I have to say that I struggled with the PDK vs Manual. I too have the M3 MDCT and agree with you that it isn't as involved as a manual. Therefore, I decided to go with the manual and the way that Porsche is going, all of the future 911s whatever models will be PDK only. It was hinted to me that the GT3 coming end of the calendar year will be PDK only. Finally, on this point, I have always wanted a 911 like so many others and you know what it has to be a manual!

As for interior, it is really up to you. I decided not mess with the dials but added deviated red stitching (not full leather interior) and red seatbelts. My wife put it best to me, if it is something that is a must have go for it but if I am undecided I will never be satisfied no matter what the option. In the end, it is a 911 and I will love it no matter what.

If you track the car that much go for performance options. If it matters that much go for ceramics. What I am getting at is that I made my decisions based on two criteria: 1. Budget - my wife is a amazing but a line had to be drawn 2. My must haves - for me that was Sport Chrono, PSE, glass sunroof, heated/ventilated seats and auto dimming mirrors.

It took me 6 months of deliberating to come up with my build. Believe me when I say full leather was on the fence but budget came into play.

I am rambling... Not sure if this helps you STALKER but I know you will love it no matter the final touches.

Sorry Psycho - I will now stop hijacking - by the way, I hope you are feeling better.

 

OK.. I find myself with time to burn as such this post has become rather reflective of that.
That said, your are asking about 2 highly polarizing and highly debated subjects so I wanted to make sure I had this debate (with myself) once and for all.
Here she goes...

1. X51 power kit.

I believe is highly under rated!
There is so much more to it than just adding HP, the whole character of the ride changes when you add higher compression to an engine and we haven't even talked about the high performance cam, enlarged & polished ports, remapped throttle response, lower parameter safety margins in the ECU, the 6+1 valved active cold-air intake etc, etc.

Of specific interest to you will be that the sound of the exhaust is quite a bit more aggressive (courtesy of the higher compression and richer DFI settings), it just becomes so shark and crisp... it lets everyone know it means business and is set up for one thing... to kick @ss!
I almost got the power kit just for the sound hehehe.
But since the power of the C4S is more than enough for me, getting the X-51 just for the exhaust was a bit too crazy even for me.

2. PDK VS. MT... (flame suit on!)

First off, the PDK can NOT be compared to any other double clutch system currently on the market, you just can't.
I've been a hardcore MT guy for as long as I've been driving cars and had a really, really hard time deciding which way to go this time around.
But I'm originally (22 years+) from Amsterdam as such I can tell you that in Europe a MT is VERY common place... and not to be dismissive but everyones Grandmother drives one.
It is therefore not necessarily considered that "real men drive MT's" LOL.

It's just not associated with sports cars (like it's here in North America), it simply is how most of the cars used to come (btw, quiet a few cars still don't come standard with power windows and conditioning nor auto gearbox...).

Most high performance cars are now only available in double clutch type paddle shift or a sequential configuration.
It simply is much faster and it allows the manufactures to deal with less warranty issues (particularly with high rev and/or high torque cars) and I would in no way call these "automatics"!

I still love rowing through the gears but not so much in the 991 if you give it a bit of "the heavy foot" (and we didn't buy 911 to always drive in comfort mode).
The power-band is very particular... I find that the it really kicks in at about 4000/4500 rpm and when it does... man it literally jumps to 6500 rpm in the blink of an eye wowww!
The problem is that over 6500 the torque starts to drop of quite a bit so the window to shift becomes very small and you have to be fast because with the same throttle input you'll be in the wrong spot to shift in another blink of an eye... now increase the throttle input... and that shift window will exponentially get smaller and smaller.
So if you're like me you'll end up driving the entire time to catch that "magic spot" which last a fraction of a second... it gets tiring after a while but I just can't help myself (oh and since you're an "exhaust junky" like me, the exhaust sounds much much better in sport+ so you'll find yourself in that setting most of the time).

Rowing through the gears in comfort mode (without a heavy foot") on the other hand is... well... awesome... and almost therapeutically but in sport+... you're just not fast enough, all the driver ends up doing is holding the car back and you can feel it.
Now add the power kit to this and having a MT becomes a total contradiction...
I'd go as far as to say that an C2/4 S with a PDK in sport+ will be as fast (if not faster) than a MT C2/4S with a power kit.
I know, I know them are fighting words however that's what I believe (but I've been know to be wrong on more than a few occasion! ).

This is a new generation of technology and as such it's highly digitized... the old analogue foot and hand motion just doesn't mesh with it.
It's like using books and a typewriter VS a keyboard and the internet.
One is slower but gives you a direct feel and involvement in every element, from the smell of the books, the feel of the pages, the pressure of the finger tips to the angel at which the paper was inserted...there's an invested interest in not making too many mistakes and as you go faster there's a speed at which you as a mere human will top out at...

The other being a keyboard, is involving in a more cerebral way where speed is natural and can always be faster... if mistakes are made they are easily corrected and that ease allows you to explore much, much further than with an analog system because it's connected to a never ending digital world... all at your full control.
Is it less fun...hell no it's just a different kind of fun.

Like photography with film vs. digital... or pen & paper vs. an ipad, board games vs. X-box, letters vs. email or... MT vs. PDK... it's the future and it just work better, more efficient, involving, direct and fun.
Does this mean that there is no place for all the analogue derived pleasures... absolutely not!
But it will be for the pleasures derived from it's necessary (inter)actions and not so much if we are talking about performance.

Does it feel less involving... give it a chance and you'll find that the PDK in manual is actually a ton of fun to play with... you'll find yourself blipping through gears just to hear those awesome sounds coming from the engine.
Now add to that the X-51 kit and the more aggressive tones which rise from the exhaust and I defy you not be playing with those paddles continuously hehehe.
You'll feel like a teenager faced with a full, perky, natural set of breast crowed by nipples which seem to react to your very breath... you'll be mesmerized and won't be able to stop playing with them.... just make sure to keep your eyes on the road tiger!

Sid.

 

LOl no worries!
As you can tell by my post I too had a tough time deciding when building my C4S...

I think this thread has a nice mix of topics which keeps things interesting and the dialogue flowing so it's all good.
That said I do not want this to turn into a MT vs. PDK thread but as long as we can keep from getting stuck on one subject that should be a non issue with this ever expanding awesome group of individuals...
I know, I know it sounds like I'm kissing a whole lot of @ss but I actually do mean that, what a great place to hang out guys, thanks!

Re; my current predicament , I'm hanging in there, some days are better than others... today turned out to be one of the better once (as is reflected by my current lengthy posts ... what the hell I've got time to spare lol).
I've just got to learn I don't bounce like I used too, if it wasn't for gravity I'd be fine.

Thanks for asking.

Cheers!

 

Have you driven the X51 kit before? I was unaware it changed the tone of the exhaust And engine, that's a good thing if it's more aggressive. I'm 80% sold on it, but just don't want any regrets and it ain't cheap, lol

 

Having had 3500 miles of recent experience w/a 2013 M3 (414 HP V8) BMW 7 speed DCT, I can say the PDK in the 991 is smoother & shifts quicker & doesn't "slam" as hard as the BMW.

PDK feels more connected to the driver in both auto & manual modes. The programable hard shifts in the BMW felt impressive, but in every game I've ever played "smooth is quicker".

With transmissions like these available now, I don't ever feel the need to go back to a manual - never thought I'd say that.

 

Currently I know of only 2 people whom have the X-51 kit... one in Germany on a C4S (rennlist) and the other here on 6sol also with a C4S however I believe he won't get the car until next week.

Judging from the production schedule for the Power kit there are very, very few of them out there right now as the actual production didn't start until the C4s was coming of the line.
Which seems strange considering that there are quiet a few members both here and on Rennlist whom have had a C2S with Power kit on order before the C4S was even released!
I know of a few other like "Snowczar" who's waiting for his C2S cab with the power kit but again, still waiting patiently like the rest of us suckers.

So... no I have not driven the X-51, I have driven the power kit in the 997 generation but that is a VERY different car than the 991.
That said, it is simple physics... you can apply it to anything really...increase pressure on a bottle of Champagne, a gas pocket, motorcycle engine, explosives etc. etc. and the result (although highly different in factual outcome) will have the same "characteristics" (to varying degrees) on both the sound emitted and the force released... it will be higher, louder, sharper and overall would be perceived as more "violent"... something you don't just hear but "feel".
(as far as you can "feel" a higher pressure from a bottle of Champagne... that one would be "pending intake" ).

But like you said it's not cheap (especially in Canada it will set ya back 23K incl. the price increase for the PDK and sport steering wheel in combo with the X-51) but you get the PSE and sport chrono included so in the end it'll be about 17K...
Only you can decide if you think it's worth it for you.

 

Completely agree, as I think it is a personal decision - just wanted to give my reasons for the choice. Don't get me wrong I really love the PDK transmission.

As for your health, I am glad you are feeling better. I look forward to you getting your new baby because I am sure it will make you feel a whole lot better.

 

Thanks!
Yep when it comes to these cars there really isn't a "bad" choice among them just personal preferences.
They are all good... hell they are all amazing!

 

Snowczar is not waiting so patiently! So far I've driven (in my dreams or while wide awake antagonizing over the long lead time for the car) virtually every trip I'm going to take the X51 on this coming year and every show n shine I'm going to enter. Fortunately when I really need a Porsche fix I can take the TT out for a run. We're keeping that car as my wife's "TOY" car.

The only change to my driving plans made over the winter was that the new car, rather than being a daily driver is going to be a garage queen. On learning the new car will open the third radiator when I select Sport Mode thus taking even longer to warm up I and my home/office drive is only .8 mile I decided to keep my 2012 BMW 650i Cab (with Dinan Stage 2) as the daily driver, especially in the non summer months.

John in Vancouver

 

I will take this one .
Agreed, outside of NA, MT is far more common for rest of world.
Best dual clutch on the market? In the same price range? I have not try out S-tronic on the new R8, but I am sure the F1 on 458 is like butter that melts in your mouth

 

Ahem... I didn't actually say "best dual clutch on the market" nor "in the same price range" although... damn, that second one I should have!

I just find that the new PDK is very unique in it's characteristics and therefore can't be compared to other great systems like in the SLS or even the the F458... that said although the 458 is in a totally different price point I'd say it's probably the closest in terms of character and feel to the PDK (I've tried anyway).

OK, first... the 458 used too catch on fire soooo keep your mouth away from anything hot!!

Re "smack down"...
I preferred the gated Ferrari manuals by far over the F1 transmission in the 360 and the also the 430 (although F1 was an improvement)... untill the F458 that is but that too (as the 991) has become a highly digitized car.
So I'd say it's very much like the 996 and 997 (tiptronic sucked!) but the first generation PDK in the 997.2 was not bad... not good enough to give up the MT but then again that was a completely different car compared to the 991.

Although PDK clearly outperforms the MT I'd never say one is "better" than the other simply because it's such a personal thing... like big breast, little breast... perky breast, fake breast, gigantic slap me in the face breast...all though I have my preference... I LOVE 'M ALL!

 

LOL I know what you mean re; patience!
What's you build completion date again?

 

That is way too funny! I see the meds is not effecting you at all ! How did we get from PDK, FI, S-Tronic to gigantic slap me in the face *****?

Fiery 458 is the first year no cost option. I only get to test drive the gen. one pdk twice, can't say how good/bad it is. SLS dual clutch is pretty good, have to go test drive the GT SLS soon. 458 F1 is not definitely twice as good as PDK, but it is a completely different car. And I am with you on this one - I love them all!

 

I'll write some more in a couple days.... Just got back from Zuffenhausen which is about a 3 hour drive from where I live. It was absolutely great ! The car drives wonderful. Here is a preliminary picture taken in the expedition department. Don't know how to add more here.....

 

Stopped by my local P-Car Dealer today becuase my sales person let me know they got there first allocation of 4S's delivered. Been dieing to see it up close to see how much wider the back end looks. It is Wider (We all know this), but IMO, much more subtle than I thought, based on how the 997 models compared. Here is a picture of a C2S and C4S side by side. I wish they weren't staggard for better comparison. Sorry for the lousy iPhone Pics.


I thought these pictures were kind of cool because they allow you to see 3 different wheel styles at the same time.



Lastly, I noticed, they modified the Side Grills in front of the radiators (Black Plastic Slats) on the left and right side of the standard front end. Might be hard to see in the picture, but it is 1 piece in the shape of a "C"now, rather than 2. No big deal, but a change I noticed.