Nothing at all ...just me personally...I need more power. I am a torque addict. The 997TT is a personal favorite....with the 997 GT2 (and 996 GT2 for that matter) as cars I lust after. I know the TT's take a little away from driver involvement and aren't as "raw" of an experience (got that from my bench-racing rather than from being a PCA member)...but I also love the GT3 as well. The 997 S is a good compromise for most people... my personal choice in cars doesn't lean towards compromise.

Tom

+1 there are a lot of us with "older cheap" models that will be watching closely. The people at LET definitely not all hat, no cattle kind of guys.

Gotcha.

I used to be a handling > power guy and the 997 is probably in the top three handling / $ cars you can buy on the street. I don't mean pure empirical numbers or magazine review numbers ( ), I mean your or I's ability to get in the car without being race drivers and go fast. There's a small track we run at in Birmingham, AL that is typically a 1:15-1:25 track. Last time I went, race prepped cars (roll cage, racing slicks) were getting to 1:10-1:12 as were some tuned street cars (turbo'd G35/350s, chipped 335i). I was running 1:05 my first time on the track with a bone stock car. In general, a modern 911 will turn any driver into superman on the track - its just so easy to go fast.

Nowadays, I've come to the conclusion that a) 95% of my time in the car is spent driving the family or just kids around, and b) most of my roads are fairly straight, so a little more muscle and a little less handling is okay. Plus, its easier to reach back in the back seat to get a toy or do some attitude adjusting with an automatic. So the C63 is okay for me as a daily driver, but on the track...that measly 355 hp 997 S would embarrass a ton of these "big motor" cars. To each its own.

I am sure it would embarass my car on a road course. I did a run recently with a bunch of Lotus Elise's....wow..it seems like those little buggers can fly around any turn without lifting. I am sure they were having much more fun than I was having. I found out a couple of days later when I brought it to Mb dealer to service my ABC system that my rear struts are shot. I am sure that didn't help the 4,600+lbs of girth get around the turns...but even if it was 100% there is still no way I could keep up with them in the twisties.

Tom

Yeah, the Elise/Exige would probably top the list. They ARE 100% track cars, but man - have you ever tried to get into/out of one? My 6'1" 240 lb frame wasn't meant to go in there. Kind of like the carbon seats in the GT3RSR of my local race team - they're so tight they hurt my hips to sit in.

lol, yeah...i'll back off.

lzh,
you've shown nothing but an amplitude of moral fiber and exercised constraint during your constructive membership here at mbworld...my bad.

Ohh snap!

Hey guys..I asked a question and got ignored. Asking again:

Side question: My dealer said they will do a ECU Kleeman tune for $1200, getting 20-30 more horsepower. Worth it?

With the kompressor added 130 more horses, and this is on my NA CLS. The bill would be around 15K, which seems to be rather high for just a K1 stage.

Some feedback? Thanks!

IMO...not worth it, esp if you get the SC on the NA CLS. You are better off using that money and putting it towards a real AMG. I think they are raping you on the SC kit and then when you get rid of the car and ever take it back there for a trade in they will rape you again on the trade in value.

Even on a trade into any other dealer you still won't get the money you spent in the SC mod...they will only give you whatever the trade in value for your NA CLS.

I would have to agree....at a certain point it is more cost effective to move up to a CLS55. You get sooo many more other goodies (better brakes, materials, exhaust..etc). Like AMGfan points out, part of that cost consideration should be resale value if you know that you aren't going to keep the car.

Tom

Noted guys, I started thinking that was a better option. Next go around will probably be a full AMG. Thanks!

I'm sorry but I have to butt in on some of your comments. If you think a 997 or even a 996 or 993 is as you put it "your or I's ability to get in the car without being race driver's and go fast" you are dead wrong. 997 and 997's are two of the more difficult cars to make go fast for the average or inexperienced racer. 997 are obviously great cars, but it takes better than an average driver to see their potential. You have to be able to drive the car on the razors edge to see it's potential. I have driven a 996tt and a 997 GT3 on the track, I am an experienced road racer and I found them both difficult to drive fast, probably the two most unforgiving cars I have ever driven at speed. I would wager a bet that if we took 10 average drivers from this board and let had put in 10 laps in a 997 Carrera S (rwd) a Corvette C6 and a new BMW M3 sedan every person would put down their slowest laps in the 997. I would even say that a 335i coupe could turn better times with an average driver. Further more I bet nearly every driver would loop the 997 at least one time trying.

I had my Black Series on Road America this summer at a Porsche Club event, my car beat every Porsche out their with the exception of a couple of Porsche Cup race cars that were running. The closest 997 to me was a new GT2 and it was just over 2 seconds a lap slower than my fastest lap of the day, 2 seconds might as well be an hour at Road America where my MPH average was close to 110mph. Basically what I am saying is that in the right hands a Porsche will haul the mail, but the average guy looking for a car that he might track track on occasion should look elsewhere.

test is test Sorry stuck it in the wrong place

Yes, you've privileged us on these forums to read many times how great you are, how great your car is, etc., etc.

LOL - Like I said:

you still here??? so much for graceful, let alone a departure!

Loser, huh ?? Guess that's your way of displaying the "moral fiber and constraint" you suggested I lack....seems you are the only one coming here and making generalized and unsupported attacks towards me for no reason whatsoever. It's ok though, I find it flattering that you keep playing into my hands with such predictability.

Thank you! It is nice to see that you admit that mine are specific and supported with good reason. I didn't think you would admit it....

Tom

Whatever helps you sleep at night, Tom....

doesn't surprise me a bit that you find it flattering.

We'll have to agree to disagree as my personal experience says you're dead wrong. You see, I'm NOT an experienced race driver, and yet I've lapped our local track faster than any of the cars you describe - including chipped 335i's running over 400 hp/400 tq in the hands of people who are regular PCA/BMWCCA DE drivers. A good friend sold his chipped 335i and went to a dedicated track car for time trials because even after ECU & suspension work, he was SLOWER than all the stock 911s out there - base and S.

Maybe at 9.9/10ths on a large road course you are correct, but back to my original statement I say the everyman can drive the 911 extraordinarily fast.