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FC · 04-11-2008, 01:03 PM

Wow. It exceeded my expectations.

The car: Silver w/ black interior, 20K miles, CPO. Very, very clean car.

I drove it with a co-worker, but besides adding ~180lbs, the conversation made me overlook a few details. It was a bit damp with some mist.

That thing felt fast and torquey. It felt at least as fast the 3.2L 987S I drove a couple of years back and probably faster. In typical porsche fashion, it immediately made the ZHP feel like a buick. It was so "mechanical," direct. It had what felt like a very heavy clutch. The throws were nice but a bit long. Shifting was easier than on the ZHP although I seemed to never be eable to remove power/disengage clutch smoothly. Brakes were simply espectacular in terms of feel. I didn't get to push the car much on turns because of traffic and my apprehension to even try to sniff the limits of a 911 for the first time on damp roads. Suffice to say that the car shrugged off anything I did without breathing hard. The sounds were amazing, the ride firm but not jarring despite 18" wheels. It seems to smooth out the sharpness of the bumps, which made it very tolerable.

Basically, it kicked ass. The interior didn't bother me nearly as much as I thought it would. The car had pwr seats which made finding a good position easy. The steering wheel felt a bit thin, but not bad. The backs of the seats seemed narrow, though. I think I could get away with having a (FF) kid in the back. Perhaps not daily, but it can be done.

The most interesting thing was getting back in the 330i. I swear I thought my clutch pedal was broken. It seemed like I touched it and it bottomed out. Basically everything felt over-assisted. And it felt quiet and slow. I looked down wondering why it felt slow, thinking maybe amidst my conversation I was in the dreaded sub-3krpm range. Nope, I was at 5krpm and climbing. My car had never felt slow there on 3rd gear. My car is still a nice car, but man, not even close. I'm afraid to even try out a 997 much less a 997S. I could wind up doing something monumentally stupid.

That's all I can remember for now.

Oh, there were two '07 Caymans for $10K off, and an '07 987 for $43K.

04-11-2008, 01:03 PM	#1
FC Solving problems Join Date: Oct 2003 Carmudgeonly Ride: M5 / 718 GTS / Cooper S / GTI / LR4 Location: Metro Boston Posts: 25,284	Just drove an '04 996 C2 Wow. It exceeded my expectations. The car: Silver w/ black interior, 20K miles, CPO. Very, very clean car. I drove it with a co-worker, but besides adding ~180lbs, the conversation made me overlook a few details. It was a bit damp with some mist. That thing felt fast and torquey. It felt at least as fast the 3.2L 987S I drove a couple of years back and probably faster. In typical porsche fashion, it immediately made the ZHP feel like a buick. It was so "mechanical," direct. It had what felt like a very heavy clutch. The throws were nice but a bit long. Shifting was easier than on the ZHP although I seemed to never be eable to remove power/disengage clutch smoothly. Brakes were simply espectacular in terms of feel. I didn't get to push the car much on turns because of traffic and my apprehension to even try to sniff the limits of a 911 for the first time on damp roads. Suffice to say that the car shrugged off anything I did without breathing hard. The sounds were amazing, the ride firm but not jarring despite 18" wheels. It seems to smooth out the sharpness of the bumps, which made it very tolerable. Basically, it kicked ass. The interior didn't bother me nearly as much as I thought it would. The car had pwr seats which made finding a good position easy. The steering wheel felt a bit thin, but not bad. The backs of the seats seemed narrow, though. I think I could get away with having a (FF) kid in the back. Perhaps not daily, but it can be done. The most interesting thing was getting back in the 330i. I swear I thought my clutch pedal was broken. It seemed like I touched it and it bottomed out. Basically everything felt over-assisted. And it felt quiet and slow. I looked down wondering why it felt slow, thinking maybe amidst my conversation I was in the dreaded sub-3krpm range. Nope, I was at 5krpm and climbing. My car had never felt slow there on 3rd gear. My car is still a nice car, but man, not even close. I'm afraid to even try out a 997 much less a 997S. I could wind up doing something monumentally stupid. That's all I can remember for now. Oh, there were two '07 Caymans for $10K off, and an '07 987 for $43K. Last edited by FC; 04-11-2008 at 01:35 PM.