DHA Posted May 21, 2007 Report Share Posted May 21, 2007 I was going to a wedding this weekend and fancied taking something with a bit more of a wow factor than the GTI along. When the weekend offer text arrived from écurie I was straight on the phone to them to book out the 911 GT3 for the weekend - and start to pray that it stayed dry! Before I carry on with the review I shall say that I love Porsches, they are my favourtie cars and a 911 is my dream so I may show some bias towards the car. Collecting the car from the écurie HQ it looked stunning, white suits the car very well and the extra body additions over the "regular" 911 does set the car off very well. I was slightly disappointed that the car was fitted with the regular sports seats and not the carbon-fibre buckets but when you have a GT3 to play in for the weekend you can't really grumble. The engine sounded great when I first started it up, a very deep rumble (made even louder in sport mode but more on that later) I then pressed my left foot down....ouch the clutch is heavy was my first thought. I have been "blessed" with a very light clutch pedal in my GTI and the GT3 has a very very stiff pedal action, it was a little tricky getting a feel for the clutch in the heavy London traffic on the way home but once you get used to it it is not too much of a chore to drive in stop start traffic. I loved the alcantara rimmed steering wheel and gearshift, a very nice touch and set off the cabin quite well. The car had covered 9500 miles but it is a true testemant to the build quality of Porsches. There was not one squeak or rattle from the car which considering how hard the suspension is was very surprising. In fact the 997 seems much better built than the two Boxsters I have owned so I suspect the factory in Germany has a higher quality control standard than the factory in Finland. As the roads opened up I started to get more of a feel for how the car rides, it is stiffly sprung and when the active suspension is set in its harder setting the car does become uncomfortable on the roads we have in the UK so I would suspect this setting is best left for the trackdays you would no doubt do if this was your own car. Nearing my house I turned onto some of my more favourite roads and there is a hill which is quite steep but a fairly straight section where you can open cars up, 2nd gear 50mph.....foot flat to the floor. The pick up was instant, a strong yowl from the engine and you are propelled forward very quickly. The acceleration is relentless and savage and the car picks up big speeds very quickly, hten 6,00rpm hits and there is even more pull! The slight worry here was the traction control light illuminating whilst I was doing this. On my return home a quick inspection of the tyres revelaed they were very new Pirelli PZero rossos so I suspect this had a part to play. The car also has a sport mode, this opens a valve in the exhaust thus producing more noise changes the engine map for more torque but also eases off the traction control somewhat I only used this a few times but to be honest in "normal" mode the car was hardly quiet or slow. On the motorway the GT3 is surprsingly refined. A cruise at mach 0.85 was relatively quiet and the car amazingly returned 29mpg One thing that was always at the back of my mind was the weight at the rear, in corners you could feel it shift around a little and the car only has traction control and no stability management whatsoever, coupled with the insurance excess it does make you tread very carefully! As my confidence grew in the car and the tyres bedded in more I could begin to feel how great a car this is. I took Winton out in it last night and he was amazed at it. Traction was not an issue when pulling away and then applying full throttle. The car just dug in and accelerated, those 305 profile pirellis did have a lot of grip with a few miles on them. So how much did I like the car? Well I loved it, but and there is a but. The GT3 is not a car you can use every day. The clutch is heavy for town driving, the ride can become a little tiresome on poor roads and the comedy ground clearance of 10cm means the splitter does catch most speedhumps and inclines if you are not careful, sometimes even this cannot be prevented. As a second car to use for weekends its great but it is not an everyday supercar, if there is such a thing, nor is it a flimsy hatchback from the 1980s that you feel you might not want to use all the time. I am sure it would be 100% reliable and you could use it every day however there are a few things that I personally think would hold me back from buying one. I only experienced it in the dry and I think on damp roads it could be a handfull. I also think that I do not, nor will I ever posses the skills to drive a GT3 properly, it would be wasted on me if I am honest. But if someone wishes to buy me one as a present I wouldn't turn it down! Overall a stonking car but a little too comprimised for my requirements and probably a few notches above what my driving skills can cope with. So the league table..... 1- Porsche 911 GT3 2- BMW M5 3- Aston Martin DB9 The GT3 pips the M5 partly because it is a Porsche but it was also a better car by a long shot when it comes to being a sports car. Now I wonder what GT3 vs Turbo will be like............ On final thing I think that real spoiler is a work of art Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Torino101 Posted May 21, 2007 Report Share Posted May 21, 2007 Did it go down well at the Wedding? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DHA Posted May 21, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 21, 2007 I think the odd pilot or two may have been annoyed that the air traffic controller turned up in the most expensive car Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chav Posted May 21, 2007 Report Share Posted May 21, 2007 Loving these ecurie review posts DHA! I hope ecurie are giving you a discount (or extra points) for writing them, as I reckon they'll get a few more customers from them! I'm probably as anti-porsche as it comes, as I think they're mostly ugly as sin etc, but GT3 looking pretty good in white there! There's a purple one round here, but that looks positively minging! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wallachie Posted May 21, 2007 Report Share Posted May 21, 2007 Nice review of what is my favourite car of the moment! I desperately want a drive in one of these bad boys, you seem to like your comforts whereas I really don't mind a bone shaker so I think I will love the GT3. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alastair_A3 Posted May 21, 2007 Report Share Posted May 21, 2007 Beautiful looking car Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Winton Posted May 21, 2007 Report Share Posted May 21, 2007 Without wishing to repeat a post (that I put in another thread), I cannot find the words to describe the acceleration the GT3 had. it was quite simply stunning - at one point I glanced across to the tacho, expecting Dave to change up, only to find we were only at 5800rpm. Then the second cam hit.... Amazing car and big respect to DHA for the lap of Surrey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
330dcoupe Posted May 21, 2007 Report Share Posted May 21, 2007 dude, if you don't mind me asking - how often do ecurie let you change your cars? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DHA Posted May 21, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 21, 2007 You get a set of points for the year and you can use them as you wish. I have calculated that I can get one car a month for at least 3 days for the whole year if I mostly hire on weekdays, which my job allows me to do. You can book upto 30 days in advance and they have a fair few nice cars to choose from. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
330dcoupe Posted May 21, 2007 Report Share Posted May 21, 2007 [ QUOTE ] You get a set of points for the year and you can use them as you wish. I have calculated that I can get one car a month for at least 3 days for the whole year if I mostly hire on weekdays, which my job allows me to do. You can book upto 30 days in advance and they have a fair few nice cars to choose from. [/ QUOTE ] So as well as folk out for these great cars, you also have to pay/own/maintain a every day car for the weekdays? Sounds great, but expensive! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mook Posted May 21, 2007 Report Share Posted May 21, 2007 Expensive, yes, but I reckon it's a bloody good way to play with lots of toys and not have the expense of maintaining them or taking the depreciation hit Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DHA Posted May 21, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 21, 2007 I pay an annual membership and run my golf everyday yes. But its cheaper than owning one of the cars on offer and I get to choose Lambo, Ferrari, Porsche etc. For me it is working quite well at the moment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
330dcoupe Posted May 21, 2007 Report Share Posted May 21, 2007 one more question buddy - how much (roughly) do you pay a year? and is it only worth having a membership if you live close by (ie NOT Newcastle) or do they have branches up Norfff? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DHA Posted May 21, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 21, 2007 Its around £9500 per year. The only have one branch in London but they do deliver the cars for a fee. I think they have some members from up north. I think P1 has a northern branch but their membership is about £15000 for the year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
330dcoupe Posted May 21, 2007 Report Share Posted May 21, 2007 Considering most of the car's which you have driven would probably lose that sort of money in depreciation - I think that's brilliant. Perhaps if and when I get my Domino's Franchise up and running <rubs hands> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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