P car to gt350

[hp1000]

I am curious to hear some feedback from people who own/owned 911's. I am cross shopping a 997 911 Carrera s or gts vs a slightly used gt350. Dealership won't let me test drive used gt350 and really want to understand the driving experience . I took a 911 out last week, really enjoyed my experience. The steering, shifter and ability push the car in the limits on public roads was sublime. There is a 700 to 800 lb difference between the 2 cars. Does the gt350 feel large? I have always appreciated the smaller lighter cars and the nimbles it offers. The experience is the most important part of the car for me. Getting into a much older Porsche does make me really nervous, so curious to hear your feedback. Thanks

Sponsored

 

[Zombo]

There is a member here named Rogue who has both. Perhaps search his name for posts.

 

[Hack]

I'm not a Porsche owner, but I have test driven a few as I've seriously considered purchasing one. There is no mistaking that the Mustang is a bigger car. The Porsche is a surgeon's scalpel and the GT350 is more like a Bowie knife. I like the Mustang better because it's louder, I enjoy the power delivery of the Voodoo more, and I like the effect of front engine rear drive where the car isn't 100% hooked up all the time. I do think the Mustang is too big and I really like the size of the Porsche, but to me the Porsche is too sterile. I'm really not grown up enough to want the Porsche. I think it would be a very confidence inspiring winter car (if I could afford that), but a little boring to drive on dry roads.

I've driven a GT3 on the road course, and it was fun and confidence inspiring, with a lot of grip. All in all - I enjoy the GT350 more.

 

[nastang87xx]

The GT350 is a boat in comparison to a 911. I parked next to one at autocross this last season just for comparison sake and oh my god.

The owner said the GT350 was more fun to drive though. This is a GT3 RS btw...that's saying something.

 

[Sprintamx]

There is a significant "rawness" vs. "refinement" issue with this particular comparison. Having said that, the GT350 is fairly refined for what it is, and you can dial it up or dial it down depending on your mood at the moment. It handles its weight and size incredibly well and really is a joy on the street or the track.

I've spent a good bit of time in Carreras, from air cooled to modern, mostly on track. The 997 S is considered by many to be one of the best Carrera packages, and I'm in that camp. Were I to be shopping for a street-based Carrera today, that would be the package. It does everything well, and recaptured a bit more of the raw feel and driver-focused orientation that was dialed out of the 996 platform. It also has a solid interior layout and materials option that will age just fine, and it's unlikely to depreciate much if well cared for.

Few manufacturers do the road-track-and back again engineering as well as Porsche, so if you're looking for a mixed use platform with a high degree of refinement, the Porsche will deliver tons of great driving everywhere and is well sorted and supported. On the other hand, if you're looking for a car that is exhilarating all the time, is getting better supported all the time and delivers sound, fury and moderate refinement when necessary, then it's the GT350. The scalpel vs. Bowie knife analogy is very apt: the Porsche will never grab you the way the GT350 will. It's why I'm not shopping for a Carrera . . .

 

[krt22]

The GT350 wears its weight well.

 

[car crazy]

I have both cars. I've been reading this forum for a while and finally decided to jump in.

Mine is not an exact comparison to yours. I have a 997.2 Turbo S and a 2017 Shelby GT350. Neither are my daily but I drive both a decent amount to make a comparison. They are extremely different cars which is why I have both. The comments about refinement are spot on. I love the "rawness" of the GT350 but I love the precision of the 911. Both cars will bite you quickly when you are on the ragged edge. The ragged edge is just a lot easier to reach in the GT350. Size wise, I don't feel like they are much different. When I park them next to each other in my garage, the Mustang only looks slightly larger. When I drive the GT350, it feels a little larger but not much. Interior wise, there is not much difference IMO. I do love the recaros in the GT350.

Where the big difference can be seen is build quality. While I love the GT350, the build quality is clearly lacking compared to a 911 (as you'd likely expect). I just sold an Audi S4 and my wife's Audi A4 which both had a lower MSRP than the GT350 and both had a far superior build quality IMO. Nowhere is this more evident than the body panels. The body panel gaps are so big and so uneven on my GT350 that I'm actually shocked it passed any sort of QC inspection. I've talked to the dealer and they need to take pictures and send them to Ford. If Ford denies this as a warranty item, I'm considering paying a body shop to properly align the panels on the GT350. The body panel gaps are causing issues with my car. I also need to have some parts replaced on the GT350 which clearly should never have passed QC. I opened the passenger door on my GT350 and the weather strip fell right off onto the floor. ALL but one of the anchors were missing. I went to Ford and tried to buy the anchor points (not worth the warranty trouble) but they told me they are not a separate part - I needed the entire weather striping ordered. I have it parked until spring so I'll have to wait until then to get all of this taken care of.

Anyway, if there is anything specific you are looking for comparison wise, let me know.

 

[Minn19]

Pretty much what others have said. I was all set to get a 17 Carrera S and then I test drove one a couple of times. It as an unbelievably capable and a beautiful car inside and out, but, people criticize (rightly so to a point) the M3/4 for being a sterile driving car......I thought the the Porsche was even worse. It was too nice and refined. So I decided to save 70k and get the GT350 for all of the character that people love about it.

That being said, the 911 is/can be the ultimate luxury sports car. If you are capable driver, it will repeat great lap times without skipping a beat. And then you can drive it home from the track in a very very nice cabin.

 

[nastang87xx]

The GT350 wears its weight well.

To be fair, it does. But just imagine if it were 100lbs lighter or even down there with a GT base manual car at 3705...:doh:

But at the same token, maybe sub 3800lbs is where reasonable weight is now defined. We have Corvettes weighing in at mid 3400's and into the 3500's in Z06 flavor. 911's in the 3300 plus range. The new AMG GTR even weighs well into the 3600's and that is a TWO seater carbon everything machine. And speaking of just GTR's, they're basically all 3900 plus now. Luxury cars weigh as much as half ton pickup trucks. Hot hatches are knocking on the door of 3400, some even beyond that now. :tsk:

 

[nastang87xx]

Pretty much what others have said. I was all set to get a 17 Carrera S and then I test drove one a couple of times. It as an unbelievably capable and a beautiful car inside and out, but, people criticize (rightly so to a point) the M3/4 for being a sterile driving car.....

I thought the M4 wasn't even a good car much less had any character. Sure it's a NICE car and has great build quality but good? No. It no longer has an identity. That's not good when the USS M6 Grand Coupe has more M chops than your actual flagship.

 

[Minn19]

I thought the M4 wasn't even a good car much less had any character. Sure it's a NICE car and has great build quality but good? No. It no longer has an identity. That's not good when the USS M6 Grand Coupe has more M chops than your actual flagship.

The M3/4 vs GT350 has been beat to death so I won't go into much. I agree with a lot of the criticism, but to say it isn't a good car is very over the top IMO. But, that is all they are.....opinions.

I forgot to add. I thought it was funny that the BMW dealers I've been to will let me test drive whatever I want. Same with the Porsche dealer. I was able to drive the 911 multiple times a Cayman and a Boxster. Where am I going with this? No Ford dealer would let me test drive a GT350 and the dealer I bought it from reluctantly let me start it to hear it.

 

[hp1000]

I have both cars. I've been reading this forum for a while and finally decided to jump in.

Mine is not an exact comparison to yours. I have a 997.2 Turbo S and a 2017 Shelby GT350. Neither are my daily but I drive both a decent amount to make a comparison. They are extremely different cars which is why I have both. The comments about refinement are spot on. I love the "rawness" of the GT350 but I love the precision of the 911. Both cars will bite you quickly when you are on the ragged edge. The ragged edge is just a lot easier to reach in the GT350. Size wise, I don't feel like they are much different. When I park them next to each other in my garage, the Mustang only looks slightly larger. When I drive the GT350, it feels a little larger but not much. Interior wise, there is not much difference IMO. I do love the recaros in the GT350.

Where the big difference can be seen is build quality. While I love the GT350, the build quality is clearly lacking compared to a 911 (as you'd likely expect). I just sold an Audi S4 and my wife's Audi A4 which both had a lower MSRP than the GT350 and both had a far superior build quality IMO. Nowhere is this more evident than the body panels. The body panel gaps are so big and so uneven on my GT350 that I'm actually shocked it passed any sort of QC inspection. I've talked to the dealer and they need to take pictures and send them to Ford. If Ford denies this as a warranty item, I'm considering paying a body shop to properly align the panels on the GT350. The body panel gaps are causing issues with my car. I also need to have some parts replaced on the GT350 which clearly should never have passed QC. I opened the passenger door on my GT350 and the weather strip fell right off onto the floor. ALL but one of the anchors were missing. I went to Ford and tried to buy the anchor points (not worth the warranty trouble) but they told me they are not a separate part - I needed the entire weather striping ordered. I have it parked until spring so I'll have to wait until then to get all of this taken care of.

Anyway, if there is anything specific you are looking for comparison wise, let me know.

Thank you for that. You and few others hit the nail on the head. The Porsche was so precise. Steering, handling, the weight in the rear as your are exiting the curve, shifts are very well done. This will be a 3rd car for me. A weekend toy car with a handful track events a season. So refinement for daily driving is not what I am going for.

 

[Rogue]

One cannot replace the other, entirely different driving dynamics both fantastic for very different reasons. When I get a minute i'll follow up with you on this.

 

[08fordgt]

I haven't driven a Porsche but i plan to. Possibly at the track in Atlanta. I would love to drive a gt3 but i want to drive something with a manual like the Caymen gt4. I have driven a Ferrari 458 on track and i can say that the gt350 is a tad (or more) bid more exhilarating to drive. I can say the aural sensation from te gt350 can't be beaten by any of the flat six with exception possibly to the 9k revs of the gt3rs. And all of the regular Porsches loose their value prety quick with miles. Hopefully that won't be the case with the gt350.

 

[MCarsFan]

You should be comparing a 997 GT3 Mezger to the GT350, not the base carrera. I would say for those two it comes down to back seats and means to afford maintenance of these cars. If you dont need the back seats, then it's pretty much about money. GT3 requires a lot of high cost preventative/routine work:

- (One time) Welding of coolant lines ($3000)
- (One time) Rebuilding the rear diff ($3000)
- Clutch every 30k miles ($1500)
- Center lock hub work every 20 usages ($800)
- Rotors every 20k miles ($2500)

It goes on and on. That car will cost more in the long run to operate than to own it (10 years). But it sounds and feels absolutely amazing

Sponsored