are to curvy and feminine. It's like if they were forced to change something in the rear not because it looked better and made sense, but rather because they had to change something for the facelift, and had to make it different somehow. They don't improve upon the previous design which was done in conjunction with the whole car and now this change does not fit in this total design.
The 19" wheels also changed and while I'm not thrilled with the design, I prefer them to the previous stock 997.1S wheels. Fortunately Porsche offers us a selection of optional wheels to choose from to fit each one's taste.
The new 997.2 finally incorporates leds in the front and in the rear, a simple technology that has been around for a while now.
INTERIOR
Contrary to the exterior, in the interior the aesthetic changes as a whole are less but the functional ones are more. The main change is the central PCM console which now has a touch screen which is also larger, black plastic finish, and different arrangement and buttons. Personally I like the new one better, maybe because I have grown tired of the previous one, but I think this one in black is more elegant and sportier. The navigator interface has improved a lot and while the touch screen gets dirty with finger prints its very worthwhile.
The 997.2 incorporates iPod/MP3 connection, something that I can't figure out why wasn't incorporated already in the 997.1, or in the 996 for that matter. The problem with it is that if you use any MP3 other that an iPod, you will not be able to control the device through the PCM screen and since the location of the connection is in the pocket underneath the armrest, you will have a hard time changing songs while driving. But I guess that is easily solved by buying an iPod if you don't have one and using that one for the car.
The key has also changed slightly, it's a bit less colorful but it has a better feel; heavier, more solid. But something interesting happened to me with the key. While I was driving I was hearing an annoying metallic rattle coming from the left. When I finally discovered what it was it turns out it was the key against the key chain ring. The new key has the loop where the keychain ring attaches made now of metal instead of plastic (you can see in the picture bellow) and since the ring is also metal, when driving, the vibrations or bumps would make a metal-against-metal rattle. So the keychain for this key must have a ring made of something other than metal (plastics, leather, etc).
ENGINE
The main difference is the new Direct Fuel Injection and bump to 385HP. In practice it's not a big horsepower change but you notice better low end grunt and elasticity, looking back this engine has now nothing to do with the 3.6l of the 996 Carrera for example. I don't know if the new PDK is more responsible for this than the new engine but will know when I try a manual.
Also, on acceleration from a standstill the car feels like it has more power that what Porsche declares. With the new engine, the PDK tranny, the rear weight bias, and the Launch control, the car feels like it's a car with more than 400HP, it's surprising. But we will return to the PDK later.
The engine sound has also changed. It's maybe a bit deeper upon the initial depression of the throttle, and afterwards it sounds different quality, a fuller less defined sound, a bit different than the traditional 911 sound. But since I'm used the Sport Exhausts on my 997S, which is not only louder but also much throatier, I'm not the best to judge the difference in the standard exhausts. They all sound too "muffled" to me now.
CHASSIS
This vehicle had the standard -10mm PASM suspensions of the CarreraS. Being spoiled by the -20mm traditional shocks sport suspension with rear LSD in my 997S I still find that the steering in the PASM does not have as much feedback and is not as direct as in the 997.1-20mm, which seems lighter and more agile through the bends. I also noticed that this car had a bit more understeer tendency than mine as well, though not much. But unless you have tried the -20mm I doubt you will have any complaints on the PASM's performance. I would have liked to test a 997.2 with the new Sport PASM-20mm and rear LSD option and see how it compares instead.
The 997.2 can now incorporate the rear mechanical LSD as an independent option as well which I believe is a must in these cars. It has no drawbacks and gives the car a sportier behavior though tighter corners, better traction coming out and better stability when braking to take a turn.
Looking at the wheel arches, you can see the difference in ride height between the PASM-10mm and the 997.1 Sport-20mm suspension.
The "Sport" button from the Sport Chrono Pack also changes the throttle response making it more direct and sudden but I noticed that in this car it's not as noticeable a change as it is on mine where the difference between "normal" and "sport" is very noticeable, both when pressing the throttle as well as when letting go of it. I don't know if the PDK transmission or the new DFI engine has to do with it. Though it's not like in the case of the 997 Turbo, in which due to the turbo lag, the effect of the "Sport" button on the throttle goes practically unnoticed in comparison.
PDK
And we finally get to the double clutch sequential PDK that takes up most of the spotlight when driving this car in comparison to previous models, so I will try to elaborate a bit more on this subject for this reason.
Porsche took a long time to come up with sequential transmission but the wait I have found to be worth it. If I had to define the PDK in two words, I would say efficient and versatile. The way it can change from gear to gear is impressive without any interruption of power whatsoever, and save for the change is sound it makes and the slightest hint of a vibration on the shorter gears you cannot feel the gear change. Even when downshifting before a curve, it's a completely smooth transition and makes it more stable coming into the turn since the effect of the downshift on the rear axle's traction and suspensions is minimal.
While there are 7 gears, in practice its only really 6 since seventh gear is really an overdrive that engages in normal mode at around 80kmh for better mileage. Driving around in normal D mode the car behaves like a large sedan, it purrs at 1600RPMs but when you step on the throttle and activate the kickdown, it will drop 4 gears in a blink of an eye without any fuss. Accelerating through the gears it's so smooth that you don't get the feeling that you are in a sportcar. You need to hit the "Sport" button in order to feel the, in this case artificial, kick of the upshift.
This car was equipped with the Sport Chrono Pack which gives us amongst other things the "Sport" button, but it also has the "Sport Plus" option button. This "Sport plus" in my opinion is absolutely a must when getting the PDK because it allows you to engage a mode of the PDK that will make the 911 really behave like a sportcar when shifting. In "normal" mode the behavior of the PDK is perfect for city driving because of its smoothness and comfort but it's the opposite of what we look for when "enjoying" a sportcar as opposed to a "driving" a luxury sedan.
There is one thing in particular that really bothered me about the PDK and its the fact that when you are in manual mode, if you maintain constant throttle for a few seconds for any reason, the PDK will automatically override manual mode, upshift to a longer gear and put you back in auto mode. It will not hold the gear you want in manual mode. Even when doing 2500RPM, in normal manual mode it will revert back to auto and will upshift into a longer gear, and depending on the RPMs maybe two or three gears. It do not find the logic for this and really takes away from the experience. In "Sport" mode it will also do the same, only that it will hold the gear for longer and will hold you at a bit higher RPMs with the gear it selected to upshift to.
For it in order to hold the desired gear in manual mode you will have to select manual not through the buttons on the steering but rather through the PDK's stick. Even though the manual mode light in the instrument panel will light up just the same either way you activate manual, its not the same. If you activate it through the buttons, its only a temporary manual mode, but if you do it through the stick its a permanent manual like the Tipronic. A small detail thats a very important one. This I found out after I had tested the car, and thanks to fellow forum member ray911's comments.
And then there is "Sport Plus" mode. This mode is a complete different story and this is why I say that PDK without Sport Plus option is like a powerful sportcar with drum brakes. In this mode not only does it not automatically upshift to a longer gear whilst in temp-manual spoiling your fun, and you can hold whatever gear you want indefinitely, but also the opposite happens. When you are in a gear it deems it to high for what you are doing, it will automatically downshift it for you in preparation if you do not do it soon enough yourself. And while some of you may think that this will interfere with your manual operation of the PDK, it doesn't. It's so brilliantly worked out that this automatism actually works great. It's the only sequential I can think of, were auto mode works better than manual mode. But this is only in Sport Plus mode. In this mode this mode the PDK behaves completely different and the overall experience while driving is completely different as well, it's no more a sedan but rather as close as it can get to as fun as driving a manual.
There is one downside in this mode and it's that while for track this is excellent, for spirited street driving it can sometimes be a bit bothersome since in the public open roads there are times when you want to hold a longer gear, and not be at the top of the rev range for a little while because there is now a car in front you can't overtake or other circumstances. But for me this mode is 50%f of the value of the PDK.
In general I would use a combination of Normal and Sport mode in the city and a combination of Sport and SportPlus outside the city depending on the road and traffic. To give you an idea of the intentions of each mode in auto, at constant speeds in Normal mode, PDK will hold the revs in between 1000RPM and 2000RPM (that's how comfort oriented it is). In Sport mode it will hold them between 2000RPM and 3000RPM, and in Sport Plus between 3000RPM and 4000RPM.
Then there is the Launch control gadget. It automatically governs the revs, torque and traction so that the launch from a standstill is as efficient and clean as possible. In this case there are no combinations of buttons to be pressed in order to engage it, no warranty voids if done to many times, etc., in the best Porsche fashion its easy, reliable and effective. All you have to do is hold the brake down, press on the throttle, the revs climb to a predetermined point, you release the brake and off you go lurching ahead through the gears. That's it, without any fuss, any transmission noises, any tire screeching or tail waving. And like I mentioned above you could swear this car had significantly more power the way it performs at it.
Launch Control video
Then how does the PDK sequential compare to the torque converter Tiptronic? Well, simply it doesn't. It's like comparing a rear live axle suspension with a double wishbone. With the PDK gone is the elastic feel of the throttle in the Tip typical of the torque converters, gone is the performance loss, and increased is the comfort and versatility. It does everything the Tip does but better and with no performance loss to the manual. The PDK is smoother and more comfortable, it's more efficient and versatile, and it outperforms it in performance.
And now we go with the steering button's controversy. The buttons are integrated to the steering wheel just like the Tip's, right in the area that one uses to turn and steer the wheel most of the time, and therefore it's easy to accidentally activate them by mistake, especially when needing to induce lots of lock very quickly while driving and when maneuvering. And it's that these are even easier to hit that the Tip buttons because these are larger and also wrap around to the back of the wheel so they are not only exposed to your palms but also your finger tips when grabbing. They would be much better off in paddles fixed to the steering column behind the wheel like all other sequentials for a reason. Why they did this I don't know but I would think they will change it in the future, I can't imagine a GT3 with the buttons on the wheel.
There is another complaint in that the buttons are arranged in a way that is very un-natural to activate since you have to pull towards you to downshift and push forward to upshift and people get confused and make mistakes. But in reality I have found that this is only in the initial impression and after a day with it your brain will adapt and will do it by second nature, so it's not really a problem if you own the car and not just doing a initial test drive. For me it is much worse that the buttons are integrated into the steering wheel, and in a Cayenne's Tiptronic you could maybe let it by, but especially not in an automatic tranny that is meant for performance driving as well and in a 911. Also the steering wheel gets to thick and voluminous around the area of the buttons so that it does not allow for a comfortable and firm grip sometimes.
But except for these details, the PDK is the best automatic transmission I have ever tried. It's incredibly efficient changing gears for both a practical comfort oriented use as for a performance point of view. But here comes the "but"... in the end it's not a substitute for the manual, it's the substitute for the Tiptronic with a wider range of potential users.
With the PDK the shifting is so seamingless and efficient that part of the experience and sensations of the driving experience is removed. It's an irony but you feel less that you are in a sportcar because it's so good at what it does, only with the SportPlus mode can you regain some of that but still, there is the issue that no automatic tranny can ever resolve because of its very nature that it makes it an automatic; there is no manually operated clutch and stick. For many drivers (me being one of them) this is an important part of the driving experience and without this you lack involvement and driving becomes more unidimentional. And since we are talking about sportcars were its principal attraction is not sheer performance (there are sedans with twice the horsepower for example) but rather the sensations behind the steering wheel, an automatic no matter how good it is can't be a substitute for a manual on a 911. On the other hand, there are drivers who don't enjoy manually shifting that much and now don't have to settle for a 5-speed torque converter and can now enjoy the best automatic available, and have both the comfort and the performance too.
Hope you have enjoyed it 
- Carlos
Rennteam.com
