Turbo/S or GT3 - Page 2 - 911/Carrera GT - PistonHeads UK

Advice please. I’m considering consolidating my 991.1 GTS and another toy into a different, more significant 911, but I’m stuck. I’m not envisaging track days, mainly A/B road blasts with some potential euro trips and alpine runs and the budget would be 100-120k. So, the challenge is that this opens up some great cars ! 997.2 Turbos S, 991.1 Turbo S, 997.2 GT3, 991.1 GT3 (I’m well aware of the troubles with this one) etc… My head is saying that a Turbo would probably best suit my needs, but I’m worried I’d instantly regret not going for a GT3 ! Thoughts … opinions … experiences of both ….. all very much appreciated.

Odds said: Advice please. I’m considering consolidating my 991.1 GTS and another toy into a different, more significant 911, but I’m stuck. I’m not envisaging track days, mainly A/B road blasts with some potential euro trips and alpine runs and the budget would be 100-120k. So, the challenge is that this opens up some great cars ! 997.2 Turbos S, 991.1 Turbo S, 997.2 GT3, 991.1 GT3 (I’m well aware of the troubles with this one) etc… My head is saying that a Turbo would probably best suit my needs, but I’m worried I’d instantly regret not going for a GT3 ! Thoughts … opinions … experiences of both ….. all very much appreciated. Not a bad choice amongst them - each have pros and cons, so whatever you choose you’ll enjoy it, and you’ll also regret not getting something else!

I had the exact same dilemma and stretched the budget and bought a 991.2 GT3 CS manual but still fancy a Turbo / Turbo s as well

Odds said: Advice please. I’m considering consolidating my 991.1 GTS and another toy into a different, more significant 911, but I’m stuck. I’m not envisaging track days, mainly A/B road blasts with some potential euro trips and alpine runs and the budget would be 100-120k. So, the challenge is that this opens up some great cars ! 997.2 Turbos S, 991.1 Turbo S, 997.2 GT3, 991.1 GT3 (I’m well aware of the troubles with this one) etc… My head is saying that a Turbo would probably best suit my needs, but I’m worried I’d instantly regret not going for a GT3 ! Thoughts … opinions … experiences of both ….. all very much appreciated. why not buy a rare 997 GT2 its like a turbo and GT3-ish in one? 530hp (manual and RWD only) and a little tweak to 600+ and you have all the car you need, at least on paper, also look at some video's with those lightly tuned examples, looks like fun, a rollercoaster when you floor it and always torgue, you do not have to rev it high to get the fun out of it, like a lot GT3 which in todays' world is mostly not possible or not very social on most busy roads? only 1200 made WW, I bet not many in RHD? rare, cool, waardevast (holds its money) also in CS or with bucketseats or the more comfort.

I traded my 991.2 turbo s in for a manual 991.2 GT3 CS My view would be that they are both excellent cars but for different uses. The Turbo S was a superbly comfortable grand tourer - 5 hr trip to Devon no problem in comfort and speed. However was only really an exciting driving experience at huge license loosing speeds. Even Silverstone track day was fun but not that challenging / engaging given how much extra performance there was and could t really be used. The GT3 is an experience every drive. Very engaging makes you smile even at semi reasonable road speeds. However after 2 hours is tiring and noisy - you can barely hear the radio although mine only has the basic whereas the turbo S had the burmeister which was amazing. However, it is Probably a car I wouldn’t sell just for the fun bits and track days. So really depends what you want. Ideally I think both!

I’d just pose a question. Why are so many GT3s low mileage & many owners? My guess is that they’re too hardcore for regular use for most people. I think the GTS is actually the sweet spot for most use. Turbo? Just leaves me cold to be honest.

ellroy said: I’d just pose a question. Why are so many GT3s low mileage & many owners? My guess is that they’re too hardcore for regular use for most people. I think the GTS is actually the sweet spot for most use. Turbo? Just leaves me cold to be honest. It’s certainly possible to ‘daily’ a GT3, particularly it it has ‘chairs’ rather than buckets. For me though, that’s a waste - I’d want another car for daily duties, leaving a GT3 with buckets for weekend use. Hence these cars only tend to do a few thousand miles a year (at most!).

Stick with your GTS or upgrade to newer GTS Turbo S fast but boring, GT3 is a track car. By the sounds of it you will regret both the alternatives for different reasons

ellroy said: I’d just pose a question. Why are so many GT3s low mileage & many owners? My guess is that they’re too hardcore for regular use for most people. I think the GTS is actually the sweet spot for most use. Turbo? Just leaves me cold to be honest. GT3’s with low mileage is a value thing. I’ve just returned from a 4,000 km road trip in my 991.1 GT3 over 8 days. All the best roads in the Pyrenees followed by St Bernard, Furka, Grimsel and Susten Alpine passes, via Route Napoleon. Epic car, very comfortable cruising, extremely capable when ‘on it’ pushed it hard all the way through the Pyrenees, and moderate to hard through the Alps (due to traffic, sheer drops and temp ). I don’t understand the comments about only 2 hours manageable lol. I’ve done 12 hours straight in it, 4am to 4pm then out on the beers till 1am straight after, it really is a great car. On the peage at 130kmph easy to listen to music or audio book ( I have a sharkwerks bypass fitted as well). For this type of trip it’s GT3 all the way. We had a Turbo with us, quick yes, but heavy and not so nimble through the twisties, got tiring day after day for him. GT3 such a great car, and PDK so easy in either manual (twisties) or auto (motorway).

Nuttbelle said: Stick with your GTS or upgrade to newer GTS Turbo S fast but boring, GT3 is a track car. By the sounds of it you will regret both the alternatives for different reasons Was just thinking the same.

ellroy said: I’d just pose a question. Why are so many GT3s low mileage & many owners? My guess is that they’re too hardcore for regular use for most people. I think the GTS is actually the sweet spot for most use. Turbo? Just leaves me cold to be honest. Gt3 is a commodity that’s traded hence the number of owners and miles .The gts is just a bit quieter and significant less exciting but would be a better car if you lived somewhere where you don’t have quick access to great roads ,but in that case a regular 911 will do the job equally as well . I have recently tested all the 992 gts range and owned a 991.2gts and they are really dull compared to a gt3 (as are most things to be fair) .

I went through a phase of having circa 5 911s of different vintage sitting in the garage before settling on one 911 for everything and understand why you may want to consolidate into one car as having too many cars can be a a pain with insurance, servicing etc It may be that the best option for you is just to sell the toy and continue to enjoy your GTS? Take a turbo s and GT3 for a drive. Chalk and cheese and can not be compared as ones a daily and the other more of a toy. Your GTS is a good halfway house between the two. All fun in their own ways but very different.

I have 3 GT3RS. If you are not going to track the car much I would be inclined to get a GT3 but with the much more comfortable 18 way seats so you have at least folding access to the rear. I have this in my 991 and for road use I also prefer the adjustability of these seats. My 992 has fixed buckets and they limit its usefulness beyond track use. The Turbo is very different and may be an equally valid choice-as others have said you need to try both.

Are the engine problems with a 991.1 GT3 really still a reason not to get one? Weren’t most of them replaced under warranty by now? What’s the worst you could be in for and do Porsche (or anyone else) offer extended warranties to protect against this? There quite a jump in price between the .1 and the .2 They do seem to be be absolutely epic cars on track though from what I have seen.

The resident oracles on here would all say buy the second gen 991 GT3. I personally wouldnt hesitate to buy a mint gen 1 GT3 and save £50k if I wanted a PDK. Just run it with an extended OPC warranty which are available till they are 15 years old / 100k miles. You'd be less worried about pranging the cheaper GT3 on track too. A lovely gen 1 GT3 in white at Bramley which I struggle not to pick up the phone and buy but I know I wont do enough track days. I think 85k-95k should be their money though with their inherent engine issues unless you have g suffix engine. Incredible that even gen 1 GT3s are still retailing above list price. 911 Virgin just sold their red gen 1 GT3 in less than a few hours. If you fancy more of a challenge look at 996/997 GT3s too.

Mankers said: ellroy said: I’d just pose a question. Why are so many GT3s low mileage & many owners? My guess is that they’re too hardcore for regular use for most people. I think the GTS is actually the sweet spot for most use. Turbo? Just leaves me cold to be honest. GT3’s with low mileage is a value thing. I’ve just returned from a 4,000 km road trip in my 991.1 GT3 over 8 days. All the best roads in the Pyrenees followed by St Bernard, Furka, Grimsel and Susten Alpine passes, via Route Napoleon. Epic car, very comfortable cruising, extremely capable when ‘on it’ pushed it hard all the way through the Pyrenees, and moderate to hard through the Alps (due to traffic, sheer drops and temp ). I don’t understand the comments about only 2 hours manageable lol. I’ve done 12 hours straight in it, 4am to 4pm then out on the beers till 1am straight after, it really is a great car. On the peage at 130kmph easy to listen to music or audio book ( I have a sharkwerks bypass fitted as well). For this type of trip it’s GT3 all the way. We had a Turbo with us, quick yes, but heavy and not so nimble through the twisties, got tiring day after day for him. GT3 such a great car, and PDK so easy in either manual (twisties) or auto (motorway). Completely agree, 991.1 gt3 the most useable fun car I’ve ever owned. It’ll sit in traffic like a golf all day long and then rip a b road to bits given the chance. The one I have has comfort seats so a 4 hour drive up to donnington, whizz round all day and drive back down absolutely no bother. (And I personally think the comforts are cooler / more inherently 911 than pretend race seats but many will disagree). Also, don’t really get the idea that you can’t get at the high revs on the road, I spend way more time in the top 20% of the range in this car than anything else I’ve had. PDK suits it really well. The breadth of use of all these modern cars is astonishing really, even my 997 c2s would have made harder work of most of the above.

All the talk of GT3s being too hardcore for daily driving or long trips is rubbish. I do daily my cars including 5-6h non-stop trips without a problem. The buckets are the most comfortable seats for long distances (mine have added side-padding to make them tighter for my tall, slim build) I know. You have to live with quite some road noise in the newer models. The 992.1 is quite a bit louder in that respect than e.g. the 997.2. Guess wheel size plays a role here. The chassis is not a problem and you'll find hot hatches, fast limos or SUVs that come with a harsher ride IMO. For me, the GT3s are an event every single drive

Dr S said: All the talk of GT3s being too hardcore for daily driving or long trips is rubbish. I do daily my cars including 5-6h non-stop trips without a problem. The buckets are the most comfortable seats for long distances (mine have added side-padding to make them tighter for my tall, slim build) I know. You have to live with quite some road noise in the newer models. The 992.1 is quite a bit louder in that respect than e.g. the 997.2. Guess wheel size plays a role here. The chassis is not a problem and you'll find hot hatches, fast limos or SUVs that come with a harsher ride IMO. For me, the GT3s are an event every single drive this, they really aren't that hardcore for long trips imo also everyone says turbo's are boring, I disagree with that too

IMI A said: The resident oracles on here would all say buy the second gen 991 GT3. I personally wouldnt hesitate to buy a mint gen 1 GT3 and save £50k if I wanted a PDK. Just run it with an extended OPC warranty which are available till they are 15 years old / 100k miles. You'd be less worried about pranging the cheaper GT3 on track too. A lovely gen 1 GT3 in white at Bramley which I struggle not to pick up the phone and buy but I know I wont do enough track days. I think 85k-95k should be their money though with their inherent engine issues unless you have g suffix engine. Incredible that even gen 1 GT3s are still retailing above list price. 911 Virgin just sold their red gen 1 GT3 in less than a few hours. If you fancy more of a challenge look at 996/997 GT3s too. Is the cut of point for engine warranty not 10 years old on a 991.1 GT3?

Odds said: I’m not envisaging track days, mainly A/B road blasts with some potential euro trips and alpine runs and the budget would be 100-120k. 120k gets you into the highest mileage & cheapest 991.2 GT3s. If you're patient enough/can haggle well then this is the way I'd go as a couple have sold for around this pricepoint recently

DMC2 said: Is the cut of point for engine warranty not 10 years old on a 991.1 GT3? 15 years if you keep up the Porsche extended warranty, recently had a new engine in mine and asked them to confirm this would be covered.

Mankers said: GT3’s with low mileage is a value thing. I’ve just returned from a 4,000 km road trip in my 991.1 GT3 over 8 days. All the best roads in the Pyrenees followed by St Bernard, Furka, Grimsel and Susten Alpine passes, via Route Napoleon. Epic car, very comfortable cruising, extremely capable when ‘on it’ pushed it hard all the way through the Pyrenees, and moderate to hard through the Alps (due to traffic, sheer drops and temp ). I don’t understand the comments about only 2 hours manageable lol. I’ve done 12 hours straight in it, 4am to 4pm then out on the beers till 1am straight after, it really is a great car. On the peage at 130kmph easy to listen to music or audio book ( I have a sharkwerks bypass fitted as well). For this type of trip it’s GT3 all the way. We had a Turbo with us, quick yes, but heavy and not so nimble through the twisties, got tiring day after day for him. GT3 such a great car, and PDK so easy in either manual (twisties) or auto (motorway). Mankers - Lovely car. Got any recommendations for routes through the Pyrenees? Planning a trip at the minute and always good to hear from people who have recently done a trip themselves.

Mallone said: Mankers said: GT3’s with low mileage is a value thing. I’ve just returned from a 4,000 km road trip in my 991.1 GT3 over 8 days. All the best roads in the Pyrenees followed by St Bernard, Furka, Grimsel and Susten Alpine passes, via Route Napoleon. Epic car, very comfortable cruising, extremely capable when ‘on it’ pushed it hard all the way through the Pyrenees, and moderate to hard through the Alps (due to traffic, sheer drops and temp ). I don’t understand the comments about only 2 hours manageable lol. I’ve done 12 hours straight in it, 4am to 4pm then out on the beers till 1am straight after, it really is a great car. On the peage at 130kmph easy to listen to music or audio book ( I have a sharkwerks bypass fitted as well). For this type of trip it’s GT3 all the way. We had a Turbo with us, quick yes, but heavy and not so nimble through the twisties, got tiring day after day for him. GT3 such a great car, and PDK so easy in either manual (twisties) or auto (motorway). Mankers - Lovely car. Got any recommendations for routes through the Pyrenees? Planning a trip at the minute and always good to hear from people who have recently done a trip themselves. Check out these. We were driving from Pau to Andorra. Some of the best roads from the whole trip. Fast, twisty, no traffic, generally good surface. They flow in this order from west to east D44 / D85 / D618

Odds said: Advice please. I’m considering consolidating my 991.1 GTS and another toy into a different, more significant 911, but I’m stuck. I’m not envisaging track days, mainly A/B road blasts with some potential euro trips and alpine runs and the budget would be 100-120k. So, the challenge is that this opens up some great cars ! 997.2 Turbos S, 991.1 Turbo S, 997.2 GT3, 991.1 GT3 (I’m well aware of the troubles with this one) etc… My head is saying that a Turbo would probably best suit my needs, but I’m worried I’d instantly regret not going for a GT3 ! Thoughts … opinions … experiences of both ….. all very much appreciated. having driven, 997.2 turboS, 991.1 turbo S, 997 gt3 RS 4litre, 991 R, some of them trough some real nice alpine passes, some on the track too, I would honestly reccomend the turbo. (ok, I loooove the R but that is just outside any budgets) now, I always found the 997.2 turbo to be a bit on the "touring" side for my taste,... a bit too understeer really.. but a nice car... however... 991.1 turbo S... daamn, that was a real shocker... such a dual personality car... all round pace, can do miles, but when you want to be naughty it just wants to play.... also, it is the only car I have driven to really shock me with its pace, and I have driven some fast cars... After thinking about it I concluded that the reason was that it would dump all the power and traction from real low speeds, unlike some mclarens for example, that need to be in 4th to give full beans... Also, this particular 991.1 turbo S had folding buckets, and cage.. hahaa, which was real fun, as my back prefers buckets. Wonderfull car.. I'd have that... get a test drive in one.. https://youtu.be/byZNxnwTnsg

All great choices - I've got a 991.1 Turbo S and as a few others have alluded too, it's an awesome 'Jekkyl & Hyde' car - my wife has even driven it and it 'drove like a regular car' - her words, but it handles beautifully with great ride comfort yet you can be in licence losing territory alarmingly quickly. I even love the sound of the Turbo's, I know some prefer the NA sound of the 991.1 A GT3 is also a stunning car - ideally I'd like both - some of it really depends upon what you plan to use it for and whether having the rear seats are any use to you too - we certainly will often go 3 up in my Turbo S - once been out with all 4 of us but that's tight but also hugely impressive given what the car is capable of. A GT3 is likely to hold it's value better, I bought the Turbo S as I'd always wanted a 911 Turbo as a child. 120k would easily get you into a 991.2 Turbo S, 991.1 Turbo S are now sub 90k (although some do go for quite a bit more!)