Anyone trade their GT350R for a Cayman GT4?

[dsm_mikey]

Great recap!!

If you could only keep one...which one?

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[Rose City R]

Well, the R is in my garage, but I wouldn't take the GT4 knowing the GT4RS is there. The GT4RS, however, has an MSRP not to far from a GT3, so it's way out of the Shelby's league.

 

[dsm_mikey]

Well, the R is in my garage, but I wouldn't take the GT4 knowing the GT4RS is there. The GT4RS, however, has an MSRP not to far from a GT3, so it's way out of the Shelby's league.

I assumed you owned both, my mistake! I am definitely going back and forth with my decision. The big thing for me is a $60K savings by keeping what I have!

Thank you for your feedback!

 

[dsiggi]

I assumed you owned both, my mistake! I am definitely going back and forth with my decision. The big thing for me is a $60K savings by keeping what I have!

Thank you for your feedback!

FWIW, I've driven both and shopped both in 2020. I ended up with the GT350R. Unless you are on a track all the time I think its the better option. And obviously a ton of fun on the track too. I also felt the GT4 is too small, I prefer a bigger american car. In Porsche I prefer the size of the 911.

 

[19-kilo]

I assumed you owned both, my mistake! I am definitely going back and forth with my decision. The big thing for me is a $60K savings by keeping what I have!

Thank you for your feedback!

I have both. I would take the GT350R for more balance and specialness.

 

[DCShelby]

I’ve had two 911, a 997.1 and a 997.2 both manual C4S. I really liked them both but being out of warranty and I don’t have space to do my own work, I sold them….which I regret. I will have to say the Porsche dealer in Tysons was great, even though I bought them used they always treated me like I bought new, and they installed my numeric shift cables and exhaust for me. The fit and finish, as both had sports seats and sports chrono plus was far above Ford, as it should be for that price point.
So now I’m on my second 350 too. In exactly one year I’ll have my 30 years in, and when I retire I’ll get another 911. I want a GTS4 with aero kit, manual and sports chrono plus. They are really great in snow with the right tires. I’ll keep the 350 too.

 

[dsiggi]

I’ve had two 911, a 997.1 and a 997.2 both manual C4S. I really liked them both but being out of warranty and I don’t have space to do my own work, I sold them….which I regret. I will have to say the Porsche dealer in Tysons was great, even though I bought them used they always treated me like I bought new, and they installed my numeric shift cables and exhaust for me. The fit and finish, as both had sports seats and sports chrono plus was far above Ford, as it should be for that price point.
So now I’m on my second 350 too. In exactly one year I’ll have my 30 years in, and when I retire I’ll get another 911. I want a GTS4 with aero kit, manual and sports chrono plus. They are really great in snow with the right tires. I’ll keep the 350 too.

This is really the first car I've had that I dont think I'll ever want to get rid of, just add another. I'm also at a point in my life where I have enough means to make those types of choices as well.

 

[19-kilo]

If you do get a GT4. You should consider these brackets to make the seat more comfortable and work better with a helmet
https://www.autoquestcars.com/custom-07

 

[Ando88]

I think I have a unique perspective on this because I just sold my 2017 GT350 for a 2021 GT4. I purchased my GT350 new in late 2016. I never tracked it but I loved the car and I'm lucky enough to have twisty back roads around me. I'll miss the GT350 sound for sure. I have a lot of HDPE track days under my belt though they were not in the GT350 or the GT4. I've not been to the track in many years (since I had kids). While I'm no pro driver, I can drive, I do know how to drive. I generally did about 4 to 6 HDPE full weekend events per year for about 10 years.

Shifter - I love the GT350 manual but the GT4 manual is significantly better. Everything from the feel, to the throws, to the clutch is faster to use, more precise, and feels better. Rev matching is WAY easier in the GT4 and shifts feel a lot more precise. Driving them back to back, the GT350 manual somehow feels sloppy and imprecise. This is my impression after driving each about 100 miles over a couple of days. I tried the autoblip feature of the GT4 for a short amount of time. I never thought I'd use it and doubt I'd use it regularly but I have to admit it is sort of fun.

Suspension - No contest here. Not even in the same class IMO. The GT350 felt big and drove big. The front suspension of the GT350 is great but the rear always felt unsettled to me. Certain imperfections in the pavement made the rear "bounce" and become unsettled. The GT4 is always locked in. The suspension feels less stiff but yet the car turns more flat and I have yet to feel that unsettled, "I'm not sure what this thing is going to do", feeling that drove me nuts about the GT350. Some people may like that, I did not. The behavior reminded me of my first car in high school which was a 1978 olds cutlass supreme. Ford did something slightly wrong with the rear suspension IMO. I don't know if the spring rate was too stiff or the dampening was off. Something never felt right to me about the rear end. I did like the challenge of driving it but not when it became unpredictable. I'm not talking about applying too much throttle and the rear getting loose. I love the challenge of squeezing on the throttle a little at a time to optimize traction. That was fun. I'm talking about general bouncing that happens even when driving straight but it is far worse when it happens in a corner.

Brakes - Porsche brakes have a fantastic feel but the GT350 is a very close second. I have the PCCB so it may not be a fair comparison.

Engine - Interestingly, they feel very similar when applying power out of a corner or when applying power from a stop. Similar feel even in a straight line. Similar red lines, both naturally aspirated, etc. The GT4 does not have the vibration of the GT350. It does vibrate but not like he GT350. I don't miss the vibration over 6k RPM. I never loved that. It felt like something was going to shake loose. I know it will not but it felt like it. The GT4 sound is nothing like the GT350. They are not even in the same ballpark. I'll likely need to do something to the exhaust to get a little more sound out of the GT4. I'm going to start by removing the vacuum lines to keep the valves open. When the valves open, (around 4k RPM) the sound of the GT4 is great. Even you you push the "loud" button, the exhaust valves stay closed until 4k RPM or so, varies by gear). Again, GT350 is the clear winner here.

Interior - These cars are in a different price category so this is likely not fair. I'm one of the few who really likely the GT350 interior. I don't think it felt cheap as many seem to assert. The GT4 interior is a nicer place, no doubt, but not massively nicer. If you pay extra to Porsche for upgraded seats, stitching, upgraded materials, the GT4 will be a way nicer place but it comes at a cost. Comparing base to base, there is not much of a difference in my opinion. I'm sure I'll get flamed for saying that. They are both pretty analog interiors by todays standards. I upgraded the interior of the GT4 a bit and I do love the upgrades. It does make it feel nicer. Without those, there is not much of a difference.

Exterior - No contest. Ford panel lines, misaligned doors and body panels, bumper gaps, etc are ridiculous. Porsche does no such thing - you get German precision as opposed to 1/2 hearted attempts at building a car by a bunch of people who clearly have no pride in their jobs and just don't care. I convinced myself it was part of the GT350 charm but it drove me nuts. I will say Porsche has a lot of orange peel in their paint. Likely too much to remove by detailing. They need to get on top of that.

The GT4 feels smaller and drives smaller. The weight difference is massively apparent. I'm not a muscle car guy, I'm a sports car guy and the GT350 was more of a sports car but it was a heavy one. I liked it, I even loved it but I much prefer the GT4. I'm also intrigued by the Lotus Evora GT and the new Emira if that tells you anything. Many here would likely never look at those cars. I did put money down on a C8 Z06 but I'm about 4 to 5 years out on the waiting list. I'm even worried that car is too big for me. I don't love big cars. I could care less about brands. I'm not brand centric at all. I don't care about American vs European vs Japanese, etc. I do tend to switch cars fairly frequently and the GT350 held my attention for the second longest amount of time I've ever had any car. Now that I'm onto the GT4, I wish I would have done it sooner. I'll likely keep the GT4 a long time. Love the car.

Nice comparsion. I currently have a '20 GT350, love it. Lot's of fun of to drive, gets lot's of attention. I've just finished the break in miles and hopefully will it track this year (once it's out of winter storage). But after driving a 911 GT3 RS on the track, I want a Porsche at some point (hopefully as a retirement present yo myself). And being that a GT3 RS is a little out of my price range, the GT4 is the way to go. Hopefully going to drive one this spring in Vegas ("Exotics Racing" has one). The GT350 is an absolute beast and if I could afford to have both, I wouldn't even think of parting with the GT350. But a Porsche is a Porsche.

 

[DCShelby]

It’s a GTS4…not a GT4. A GTS4 is a wide body 911 with the power kit and other things with the AWD system. They made them in the 997, I don’t know if they made them in the 991 or 992. I’d snag this if I had a place to put it…

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2012-porsche-911-carrera-4-gts-10/

 

[stanglife]

What?

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