Porsche Driving Experience Review: Plus Tesla vs Mustang

[Irace86.2.0]

Tomorrow I will be doing the Porsche Driving Experience in LA as part of a grad present for completing nursing school. I could have done Toro or found another experience, but I liked the idea of experiencing something from Porsche. There are many options and driving the combo of a GT3 and GT4 in the 1.5 hours was good, but for the same price I could double my time if I did two solo packages with the 718 Cayman GTS 4.0 and the 992 911 Carrera S. This way I would get more seat time, and I would get to sample MR vs RR, NA vs TT, lightweight vs luxury, etc. My ideal Porsche would be a 977.2 or 718 Cayman S or 718 Cayman GTS 4.0. Actually my ideal Porsche in my head doesn’t exist. I will update this tomorrow with my review of the Poraches, how they compare to each other and how they compare to the 86 from the perspective of someone who thinks the 86 is better than some exotics I’ve driven. I’ll also describe and review the Porsche Driving Experience.

On top of doing the experience, we went to the Petersen Automotive Museum, art museums and will do a few Disneyland days. The Petersen AM is worth the visit. It has a lot of great cars, but it is not exhaustive, and it currently has a whole bottom floor dedicated to the history of Tesla from AC Propulsion to Atlas, and the second floor is mostly Porsche, so if that isn’t your cup of tea then you might be less impressed, but it is still worth the money; just adjust your expectations.

I figured while I am in town, I might as well try out an American muscle car. While tuner Japanese cars have always held my interest, a NA V8 has seemed more appealing. I considered a V8 swap over the Kswap, and I’ve considered a Mustang knowing I like NA engines and enjoyed the Harrop supercharged FA20 before. With this in mind, I rented a Mustang GT 5.0 with the Shelby Hertz package of performance add ons and aesthetics. I returned it same day. What a fat pig pile. Here is a review from maybe a less biased perspective:

https://www.motortrend.com/reviews/2...-drive-review/

The second I popped the steel hood (to confirm no supercharger) that felt three times heavier than an 86 hood and sat behind the lazyboy-styled Recaros and tried to peer over the bulbous hood (my wife had terrible visibility she said), I wanted to take it back, but I decided to give the boat a go. Cold start sounded good, but the sound around town was disappointing. It reminded me of a struggling truck making loads of noise to go no where fast. It isn’t just obnoxiously loud, it is pathetic how much noise it makes in effort for what seems like low-demand tasks. My 86 is loud because of the swap, but it feels swift, light, small, nimble and like an athlete or cheetah where it can go fast, but if it is just trotting then it unfazed and still quiet and composed; not struggling to breathe. I thought I would appreciate the sport exhaust and low end torque, but it just is too much all the time.

The automatic transmission in normal mode is far too sluggish. Maybe the car is tired as an older rental or maybe I just was expecting something closer to the Supra’s ZF8 (from what I have read and heard). Sport was better, but both were lazy and stuttering in low gears at low speeds and searching for gears or hanging in gears. Okay, Im a manual guy, but geez this is bad. My wife’s Audi Q5 is miles better IMO. Maybe at speed or on track the Mustang might be different, but it was terrible just getting around the city.

It is a boat. I knew this, but again, my wife’s Q5 feels more nimble, and it is heavier. I don’t know why, but it just felt like a thick, steel boat. It lumbers. It doesn’t carry its weight well. I can’t imagine larger muscle/pony cars. It is far from the 86 in so many ways. It reminded me of a convertible Aston Martin Vantage.

Edit: I forgot to add that we exchanged the car for a Tesla Model 3 long range. I almost got a Polestar 1, but we needed the luggage space and wanted to try the Tesla. This was my second time in a Tesla, but first behind the wheel. It was a really enjoyable experience. The instant torque, gearless powertrain, responsive throttle response and predictability, etc just made the car very enjoyable to drive. Add in the quality of the tablet, response of the UI and just ease of use, charging experience, Autopilot experience, and so on, it was really great. I've always been a manual guy, but if I had an automatic, it would be in an EV, or it would be something like the PDK, but it is hard to go back to my wife's Q5 after driving the Tesla. The acceleration was legit. It punches far above its specs. I couldn't even imagine a Plaid. It must be utterly insane. I could really see myself getting an EV for a daily like if the next Cayman, 86, Miata is an EV, I'm sold that I would enjoy it on the street or in the canyons.

[Spuds]

Congratulations!

Coincidentally, I was just talking to a guy on Sunday about the Porsche Experience in LA and said it was pretty awesome. He's done it a few times and his favorite was the Cayman GTS so good call there maybe.

[Irace86.2.0]

Yes, the Cayman GTS was great! The whole experience was great!

The lobby is a small museum of modern and classic 911s, and after getting checked in and assigned a pole position next to one of the GT3s or turbos, we had a chance to peruse the lobby and store. There is glass looking through to lifts and an auto shop where they were working on cars. Downstairs is a cafe and upstairs is a balcony and restaurant.

I was greeted by my instructor who is an active, licensed, professional, race-car driver. He said most have background in racing, drifting or movie stunting. We went out and got a picture next to the car with my wife. We then went out on track to try some of the eight different challenges. We couldn’t use the paddle shifters, and I believe everything was autos.

We went first to the low-speed, sliding circuit where there was powder placed on a diamond track, so we could practice driving the car through controlled slides. Basically we drifted the car in switch backs. He went first to show me the lines and what to do, and then we swapped positions. He progressively turned off traction control, so I could test my skills more without the nannies. This was a fun section and was rewarding to nail controlled drifts around successive switchbacks. I mostly let my 86 go sideways to gain traction and take off, so controlling a slide and flipping left to right was new and fun.

The next challenge we did was the wet ring. We drove left in a circle on the wet surface until we found the speed where traction was lost, and then I was told to maintain a slide/drift with throttle control and counter steer around the circle. Again, it is really rewarding to nail a few loops keeping a controlled drift, and it is fun wiping out too.

Next we went to the kick plate. Drove straight and let off to load the front, and then it would randomly kick the car to the side. This was really easy, so we practiced doing more controlled drifts slightly weaving down the straight away.

Next we went to the track. I followed him in another car for a few laps with him radioing me instructions, and then he jumped into my car, so we could do another few laps, progressively building speed. The track has a Laguna inspired corkscrew and other track inspired sections that felt very Grand Turismo familiar. It wasn’t just a canyon cruise experience. At one point we needed to take cooldown laps because we got front tire and brake fade from pushing the cars so hard.

Lastly, we went to a straight section to experience launch control and full braking before cruising through a separate challenge: a Nurburgring styled banked loop.

There is an off-road challenge for SUVs and a wet downhill section, both of which we did not do.

I had a break for lunch for an hour before starting my second session. The Cayman was first and was followed by the 911. He said I did the right thing to do it in that order. The second session was a repeat, but driving the 911 was a different beast, and we got to spend more time bettering what we practiced. I opted to just follow him on the track to better my lines and be able to maximize my speed on the course; it is obviously easy to follow, and we got enough speed that we were passing cars and needed a few cool down laps before we could continue for several more laps. Good times.

Overall I was very impressed with my instructors skills and knowledge, and he made the experience that much more relaxing, enjoyable and confidence inspiring. This is an experience that any novice to intermediate could enjoy, but it would be good to have some driving skill to take advantage and not feel completely like a fish out of water. Overall, I would highly recommend the experience to anyone interested in practicing their skills, to anyone who wants to test before buying, and to anyone who is a Porsche fan and who may never own, but want to experience one of these amazing machines. I would do it again, and I may go back in the future to try out a GT3 RS!

My review of the cars will be tomorrow.

[Irace86.2.0]

Sorry for the late review, but I got busier than I thought I would be.

I went into this experience expecting to be a little disappointed to meet my idols kind of like I was when I've driven other supercars, but this wasn't the case. I was also going into this driving experience expecting it to be a little gimmicky and for the track to be underwhelming, but it was exactly opposite.

Exterior:

This is subjective, but both cars look great. The Cayman is a little smaller in dimensions, so that adds to the appeal of owning something closer to a small, analog, sports car over a comfortable and luxurious grand tourer, which spoiler, that is what the Cayman and 911 are, respectively, but more about the looks. The 911 is iconic in its shape, and the 992 generation really is a gorgeous car with the retro vibes mixed with modern touches like the rear tail light. It might have grown in size, now having a rear bumper that has gotten a Brazilian butt lift, but it still has that iconic rear silhouette of a tight cabin and fenders that drape over the wheels. Despite the increasing dimensions, it still looks like a small sports car compared to the swath of sports car alternatives on the market. But more importantly, it looks that much more premium over the generation of 911's before it. While the Cayman is nice too, it just doesn't have the same build and attention to details and quality like the 911. Its rear haunches pucker up like the car was squished together, which means it doesn't look hunkered down to the road, squatting tight, glued to the tarmac like the 911.

Interior:

I don't know if it is fair to compare a GTS to a S, but the Cayman won some points in this category for just having perfect execution. The choice of colors, stitching and materials made the cabin a pleasure to be in. Compared to the 911, the space was tighter, where the driver feels wrapped between the console and door. The simple layout, the use of buttons, the analog gauges, and so on made the Cayman feel analog like a purpose built sports car. The 911 felt wider and roomier. The screens and materials felt luxurious, but not as engaging from a driver's perspective. Compared to the Cayman's interior, the 911 felt like a GT car that could be comfortably driven daily--a place for the whole family. Both cars had excellent front visibility, and they had acceptable rear visibility. Both cars, especially the 911, felt small enough to feel like sports cars and hid their size and weight well. The 911 was slightly quieter when it came to road and wind noise.

Powertrain:

Both were PDK, and while we weren't allowed to use the paddle shifters for this experience or rent manual transmissions, the PDK has to be one of the best automatic transmissions besides having no transmission like with an EV. The shifts were flawless and seamless. The car wasn't hanging or searching for gears. The speed of the shifts live up to the 50ms rating. Shifts never disrupted the car.

Launch control was flawless. Left foot on the brake; right on the gas; drop the left, and the car just launches. Both had perfect launches every time without tire slip and without bogging. I'll get to the power, but these launches were the closest a car could get to an EV in its steady and exceptional acceleration. Neither were the fastest cars I have been in, but both were exceptional in how well they launched.

Both sounded amazing, but the GTS' 4.0L NA engine was far louder and more raw, yet the 911 still managed to sound amazing too through the variable geometry turbos. For a daily, the 911 probably wins in having a more even and mature tone that is not quite as loud and is more refined, but the GTS wins for its rawness and aggressive top end scream. One of the unexpected and best sounds was in the instant downshifts that produced a punch. Whether it was a micro autoblip or a small bit of back pressure from the exhaust, it was just a puff that punched a sweet exhaust note with each downshift.

The twin turbo engine had more torque and horsepower, but it was the higher torque that was obvious. It was always there and very flat. There was basically no turbo lag, again, thanks to the variable geometry turbos. Because of this, it felt NA, and it had some top end surge like it had a big turbo or was more NA, not falling off before redline. The Cayman's engine had enough torque and a broad enough torque curve to not leave me wanting, but it was a power curve that required more rpms to fully come alive, which was also fine by me. I could feel the urgency and response was more responsive than the 911, which added to how raw the engine felt and sounded over the 911.

Chassis:

I've hinted at this along the way, but both of the chassis were well balanced and felt solid, tight to the road, and well-composed. Compared to each other, the 911 was a little better composed and easier to manipulate--almost too easy. It was a little numb because of how well it stayed neutral, flat and composed, as I slid the car around the circular loop or flipped it through the switchbacks. Even with the traction control off, it was hard to lose grip, which resulted in some understeer at times when the car found traction on throttle. The GTS didn't have a mechanical LSD, so it was a little more lively, and with the mid mounted engine, it had a tendency to want to rotate faster. While that dynamic might prove better at 10/10ths for exceptional drivers, I found the 911 to be easier to drive at its limits. It seemed to have endless grip, stayed composed/glued to the ground, had better stability at speed, but still managed to rotate and maneuver when necessary. Despite the extra weight, it did a great job of hiding that weight.

Overall:

The following is a well-known and often reiterated tale of two beasts. The smaller, rawer sports car versus the larger, smoother, more refined, grand tourer. Clearly, the Cayman is the car for the enthusiast who wants the most analog experience, who wants that raw engine, dedicated two seater cabin, to hear the engine all the time from cold start to 8k rpms. The 911 is the refined, easy to drive, easier to live with, more spacious, more luxurious, more predictable, easier to find the torque, grand tourer that happens to still be dimensionally small enough to feel like a purpose built sports car compared to its larger, sometimes lazier and heavier competition from Mercedes, Jaguar, Aston Martin, and so on, and in that way, the 911 is still the perfect, everyday sports car.

For the 86 owner, the Cayman GTS is a big step up in car, and price, of course. I'm sure the standard S with the 2.5T is the same step up, much more than just an 86 with forced induction. The 86 with forced induction is beautiful thing, an engaging thing, a playful thing that brings huge smiles for fractions of the price, but it doesn't have the premium build quality, the rock solid chassis, the sound of a flat 6, the speed and quality of a PDK, the endless grip of a mid engine to put power to the ground, and so on. Having owned a supercharged FA20 with more power and torque than a GTS while being lighter, and now having a K24T with even more, yes, the 86 is faster and more raw and crazy, and because of that, it is more exhilarating, but it is also loud (despite having full sound deadening), and it is a back breaker down the road, and it just doesn't have the means to put down the power in all situations like off the line or out of a corner like the GTS. Because of that, despite my car having more power, the GTS would easily trounce my setup around a track; that is clear. Still, it would be really hard to give up the 86 and justify the price for even a used Cayman. I find myself thinking that I want them all, and I'm not that guy. I'm loyal to an ideal, the ideal of having the perfect car for me, yet I see the case for all three cars. The 86 is light and raw and angry with 400+whp, but it isn't refined at all, even with my upgrades. It is my daily, but it would be best if I relegated this car to the track. The GTS is the car for the weekend to hammer some canyons and get rowdy with, and the 911 is the ultimate daily and cross country carver. The GTS is right in the middle of both of them, so maybe it really is the perfect car to have that can tick the most boxes, or maybe it isn't. Maybe, just maybe, I might keep the track toy and save my pennies for a used 911. We will have to wait and see what happens.

[Arthur-A]

What's their reasoning for not allowing paddle shifting?
Do they turn off traction/stability control only on a skid pad or on the race track as well?

[Irace86.2.0]

Originally Posted by Arthur-A

What's their reasoning for not allowing paddle shifting?
Do they turn off traction/stability control only on a skid pad or on the race track as well?

I asked if the PDK could be money-shifted. The guy said the car could be over-revved, but I don’t think that was right. The PDK has a rev limiter and gear lockout to prevent money-shifting, so I think he was just saying that, so I wouldn’t try using the paddles. I’m sure they are more concerned with just being too aggressive with the powertrain or being more likely to crash the car, losing traction…? It seems weird, but there is a lot to deal with for new drivers that adding manual shifting to the instructions might be a little much, but I think it would be great to try that out, even in a limited capacity, as one might want to do on a test drive before buying.

The car has an identical setup to the 86: a sport setting to get a little slip and hold the button down to disable traction control by 90%. Each challenge the instructor would turn off more and more of the nannies. When we were going balls all out on the track, the needed all the nannies on. We weren’t in race suits with helmets and EMS standby, so I can understand them wanting to keep the nannies on there.