Great write-up Mike, I really admire people who take the time and money to invest in going racing. It's something I know I would enjoy more than anything, if only I took the plunge.
1992 Mercedes-Benz W124 500E / 2003 BMW M3 CSL (sold) / 2008 Porsche 911 GT3 RS / 2013 MINI John Cooper Works GP / 2014 BMW Alpina D3 biturbo Touring
Sold my GT4 today
Sad to see it go, but pretty incredible to be able to have the trip of a lifetime, drive the car for 6,000 km in Europe and 2,000 miles in US (with track days on both sides of the Atlantic) and then sell it a year later to a broker for more than sticker price.
Praying to repeat this with a manual 991.2 GT3 next year (might even keep that one longer if no compelling replacement as there is now - I am #1 on list at small dealer).
Was a great car - my favorite after my 73 911 race car...
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16 Cayman GT4, 73 Carrera RS 2.7 Carbon Fiber replica (1,890 lbs), 06 EVO9 with track mods. Former: 73 911S, Two 951S's, 996 C2, 993 C2, 98 Ferrari 550, 79 635CSi
Grant:Sold my GT4 today
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16 Cayman GT4, 73 Carrera RS 2.7 Carbon Fiber replica (1,890 lbs), 06 EVO9 with track mods. Former: 73 911S, Two 951S's, 996 C2, 993 C2, 98 Ferrari 550, 79 635CSi
,,
Just meet up with blue, buddy. You know,, for man hugs .....
throt
"I Have Done It!".
991 GT3 pick up in October 2014.
Grant:Sold my GT4 today
Sad to see it go, but pretty incredible to be able to have the trip of a lifetime, drive the car for 6,000 km in Europe and 2,000 miles in US (with track days on both sides of the Atlantic) and then sell it a year later to a broker for more than sticker price.
Praying to repeat this with a manual 991.2 GT3 next year (might even keep that one longer if no compelling replacement as there is now - I am #1 on list at small dealer).
Was a great car - my favorite after my 73 911 race car...
--
16 Cayman GT4, 73 Carrera RS 2.7 Carbon Fiber replica (1,890 lbs), 06 EVO9 with track mods. Former: 73 911S, Two 951S's, 996 C2, 993 C2, 98 Ferrari 550, 79 635CSi
Adios to a great rig Grant. You'll be waiting maybe 16 months for that gt3.... One more year before the rhodium one gets replaced by the new gt3 here.
73 Carrera RS 2.7 Carbon Fiber replica (1,890 lbs), 06 EVO9 with track mods. Former: 16 Cayman GT4, 73 911S, Two 951S's, 996 C2, 993 C2, 98 Ferrari 550, 79 635CSi
Grant:
Hope it's not 16 mos. That would put it right in the dead of Winter (not a great time for Euro Delivery). Was hoping for no more than 12 months from now for ED. My 1 year anniversary of my GT4 delivery is this Saturday (also shown in Geneva)...
Would be great if you could join us if we finally succeed to organize a Rennteam meet.
RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Porsche 991 Carrera 4 GTS Cabriolet, Porsche Macan Turbo, Audi R8 V10 Plus (2017), Mini JCW (2015), Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT (2014)
RC:Grant:
Hope it's not 16 mos. That would put it right in the dead of Winter (not a great time for Euro Delivery). Was hoping for no more than 12 months from now for ED. My 1 year anniversary of my GT4 delivery is this Saturday (also shown in Geneva)...
Would be great if you could join us if we finally succeed to organize a Rennteam meet.
Sounds great!
73 Carrera RS 2.7 Carbon Fiber replica (1,890 lbs), 06 EVO9 with track mods. Former: 16 Cayman GT4, 73 911S, Two 951S's, 996 C2, 993 C2, 98 Ferrari 550, 79 635CSi
Gnil:That Cooper S looks VERY fast ! The white even changed slightly color because of the speed . Exactly like my wife's JCW
That Cooper S tried to be a pure white fast car, but it is slowly fading. In a year it will probably have turned into a pink salmon hue
2015 981 Cayman GT4 | Powerkit White - The fastest car on Rennteam
2013 Audi S3 | Glacier White
SciFrog:
My mini will be volcanic orange over dark truffle with the english flag convertible top ;)
Oops...wrong flag.
I guess this is supposed to be a "copy" of the General Lee but it looks a bit...how to put it...
RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Porsche 991 Carrera 4 GTS Cabriolet, Porsche Macan Turbo, Audi R8 V10 Plus (2017), Mini JCW (2015), Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT (2014)
First, thank you all for your kind words, I highly appreciate.
I finally managed to upload one lap from the race, enjoy!
M3ike:First, thank you all for your kind words, I highly appreciate.
I finally managed to upload one lap from the race, enjoy!
Very nice!
73 Carrera RS 2.7 Carbon Fiber replica (1,890 lbs), 06 EVO9 with track mods. Former: 16 Cayman GT4, 73 911S, Two 951S's, 996 C2, 993 C2, 98 Ferrari 550, 79 635CSi
Grant:M3ike:First, thank you all for your kind words, I highly appreciate.
I finally managed to upload one lap from the race, enjoy!
Very nice!
RC (Germany) - Rennteam Editor Porsche 991 Carrera 4 GTS Cabriolet, Porsche Macan Turbo, Audi R8 V10 Plus (2017), Mini JCW (2015), Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT (2014)
Nice work Mike. Good lines. Smooth too.
For your amusement here is a road review I wrote a few weeks ago on the GT4 for Rennlist.com...
"Hi guys. Probably a bit out of context as this happened in New Zealand today. Leong is a kiwi track buddy with a GT4 who also drives Targa. Hes my closest "competitor" during our track days and Targa is a tarmac rally with roads closed off ins stages and run as a time trial with 200kmph speed limits....
Enjoyable day today. Ron Sunday Drive with 8 cars including 2 x GT3 + 1 x GT4. Weather was perfect for it and it was a great chance to break in the new exhaust and pads both which delivered on expectations.
Leong and I swapped keys for an hour of fast back road driving. Not quite Targa pace but with a little foxing I did get the chance to push the GT4 hard enough to reveal its character (on road at least and within my abilities given it was the first time I had driven one properly).
It was a very interesting exercise. These are my thoughts after a good drive and then back into my GT3.
Review:
1). General. Its a very easy car to drive, right off the bat. Requires little familiarity to start pushing the chassis hard and getting into the "groove" with the car. All controls fall easily to hand, clutch pedal weight is good, visibility is excellent and it does feel a little smaller than the 911 from the drivers seat.
2). Gearbox. Excellent. Very direct, notchy but positive and not vagueness. Its the best manual Porsche gearbox Ive ever used. Gear ratios I thought were good, other than 1-2 which is the only criticism I believe has any merit on the reviews Ive read. On tight back roads sometimes 2 seems to high but 1 would be too low. Otherwise I think the gearing criticism is probably a bit overdone, the cars generous torque (it has only 10lbft less than the GT3) allows even the fractionally high 3rd gear to get the job done. Overall the gearing was more forgivable than I expected and my only criticism is the 1-2, but you can drive around it.
3). Steering. Its is not as immediate on turn in as the GT3 (probably in part due to the chassis configuration) but is does have a fraction more feedback (again possibly due to the chassis configuration).
4). Brakes. These are the same as the GT3, work great and nothing much to say here.
5). Engine/exhaust. There is enough torque and power for the chassis. Jumping from the GT3 to 4 to 3 again the largest single difference is the power unit. The GT4 runs out or revs relatively quickly when you are used to driving anything with a 8000-9000 limiter. The engine lacks the sound and frenzied character of the GT3 and the exhaust although it sounds ok from outside the car (I used the exhaust mode on for alot of my driving) doesn't become an overly memorable part of the driving experience. In the GT3 is "all about the engine". Not so in the GT4 , but its a great deployment of the 911 3.8 unit and it gets the job done with good mid range torque.
6). Chassis. This was predictably the second largest difference in the nature of the two cars after the engine. Ive been a 911 driver almost 20 years so had got used to exploiting the balance of traits of those cars. The Cayman chassis differs by having more neutrality mid corner. You can take a different line than the 911. Entry can be different and on the limit of under and over-steer the car feels quite neutral. It has to be said that Leong has done quite alot of work to his chassis to get it this way so out of the box fresh Im guessing a stock GT4 may feel a bit different. I never got out of shape with it (other peoples cars etc) but I did get it (by over exuberance) closer to the limits of its safe traction on two occasions, partially testament in a first drive as to how confidence inspiring the chassis is. I think once you know it better you can work it harder, but is its a less weight transfer sensitive chassis to the 911 at least with Leongs set up and Im still unsure if I like that personally or not (i.e. for the follies of the 911 chassis I do quite like the way that once you understand the effect of the weight transfer you can make the chassis work with you - the only caveat is when you much it up it can get rather undone - but this may also be a personality thing because Im probably like things a little more "close to the edge" than some folks). Overall very competent handling that inspires confidence and it very neutral to the limit.
7). NVH. Interestingly the GT4 felt LESS compliant on the road. Probably the shorter wheel base and could well be the configuration of the rear suspension (less travel?). We drove some very poor surfaces at speeds they were not designed for and the car does feel quite stiff at times but its not a deterrent to pressing on. There is a fraction more rear tyre roar and you can hear the pinion shaft more clearly (I guess both are because the components are closer to the driver and the box is MT with a mechanical diff?).
8). Electronic blip. Sport Mode. I can really see the advantage of this on the track, but I have to say it annoyed me on teh road. Probably more seat time would temper that, but it does seem a bit "derived" when you first drive the car. My issue is I like to heel and toe, its really part of the MT experience that makes driving a car with a stick more involving and personally challenging for me. So after a few minutes with it one forgetting it was doing the blip half way through me doing it myself I shut if off and felt the car was better for it. Its a personal thing. On the track I can see its benefit in gearbox and engine sympathy, but for a fast back road drive it seemed unnecessary with such a great snicky box and good clutch action...others may differ.
9). Other. You do not notice the GT4 is lighter than the GT3 in real life. The GT4 feels built to the same solid standard as the GT3, stiff and unbreakable.
In summary these two cars are more different than I actually expected!
The GT4 met my expectations in pretty much every category other than one. Like most Ive read much about this car by now and the reviews are very good so my expectations were high, so the fact that it met them is a very positive thing. Its a great car and fun to drive on the road and (I imagine) the track. The car is very easy to learn to drive quickly. I highly recommend it and would say its one of the best Porsche's Ive had the pleasure to drive to date.
However...(this is where I imagine being a 911/GT3 owner has tainted me), the GT3 engine is an EVENT. If you were not coming from a 8000-9000 rpm GT3 to a GT4 you would unlikely know any different but I must say the single most noticeable thing to me getting in the GT4 was "where has my engine gone?". The frenzied nature of 8000+, sound and vibrations and exhaust wail (and standing hairs on back of neck) are somewhat obvious by their absence. The steering is more direct and the chassis loading more reliant on weight transfer and balance which makes the GT3 a more difficult proposition to get the best out of, but ultimately more rewarding I believe when you figure it out.
Interestingly the PDK vs MT thing didn't really play a large part in my review. This is because I believe in the merits of both transmissions now having lived 20+ years with MT and 3 years with PDK-S. I still chuckle frequently banging through gears in the GT3 on back roads, the engine whipping through the 7 closely stacked ratios so fast that sometimes its seems arcade like and gives a curious high. Returning from the drive the Southern Motorway was crawling pace for 35 minutes and here the advantage to throw it into auto for the first time that day becomes apparent.
The 6 speed MT in the GT4 is great too, but you only use 2-3 gears for 85% of that type of driving. Lower rations would certainly improve the level of engagement a little I believe. I love getting a good down-change with H&T timing and this cars box and clutch are SOOOOO much easier to do it in than the G50 in the 993 (horrible by comparison to be honest!). Both transmissions suit the work they do and the chars they are in well I thing and compliment each other well.
For fast NZ B roads the GT4s reach is such that you can use up most of its performance. The GT3 however is often straining at its leach. I have used the full reach of the GT3 on the road on a number of occasion - its requires utter concentration on our poor B road surfaces and acceptance of the possible consequences of the pace it produces. I like to "get on it" when I can so I always found I could drive my 993 a bit quicker on the road than the GT3. I have driven my GT3 quicker than my 993 but for very small windows of time on certain well paved roads - but for duration of pace a car like my old 993 and GT4 is better suited to NZ roads IMO. If we lived in Europe I can say the reverse is likely true!
I think is you wanted a short answer to this review then look at it like this: the GT3 is defined by its engine/exhaust and the GT4 my its Manual Transmission.
IMO if you are looking for a single car solution to a brilliant road and track Porsche that represents value for money the GT4 cannot be bettered. If you are a multiple past Porsche owner and have ever lived with a high revving flat 6 (any generation GT3 or MFI 2.4 hot rod or similar) then the extra money for a GT3 may be well spent. Next generation GT3 includes MT so I guess the decision will get easier for some if they have the budget. Both excellent cars and I really did enjoy my time in the GT4 , I was not dissapointed, it was as I expected but I also enjoyed getting back into my GT3 too!
If life were perfect I might have both!"
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2014 991 GT3, 1994 993C2 6spd, 2016 Cayman GT4 (on order)