Disclaimer to Porsche Gods: My 2006 baby with 92k miles originally owned will still be in my garage, my younger son wants it when he's old enough to drive.

What's the deal with PDK? I'm surprised most 911 drivers now want it. I've been driving my manual 997S as a daily for about 6 years, in Bay Area traffic no less. Is anyone out there considering the 991.2 with the standard transmission?

Is this a dumb idea? Mind you, I haven't test driven either a PDK or manual in the 991.2 yet.

 

A couple random data points...

There's a thread on RL about the clutch pedal failing on manuals.
I've replaced a clutch on a manual 911 before and it was nearly $4k if memory serves.

I'm on my second PDK. It's a mixed bag - it doesn't feel the same as driving a manual (even in manual mode) but it does have Launch Control. When I'm stuck in traffic I'm really glad to have it!

 

boxers vs briefs

I've rowed for many years and now love the PDK in my 2013 C4S.

 

Drive a PDK 991.2 at least twice when you get a chance. Twice, on two different days, after giving it a good amount of thought in between.

I test drove two PDK 911s before pulling the trigger on my 7MT C2S and GTS. I enjoy rowing through the gears and it makes me smile every time I drive. PDK felt amazing and it changes the car's character in many ways. That "change" is exactly what you have to decide on.

 

Sound advice. Try before you buy, and decide for yourself. I too rowed for many years then tried PDK and love it. If you put can in manual PDK, you can control the revs and shift points.

 

I've had many 911's over the years dating back to the mid 1980"s. All were manual and I said I would never buy a PDK. Well, I did in my 991 GTS and will not go back to a manual.

 

GS997S - I would like to hear your thoughts on your choice of the PDK over the 7MT and why you would not go back to an MT. As you know from another thread, I just traded my Cayman S PDK and bought a 911 2S. My first Porsche had an MT, which I loved. The PDK is an amazing transmission and certainly outperforms my ability to shift. For me, I like the interaction with the car. Your thoughts?

 

I don't want to turn this into another my PDK is bigger than your Manual thread, so let me say I think both transmissions are great, and we are lucky to still have a choice.

There are several reasons I went PDK, and none of the below listed reasons are in order of importance to me. I thought I would never trade or sell my 997 GTS with manual. When I decided to trade it on a 991 GTS, I wanted to get something different enough that I would feel like I had actually gotten a new car/change. That is one reason I got the PDK. I am now 64 years old, and although retired and don't have to fight daily traffic, I was just a little tired of shifting after so many years. I was not particularly happy with the 7 speed manual in the 991. I am 6'1" and have size 13 shoes (not that you needed to know that) and heel and toe is not the easiest task with size 13 shoes in a cramped foot-well.

The PDK is a beautiful piece of engineering, which I appreciate very much. The speed of both up and down shifts is amazing, never a missed shift, and perfect rev matching.

I just don't see me going back to a manual. The PDK is just so advanced. As I said above, not trying to turn this into yet another PDK vs manual thread. Each owner needs to get the transmission that suits him/her the best, as long as we still have a choice.

 

GS997S - Very nice response. I am 57, still working for a few more years, and, like you, not looking for battles, just some good thoughts. My sports cars are not daily drivers, so the issues with commuting with an MT does not matter. On those days when I do take a car home, my house is only 10 minutes from my office so I am not fighting traffic. Many years ago, I had a Nissan (Datsun) Sentra MT. It was my only car and had no choice when I had to drive into the city. I would not want to go there today with an MT. At the rate MTs are disappearing, there may not be a choice in the near future. Thanks.

 

your comment reminded me of this meme. no offense intended; just thought it was funny.

 

That's is funny. There is a video out there of a guy who tries to carjack a vehicle at a gas station. It turns out the car has an MT. The carjacker gets it all of about 3 feet before he takes off when you can see the glare of the police car lights.

 

Vanilla or chocolate?
Comes down to what you like. I ordered a 991.2 with MT. PDK is amazing for automatic transmission, but when I drive my Panamera, Even in sports mode it still is an automatic. To me, driving a sports car is more engaging with a stick.... it feels like you are driving a sports car and gearing down is not the same with paddle shifters. I still don't get why they deleted MT in turbos. Sure if you're in bumper-to-bumper traffic on the 405 every day then that would be different matter.

 

I test drove both a manual and PDK 991 before i purchased my 2015 C4S. I picked the manual as i found it much more engaging to drive.

There are some odd quirks with the car however. The parking break is electronic and automatically deploys when you depress the clutch on a "steep hill". Likewise it automatically releases (in theory) when you step on the gas and release the clutch...problem is if you don't give it enough gas, the parking break will cause the car to stall, if you give the car to much gas well, you'll rearend the car ahead...it makes for unnecessary anxiety. Now the even weirder part is that if you stall the engine, it automatically restarts for you!

My main grip about the car however, would have to be the road noise. If the road is butter smooth your good, otherwise i need earplugs.

Still like the car however

 

Yeah rowed for years, my last 2 Porsches both had the MT. Now have the PDK love it, the only tranny in a TTS, but would have paid extra for it. It is not a DD at all just a weekend cruiser. You need to try it for yourself. Another kind of plus for me was that my wife, who can drive a stick but prefers not to, can drive if really needed. So far she has not, although I have offered.

 

Porsche replaced my 997.1 manual clutch under warranty at 46 months and the cost was listed as $3800. No issues with my 991 PDK SC after 45 months.

ChuckJ