New C4S pics and comments (long)

Got my C46 a week ago and thought I would post some pics and comments.... This is my second porsche (I had a '00 coupe) and I'm very impressed with the improvements Porsche has made in two years. First off, the car feels much tighter to me than my old car, less body flex, no squeaks or creaks (my old car creaked like mad on driveways from day 1). I also like the bump in torque, it's much easier to drive around town and in traffic just holding a gear(mines a daily driver). The full leather interior is new to me and the smell is just wonderful, the Bose stereo is a big step up from the previous digital sound but still not an audiophiles system. CD's do sound pretty good once I turned down the bass but the radio still sucks. The looks are, well I think it may be the best looking car on the road, period. I went to dinner with the wife last night at a local PF Changs and the valet guys parked it up front with a Z06 vette and a ferrari 550 marenello, when we walked out an hour later there was a crowd around the porsche and everyone was ignoring the other cars. I'm not thrilled with the exhaust sound although it is an improvement over the last stock exhaust. I had a GHL exhaust on my last car and it sounder much deeper and meaner, this exhaust is a little "brappy" if that makes any sense. Some weirdness i've experienced: the car really runs like crap after its been sitting overnight, starts ok but then chug chugs along and almost stalls for the first 2 minutes until it warms up a little. Throttle response is also laggy until the car completely warms up. Anyone else with an '02 experience this? A power surge at 3400 or so RPM's that can be a little disconcerting, I assume this is the new varioram operating? All in all this is one amazing car, I almost feel bad for people driving anything else

wow, that's a sweet car, those photos really capture the lines of the body. Congratulations!!

Great car. I always liked black, but do not have the patience to keep it clean. Agree with the 3200-3400 rpm kick. There is even a occasional slight stutter just before it kicks in with a little more power. It seems to be more pronounced with gentle accekeration. Revs smoothly through the whole range when floored, though. But, I've read that the vario-cam does not kick in until about 4300 rpm, with a significant shift at about 5k rpm. I think the 3k rpm kick may be something else. Whatever it is, it's still a kick in the pants. When cold, mashing the pedal does give me a slight hesitation before the revs picks up. That happens with pretty much every car and motorcycle I've owned. Don't notice anything different if I keep the rpm above 1500 the first few blocks. I've noticed a delay of one or two seconds on the front drive pick-up on slow but aggressive tight cornering. It feels like it's going to plow, then all of a sudden the front end comes around. I've learned to count the seconds before I start adjusting. Wonder if you've noticed the same thing? Agree with the looks as well. There is something visceral about the Porsche shape, paricularly the C4S. Corvettes are a dime a dozen even if it is a Z06 (sorry). I'm in midlife crisis and balding, but young girls in their cougars and mustangs wave at me at stop lights, much to the consternation of my wife when I tell her the story. In our parking lot with Corvettes, MB AMG's, and Jags, people are usually around my car, just looking and touching . Porsche was never known for audio/sound systems. At least now, they have something that passes as a sound system. I like jazz, and there is too much bass/LFE in the premium sound system. I usually have the radio off, and just listen to that flat 6 gurgle when at a leisurely pace, then snarl under heavy acceleration. Too bad about the pics. I saw the first two. Maybe if you made the file sizes smaller and post one or two pictures at a time it may work

Forget about what I said about the pics. After I loaded my response, when it went back to the page, ALL your pictures were up. Weird. Nice car.

Hi CjN , great looking car, congrats. <img src="graemlins/bigok.gif" border="0" alt="[thumbsup]" /> Where do you live in FL ? cu styx

CjN: that C4S black is incredible nice!! I advise you to use a Teflon protection, in that way your black car will be easy to clean . Also the paint will be protected . + the car looks as new over the years. .!! ..If one day i get a C4S will be exactly as yours! <img src="graemlins/drink.gif" border="0" alt="[cherrsagai]" />

Thanks all... Hi Styx, I remember you from the funcars board! We live in North Miami (Aventura). Where are you?

We live near Daytona (Flagler Beach).

My wife and I drove up to New Port Richey just north of Clearwater yesterday and drove back today: about 600 mi round trip. I still have less than 1000 mi on the car but I behaved and kept the rpm below 4300. I think this car is fantastic. Limiting myself and the car to 4300 rpm: it pulls easily from 80 to 120 mph (Alligator Alley)...er..so I imagine, officer. People were ogling the car whenever we came out of a restaurant or on the road. I as able to pass cars at all speeds quickly and safely at the bottom half of the power band. Very few if any squeaks. Road noise not to bad. The C4S handles well. We had a couple of hairy emergency evasive maneuvers (semi changing lanes into us, cars cutting us off, sudden stops, sudden starts into turns, etc) and the PSM kicked in when needed and relatively gently but with purpose and did not seem obtrusive. The Bose system is very good. Not audiophile but it does the job admirably for a factory installed system. Far better than the Bose in my wife's car. It sounds better than the aftermarket system I had in my Boxster but that's apples and oranges: cabrio, speakers right behind your head, etc. I'm very happy with my new daily driver and imagine my grin will get wider once I let her breathe after the 2000 mile break in. I think the car is so sexy too. Every time I walk up to it I slow my pace to take in the lines. Not to disprect to C2 or C4 owners, but I am quite happy I purchased my wide-body C4S.

A quick first post from a lurker who's just joined. CjN - WOW! That motor looks absolutely stunning. I have just ordered a new '02 C2. I simply couldn't face the wait in the UK of 18 - 24 months for a C4S..... 10 months is bad enough! CjN - are those dials the Porsche Aluminium dials - MX71 option? I've seen lots of discussion on the board about aluminium dials but they all seem to relate to post sale non OEM dials - why do people not just order them from Porsche? If those are the Porsche ones, they look, IMHO, great. Have to say though - that C4S looks the part!

CjN-WOW! Your new C4S is a beauty and that startling black color is awesome! It is almost enough to make me change my order from orient red. Thanks for the a great daily fix on a spectacular car. I'm going to need these for the next 90 days or so--

[quote]Originally posted by RJN: <strong>A quick first post from a lurker who's just joined. CjN - WOW! That motor looks absolutely stunning. I have just ordered a new '02 C2. I simply couldn't face the wait in the UK of 18 - 24 months for a C4S..... 10 months is bad enough! CjN - are those dials the Porsche Aluminium dials - MX71 option? I've seen lots of discussion on the board about aluminium dials but they all seem to relate to post sale non OEM dials - why do people not just order them from Porsche? If those are the Porsche ones, they look, IMHO, great. Have to say though - that C4S looks the part! </strong><hr></blockquote> Thanks!! The dials are Techart, installed by the dealer after delivery, you can see that they are from '01 b/c the redline starts at 7000rpm instead of 7400 but i didnt care to wait for the '02 versions to come out in June. I didnt order porsche guages b/c they were'nt offered in the first C4S production run...

Is that metallic black? I have one on order for a June build. The dealer here in Vancouver told me the aluminum gages are not available on factory order. How long to install the Techarts? What tires did it come with? Is the exhaust sound different from the regular C2 coupe? Is that the soft leather? Sorry about all the questions but I've only seen 2 in the flesh and its a long wait til June. I ordered in feb and got a June build which is not too bad. I have my 99 C2 for sale.

Coop, I'm surprised your dealer told you the aluminum gauges were unavailable. My car is also a June build and I was told the aluminum gauges are no problem! Of course I ordered them as part of the advanced design package which added about $4K US to the cost.

I just checked with the dealer again and he has tried to enter the code for aluminum gages but the compueter kicks it out. He says Porsche is trying to keep the option list short to simplify production as the demand is so high. They are available with the 02 Cab so it seems strange they are'nt with the C4S. Has your dealer confirmed the availability, if so what is the option code? Thanks in advance

[quote]Originally posted by cooper996: <strong>Is that metallic black? I have one on order for a June build. The dealer here in Vancouver told me the aluminum gages are not available on factory order. How long to install the Techarts? What tires did it come with? Is the exhaust sound different from the regular C2 coupe? Is that the soft leather? Sorry about all the questions but I've only seen 2 in the flesh and its a long wait til June. I ordered in feb and got a June build which is not too bad. I have my 99 C2 for sale.</strong><hr></blockquote> Cooper, Metallic? No, it's just plain blk/blk. I have no idea on the Techarts, neither time to install or even price as they were thrown in gratis (i did pay MSRP). I can't imagine they were too expensive. It came with the ContiSport 2's, very nice riding tire, quiet compared to pirelli asimetricos. Can't comment on grip this early, it seems good. Exhaust is different and somewhat louder than pre'02 exhaust but still not agressive enough for me. I'll probably switch to the sport exhaust or fabspeed/ghl at some point. The leather is the smooth leather, not the supple. Very comfortable and grippy. Any more questions feel free to ask....

Really Nice! I've never been big 996 fan (let's not get started guys) but I must admit that things are getting better! BTW CjN, I use to live there (Aventura), I'm now living down here at Miami Beach.

[quote]Originally posted by Flying Finn: <strong>Really Nice! I've never been big 996 fan (let's not get started guys) but I must admit that things are getting better!</strong><hr></blockquote> Ditto. I wasn't too thrilled with the early 996 but I think the '02 996 C2 and the C4S are looking mighty nice and the engine and handling are a joy. I am pleasantly surprised at how much attention my car has generated at work, in the parking lot at the gym, and on the road. Regardless of this narcissism, this car is big league FUN, FUN, FUN!