Funcarsonline Forums: 2008 997 Carrera 4 driving impressions at 1500 miles...

Today was a beautiful day for a drive, with temperatures in the mid 60's under sunny skies. I fired up the Carrera 4 for a bit of a road trip over to the other side of town. That's a round trip distance of about 90 miles, so the car got some exercise.

The 997 is a tamer car than the 996. The variable ratio power steering is part of that equation. It really doesn't belong on a Porsche. The 996 turns in faster than the 997.

I turned on the NAV for the first driving time today. I would never mess with trying to program it, but I wanted to see how it worked. What a ridiculous thing to have on a car. The map is hard to read because of the angle and the distance from the driver's eyes. I wear unifocal lenses but the NAV is at a distance that does not work for either a unifocal distance lens or a bifocal lens. So, if you are over 40 forget about seeing it in focus. Also, the NAV is downright hazardous to be looking at when one is driving. Skip this option, if you can.

The Carrera 4 cars are very well planted. The nervous front end twit of the 996 C2 cars is gone. This is not necessarily an improvement, and others may not see it the same as I do, but I like having the car remain more stable at speed. like the ride and handling of the Carrera 4. Mine has a real mechanical suspension, rather than a computer suspension. The ride is not harsh, even with 19 inch tires including the 305's on the back. The suspension is predictable, as it should be.

The 997 is not as fast as the 996. A Carerra 4 is heavier than the C2 version of course, but the cars are all heavier than the 996 cars. I deleted the sunroof on all my 996 cars and also ran with 17 inch wheels. Those cars were very quick and as light as any stock, water cooled generation, Porsche could be. I am hoping that the car will continue to loosen up and spool up faster, as it's pretty tight now. It does seem to be getting more fluid and feels quicker than it did initially though.

The looks of the Carrera 4 are enough to quicken the pulse of most any Porsche driver. I love the way this car looks. White over black is classic and I never get tired of that combination. The bigass tail with the 305's looking so beefy from the rear, combined with the higher ride height of the non-S cars makes this car look like a new age muscle car. It has the stance, width, and ridiculously wide tires of the Porsches that I used to sketch onto the covers of my school notebooks way back when. The car looks freaking outrageous. It also looks like a very expensive 911, more so than my previous Porsches, which always were equipped with 17 inch wheels. It's a mean looking, no nonsense car.

I love the standard headlights and consider myself quite lucky to have found a car with them. I can't stand the bobbly blue lights that I had on my 2002 Carrera. I also really dig the footwell lighting of this car! It's a nice feature that should have been standard all along, rather than a $700 option. I think mine came as part of a package... maybe the Sport Chrono? Speaking of the Sport Chrono, it's worthless. The eGas profile without it is adequate. The silly looking clock on the dash is a monument to Porsche marketing gone berserk.

The interior of the 997 looks pretty nice in person. I do like it better than the interior on the 996. The contour of the upper dash, with the rise over the instruments is almost like a piece of sculpture. Just elegant. When one can combine beauty and function, what more is needed? My interior is the base interior. That's the way I like it. Getting out of the car sometimes has me accidentally kicking the Bose speaker in the door panel though. These doors are thicker than on the 996 and the sill is significantly wider. The car is a little more difficult to get into and out of when parked close to another (like in my garage). Stay agile and thin if you want to drive a 997.

I like the seats but i think the bottom is less padded than on the 996 cars. I suppose some butt fat would make for a better cushion. Maybe I should stop running and eat more potato chips and Pepsi.

I have 1501 miles on the car now. I am lusting for a road trip, but first will have to order the spare tire, jack, and tools, as the clowns at Porsche ripped off the spare tires from these cars. More of Dr. W's profit driven goofiness?

My 2008 Carrera 4 is a most excellent car. I love the car. I hated to pull the car into the garage and shut it off this afternoon. It's just so dang much fun to drive the Carrera 4.

spider