in this day and age is the modern 911 an Irrelevance
Discussion
So other than driving down the main A roads and motorways where let's be honest the 3.8L 190 mph Porsche GT car is best at home what roads can you drive in a Porsche GT Car....the A Roads and Motorways are boring and certainly not fast these days because of the burgeoning traffic and even when you can get a lick on bang you've got yourself a NIP with the multitude of speed cameras which are now proliferating all over our motorway and main road networks so what roads do you take when out on a Sunday......for me the B roads are OK but are limited to where they go I have tried many times to drive out through the back lanes of Kent to discover hidden away places, tearooms and just general exploring just to enjoy the drive but to be quite honest the GTS is just way to big and almost dare I say it irrelevant in the UK for anything other than going on intercontinental hoons or trackdays the lanes are badly potholed meet something coming the other way and your either reversing for half a mile or in an endless Mexican standoff not wanting to drive up the bank or half into a muddy field it seems I'm restricted to just crawling along in traffic on Main A roads and motorways......I'm so cheesed off I'm contemplating buying a 1934 MG F2 Magna a car definitely more suited to driving the lanes of Kent.......LOL.......anyway Discuss
I don't think this question is limited to modern 911s. I've increasingly thought the same in my humble 944s, 968s, 986s and 987s over the last 20 years.
I've lost count of the times I've been stuck behind traffic/wary of cameras/constrained by potholes/hedgerows/anticipating cyclists round the next bend etc etc, to the point where I've seriously questioned the point of owning such a car. On my Sunday morning breakfast club jaunts, its pretty much every time.
A few years back, my Son owned an MX5 which was more fun much of the time as you could get much closer to the car's limits in these conditions.
Fortunately there are just enough fleeting occasions when the conditions are right to put a big smile on my face and make me appreciate the car. A trip to Spa in the spring and a recent weekend in Wales have helped pump up the enthusiasm but without trips like this, I'd probably sell the car and go for something truly ancient at the other end of the motoring spectrum.
I've lost count of the times I've been stuck behind traffic/wary of cameras/constrained by potholes/hedgerows/anticipating cyclists round the next bend etc etc, to the point where I've seriously questioned the point of owning such a car. On my Sunday morning breakfast club jaunts, its pretty much every time.
A few years back, my Son owned an MX5 which was more fun much of the time as you could get much closer to the car's limits in these conditions.
Fortunately there are just enough fleeting occasions when the conditions are right to put a big smile on my face and make me appreciate the car. A trip to Spa in the spring and a recent weekend in Wales have helped pump up the enthusiasm but without trips like this, I'd probably sell the car and go for something truly ancient at the other end of the motoring spectrum.
Quite a timely thread for me, OP, as I have recently discovered the joys of a more simplified drive. In July I bought a 61,000 mile, 17-year old MGF as a cheap summer runaround and, hopefully, a future classic. I say hopefully as my plan is to still own it in a few years when most of the others have rusted away!
It's been a hoot. I've used it for all my local trips and have only had the hood up once when it started to rain. With far lower limits than any of our other more modern cars and with the roof down, I'm having great fun at less than 50mph. In fact, 30-40mph around the lanes where I live is proving to be the sweet spot. Small, light, reasonably chuckable and with enough power, I can have fun way within the limits of the roads.
And it's making me appreciate the sports/GT character of my 911 more.
It's been a hoot. I've used it for all my local trips and have only had the hood up once when it started to rain. With far lower limits than any of our other more modern cars and with the roof down, I'm having great fun at less than 50mph. In fact, 30-40mph around the lanes where I live is proving to be the sweet spot. Small, light, reasonably chuckable and with enough power, I can have fun way within the limits of the roads.
And it's making me appreciate the sports/GT character of my 911 more.
DRH986 said:
I don't think this question is limited to modern 911s. I've increasingly thought the same in my humble 944s, 968s, 986s and 987s over the last 20 years.
I've lost count of the times I've been stuck behind traffic/wary of cameras/constrained by potholes/hedgerows/anticipating cyclists round the next bend etc etc, to the point where I've seriously questioned the point of owning such a car. On my Sunday morning breakfast club jaunts, its pretty much every time.
A few years back, my Son owned an MX5 which was more fun much of the time as you could get much closer to the car's limits in these conditions.
Fortunately there are just enough fleeting occasions when the conditions are right to put a big smile on my face and make me appreciate the car. A trip to Spa in the spring and a recent weekend in Wales have helped pump up the enthusiasm but without trips like this, I'd probably sell the car and go for something truly ancient at the other end of the motoring spectrum.
This is why I sold my 986S & bought a 2010 Mk3.5 MX5I've lost count of the times I've been stuck behind traffic/wary of cameras/constrained by potholes/hedgerows/anticipating cyclists round the next bend etc etc, to the point where I've seriously questioned the point of owning such a car. On my Sunday morning breakfast club jaunts, its pretty much every time.
A few years back, my Son owned an MX5 which was more fun much of the time as you could get much closer to the car's limits in these conditions.
Fortunately there are just enough fleeting occasions when the conditions are right to put a big smile on my face and make me appreciate the car. A trip to Spa in the spring and a recent weekend in Wales have helped pump up the enthusiasm but without trips like this, I'd probably sell the car and go for something truly ancient at the other end of the motoring spectrum.
Having done some road rallying back in the 80s in relatively low powered cars and watching the fast guys in the Motoring News Championship, I learnt that committed driving is a world apart from fast road driving. The latter is about making you feel good. Pretty much anything these days would have you at illegal or dangerous speeds driving at the limits just as it did 30 odd years ago. How the car sounds and feels way below its limits is what matters IMHO, there is nothing to prove, a pro race driver or a complete nutter can always drive your car much faster!
Regardless of how fast I was able to go I'd rather be in a 911 than a hot hatch or a Caterham and I don't own one! The same issues of crowded roads, cyclists, illegal speeds at limits of adhesion apply to all.
Regardless of how fast I was able to go I'd rather be in a 911 than a hot hatch or a Caterham and I don't own one! The same issues of crowded roads, cyclists, illegal speeds at limits of adhesion apply to all.
I have similar thoughts when I see cars like a 991.2 GTS (or even Turbo S) referred to as a daily driver....both bloody brilliant cars but almost frustrating to drive if you're spending most of your time in traffic! My daily is a Mk V Golf GTi which I do a 10 min drive to and from the station,
When I lived in London the last proper car I owned was an E46 M3 from new back in 2002. One spring I was lucky enough to spend a month living in the Swiss Alps with it...it was just sodding brilliant and that was before the Swiss got a voracious appetite for speed cameras and massive fines for foreigners. Three months after I came back to London I sold the car...a land of speed bumps, 30 mph limits, heavy traffic and speed cameras is not the place to do a daily commute in a reasonably fast car. Wasted!
When I lived in London the last proper car I owned was an E46 M3 from new back in 2002. One spring I was lucky enough to spend a month living in the Swiss Alps with it...it was just sodding brilliant and that was before the Swiss got a voracious appetite for speed cameras and massive fines for foreigners. Three months after I came back to London I sold the car...a land of speed bumps, 30 mph limits, heavy traffic and speed cameras is not the place to do a daily commute in a reasonably fast car. Wasted!
A timely thread. My 997 GT3 is tucked up in the garage and I'm now using a 993 C2 as a daily car. Drove from Reading to Bristol today on the M4 to see a client - the car is fun to drive at 70 on the motorway and puts a smile on my face. it just allows me to slow down and chill. Also, its an easier car to justify and talk about with a cost conscious client.
This is one of the reasons I have become a convert to open top 911's and Astons.. they are pretty much as refined as a Coupe on a long run, the chassis is now excellent without the wobbles and flex of yesteryear and you get the full fat howling flat 6 or V8 bellow in your ears. 
I still crave the power, stability & technology of these fabulous modern machines, but roof down your senses are assaulted and this adds to the drama and involvement at lower speeds, and things feel even more intense when you do press on harder
Of course on the right day (or track) a GT3 (or similar) adrenalin pump is hard to beat as a real automotive high (I enjoyed one for over 2 years), but there are less chances to "really" use the beastie on road these days, so frankly an open top sports car can offer a driving "fix" more often IMO.
I still crave the power, stability & technology of these fabulous modern machines, but roof down your senses are assaulted and this adds to the drama and involvement at lower speeds, and things feel even more intense when you do press on harder
Of course on the right day (or track) a GT3 (or similar) adrenalin pump is hard to beat as a real automotive high (I enjoyed one for over 2 years), but there are less chances to "really" use the beastie on road these days, so frankly an open top sports car can offer a driving "fix" more often IMO.
Why I love my Cayman R
The issue with today's roads is while a slow car is more fun, you need a fast car to over take the million idiots sitting behind the rest of the idiots.
The Cayman R gives enough fun, while has the over taking power.
I might buy another Elise at some point.
I also was looking at a new mx5 and do some old school cams and s
t on it.
Stuff is so cheap but would it be enough !
shame the old cars have gone sky rocket and the people repairing are charging eye watering figures.
The issue with today's roads is while a slow car is more fun, you need a fast car to over take the million idiots sitting behind the rest of the idiots.
The Cayman R gives enough fun, while has the over taking power.
I might buy another Elise at some point.
I also was looking at a new mx5 and do some old school cams and s
t on it. Stuff is so cheap but would it be enough !
shame the old cars have gone sky rocket and the people repairing are charging eye watering figures.
I'd rather be driving my 911's but you need to be moving at speed to get the full benefit of what you've paid for on decent roads unless of course your just happy to be seen in a Porsche for me the 911 has lost its way it's definitely no B road scratcher or lane chaser it's got itself to big to heavy and dare I say it to fast for our congested speed bumped potholed speed camera infested roads....perhaps the 911 is destined to become just another fashion accessory and a top trumps car rather than the true lightweight drivers car they used to be.......that MG Magna F2 straight 6 1271cc (supercharged LOL) tipping the scales at 700kgs on 5" wide rubber with 12" double leading shoe brakes and a manual no synchro'd 4 speed gearbox....sounds more and more appealing 
Steve Rance said:
It's why I mince about in a 964 most of the time. It's all you need in the road. Lots of fun. MG looks lots of fun as well.
Likewise, do not have this problem in my 993 - fun at any speed, 60mph on a Hertfordshire country lane in 2nd gear feels like 100mph in more modern refined cars, small enough that can nearly always pass oncoming traffic without having to stop & back up etc. Do need to be out at night or early weekend morning to not get roads full of traffic...can live with that Gassing Station | 911/Carrera GT | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff