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If Not A Porsche, Then What.....?

New997buyer

Well-known member
Joined
17 Oct 2010
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9,146
I've recently been toying with moving my 997.1 turbo on and trying something different.

So I've started looking at alternatives and it's hard. Bloody hard. In each of the sports car category they're in the top contender is always a Porsche.

Take the 911 turbo. What could I change it for at the same price point that's quicker, is as usable, reliable, as visceral as impactful? Nothing. It's either a whole lot more money, or the newer version.

Or if I decide to go for a N/A Carrera again? Look at what the competition is, regardless of the price point. And the Porsche always comes out on top.

What about swapping to a mid engined model like a Cayman? Again, for the money the Porsche beats all. Except another more expensive or newer Porsche.

Boxster? Same. In fact the Boxster and Cayman are extraordinarily good value. With the 986 Boxster the best value of all.

I stepped out if a test drive in an i8 yesterday and thought 'interesting and in many ways impressive". But for £60-70k I'd look at a 997.2 turbo or a 991.1 'S' if I wanted N/A. All would be quicker, more dynamic and easier to live with than the i8. Though it wins on theatre. But with the poor visibility from the pillars that 'theatre' may include pulling out in front of someone at a junction :eek:

Don't get me wrong, I liked it a lot. And the head up display is a thing of wonder. But I don't think I could see me in it instead of a 911/Cayman :?:

I'm going to explore R8's next, both the V8 and the V10. Maybe some BMW M cars too. I fear the former will also be great, but not great enough to make me switch. While the latter I suspect will be great but ultimately dull compared to a Porsche. But I'll investigate and report back.

Could it be that there really is no substitute? :chin:
 
ragpicker said:
I suppose it depends what you want. If you want the everyday supercar then there isn't any substitute than Porsche.

If you want an uber quick luxury saloon then you have options but they tend to depreciate quicker than your 911 gets from 0-60...

:chin:

I deliberately missed out the saloon and SUV categories as I'm less convinced the 'no substitute' thing works there so much. The M5 I saw yesterday for £36k was amazing value and would be my choice over the equivalent Pan-Am I think.



And as capable as they are dynamically, I don't think I could choose a Cayenne over the equivalent RR :?:

But yes, you're spot on with the extra 50% that M5 has still to drop over the next 24 mths :eek:
 
ragpicker said:
alex yates said:
If you go down the R8 route, I'd sooner have one of these:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201804306055625

Ahhh the quick Audi! Good shout.

Plus, since the VAG partnership I believe these can be used as a daily with reliability.

Good call Alex :thumb:

That's interesting Alex. Would I choose that over a Gen 2 997 turbo....? For theatre, definitely. But for nipping down to B&Q or Tesco? I'm not so sure. Any idea what the storage is like for road trips? :?:
 
I'd deffo choose it over an R8 though.
 
alex yates said:
I'd deffo choose it over an R8 though.

I'll add one to the test drive list :thumb:
This thread could even be a record of my findings.....? :chin:
 
I'm following this thread with interest.

After a mad moment contemplating an F Type and a fleeting flirtation with a Cayman 981S I concluded that the only car that would get me out of my beloved 997T would be a 991 - the only 911 I've ever fallen in love with at first sight.

A few months ago the time seemed right for the change as asking prices for early 991s (3.4 and S) were in my budget 'ball-park'. Unfortunately I hadn't realised why.

It appears that the market is very slow meaning that, for me, the 'cost to change' is actually no better than it's been for the previous couple of years.

N997b ....... Have you got as far as talking part-ex values yet. :?:
 
T8 said:
I'm following this thread with interest.

.....

It appears that the market is very slow meaning that, for me, the 'cost to change' is actually no better than it's been for the previous couple of years.

N997b ....... Have you got as far as talking part-ex values yet. :?:

It's a privilege to have you on board Terry :thumbs:

Feel free to add your experiences or thoughts too? I'd already scrubbed off the F-Type because of depreciation, practicality and general dynamics.

I'm not near that point yet Terry. And may never get that far. I fear if I flipped Grace for an i8 I'd be flipping that in turn for another turbo within six months.

So the search continues. I also tried a Mustang yesterday. It was a hoot but fishtailing onto the A1M on a Saturday morning did nothing to sell the car to me. One of the joys of a 911 is planting your foot on the on ramp as we all convoy to Dinslaken. So it just wouldn't do :grin:

With the exhaust on 'track' setting it did sound glorious though. I could see me in one at some point when they're cheaper. But not instead of Grace or a Carrera :dont know:
 
I may take some flak for this suggestion but a V8 vantage must be worthy of consideration.
I have a bit of an obsession going on with these things.
They are just achingly beautiful and for me it's a matter of when rather than if..
 
Quote of the day:

kas750 said:
I may take some flak for this suggestion but a V8 vantage must be worthy of consideration.
I have a bit of an obsession going on with these things.
They are just achingly beautiful and for me it's a matter of when rather than if..


:thumbs:
 
Jaguar XKR-S?
542bhp, 2+2, practical and rare.
 
kas750 said:
I may take some flak for this suggestion but a V8 vantage must be worthy of consideration.
I have a bit of an obsession going on with these things.
They are just achingly beautiful and for me it's a matter of when rather than if..

No flak from me Adrian. Do you remember the Top Gear segment where they took a Vantage V8, a 996.2 (I think?) and a 6 series (again I think?) to the Isle of Man? The conclusion was it looked beautiful, and agree it still does, but the dynamics were just that little bit less capable than a 911.

That and I've heard maintenance horror stories which had kind if put me off. Maybe I need to give one a go and see how I get on?

If you try one, or have tried one, could you do me and us all a favour and share your thoughts etc here? I'd love to know what you think? :thumb:
 

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