Am I the only one who doesn't like it? I do quite like the new, rounded headlights, but the rear treatment is all wrong. The rear lights remind me of the 968, for some reason, which I never liked, and the slightly raised air intake reminds me of the Chrysler Crossfire and Clarkson's squatting dog.
Worse (and I admit I haven't lookeed at a 911 interior for ages) there's something about the interior that reminds me of the Mark V Golf - which isn't bad for a £15k small hatch, but somehow doesn't seem nearly sporting enough for Porsche's drivers' car.
The performance seems fine (although 325 bhp doesn't really scream supercar like it used to!) and I'm sure the driving experience is wonderful, but it seems to have lost some of its character. I'm not saying that simply because it's more modern - I don't think it necessarily is, it's just that the detailing no longer seems as sharp.
Of course, I'm not about to buy one, but if I were... I'd probably wait for the new baby Aston instead.
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It's the first rule of a new Porsche models that everybody prefers the old model. A lot of people disliked the 996 when it arrived and now the same people will probably mourn its passing in favour of the 997. Porsche drivers are inherently conservative (with a small "c").
I've never thought much of Porsche interiors and the quality (as, IMO, with all German cars) is way over rated. A Toyota Yaris is probebly better.
But, and it's a big but, all Porsche models from a 2.7 Boxster with no options up to the 911 Turbo fully loaded drive in a unique way. There is nothing quite like them. They all manage to provide unique moments of pure driving pleasure which very few cars can match at any price (I'm ignoring the Cayenne here as I've never drive one). Once you get hooked it is difficult to find alternatives.
I agree the Aston (AM V8) looks very tempting. However, on the affordability stakes, it's got a tough job. No Porsche is exactly a cheap car but a £56k 911 can be quite easily compared to a £110,000 DB9 in terms of whats on offer. You can but a new 911 and run it for 3 years at a depreciation cost of about £5k a year. Servicing is not as absurd as you'd think and fuel consumption is no worse than some mid-range family petrol cars. OK, it's not cheap, but you don't need to be a millionaire to buy and run one.
A 911 certainly costs no more to own than a mid 30k petrol executive saloon and a huge amount less than a XJ6/8, 7-Series or petrol S-Class. They hold their price much better, use less fuel and these days don't cost much more to service.
As an everyday ownership proposition the Aston has it all to prove.
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The Aston Martin AMV8, at £70k, is more likely to offer competition to the 911 than the DB9.
Pics at www.astonmartin.com/gallery_amv8_base.html
Andy
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Thanks for that link Andy. I now have an AM screensaver courtesy of all the jpgs on that site :)
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David, there's clearly something the matter with you. It looks gorgeous. I'd have one tomorrow. OK, the day after.
I reckon it's a clever evolution of the 911 shape. A lot of Porsche design is based on 'heritage'. So the new 997 has drawn on some of the design features of the 993, the last of the air-cooled and still sought after by enthusiasts (like me, I fear - I seem to want one quite badly). Though I think you can get too sentimental and misty-eyed when interpreting design...
And remember the Boxster harks after the 550 Speedster from the 50s.
The 997's cabin? Well it's no stunner. But Porsche interiors have never been the height of cool. It's how they drive that matters.
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Something more on interiors. Actually some have been rubbish! The 993's has awful ergonomics. But dedicated Porker drivers don't seem to mind.
The 997's is said to be an improvement quality-wise on the 996's.
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No David, you're not the only one.
The 993 was pretty. The 996 was a pretty bold step forward in design terms, by Porsche standards (important proviso!), and I like it a lot - so much so that I bought one. But some people thought the front lights looked odd, meaning that they didn't look like every set of 911 front lights had for the last 40 years. So the 997 exterior is sort of a 996 but with the interesting bits taken backwards to the 993, in effect. Which is a shame.
BUT - when you're driving you can't see the outside. And the driver of a 911 is usually grinning. And there's a good reason for that.
So I'm not going to reach a final opinion until someone lets me drive it.
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What's your 996, patently? How old?
Great to drive, clearly. How about to own - costs, servicing, reliability and stuff?
I've a feeling that a 996 is cheaper to run than a 993, though depreciation probably higher - currently, anyhow.
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It's a Carrera 4S Cabrio, midnight blue - registered 2 Jan 04 so I'm not too acquainted with running costs yet.
Major running cost is wear & tear on the garage door lock due to having a quick peek at it each night before it goes to sleep. Make sure its nicely tucked in & so on.
Only major fault so far was an inoperative CD changer which kept claiming there were no CDs loaded despite the fact that 6 shiny discs could clearly be seen sitting in the cartridge. Was about to go back to the dealer when I tried taking them out, TURNING THEM OVER and putting them back in.... sooooo glad I worked that one out myself....
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Well I have to say that sounds rather marvellous.
A few weeks back a mate of mine took me for a spin in his S-reg 996 2 Cabrio - and he let me have a go. I thought it terrific. Aside from the performance, listening to the noise of double-delutch downchanges (I got to do good, smooth ones quickly - always a good sign) brought me out in goosebumps. The big grin lasted for about 2 hours afterwards...
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Oh, and the car was wonderfully involving.
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The headlights were the main thing I didn't like about the 996, and the kinda pointy beak of the front bumper when viewed at different angles, so the 997 is already a huge improvement. Can't make out if the beak is still there from the pics I have seen.
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Try a C4S to deal with the beak, or a turbo if you're feeling rich. I thought it was still there on the 997.
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