Go drive them.

 

Here's my take, and I'm going to be completley honest. I know both cars well as my daily is an 01 tt (with stage 1 kit...intake, chip, exhuast, plus intercoolers). My dad's "fun" car is an 07 C4S Targa. I love his car, particularly the interior (full leather black). I also love the exterior, which is hands down better looking than the standard 996 but in my opinion about as stunning as the 996 tt (just a bit freshened up). I also like how "charismatic" the engine feels. It is more "chipper" if that makes sense, and revs freer than my turbo, is easier to shift quickly, and feels more screwed together (much of this has to do with the age of my car and the fact it has 60k miles).

With all that said, every time I drive my dad's car, I can't help feeling disappointed with the power. And, I'm not exactly a power junky, I loved my "lesser" porsches a great deal (boxster, boxster s, 99 996), and honestly, if my circumstances were such that I would need to jump back to a 1997 boxster, I would still consider myself a very lucky guy). You would probably NEVER feel like this if you got the 997 (I know my dad doesn't), but boy, when you get used to the hyperdrive in the turbo cars, its hard to feel satisfied with a lesser level of power.

Finally, one thing that has not been mentioned here is teh stoutness of the turbo engine. I will admit that the turbo engine has much more going on in terms of complexity, and for that reason is a bit more maintenance intensive. However, the GT1 block in the turbo is widely regarded as one of Porsche's best and most reliable production engines ever, with its forged pistons, etc.... This is the reason you can mod the crap out of these cars without necessarily having to crack the engine.

In summary, both are great cars, it just depends on what you want. Hope this helps. Scott.

 

very helpful, tks scott

 

I have a 996 Turbo now which I am very happy with and I previously had a 997 C4S before. While I admit the turbo's power is addictive, I agree with Scott; the 997 C4S felt very tight out of the box and in sport mode was plenty fast. And the wide rear end with an aerokit looks incredible. It's really a tough call. If you are addicted to the turbo horsepower go for the 996 Turbo. With the 997 C4S you will get a very refined interior, widebody exterior, great stereo, and all the other goodies. They are both great cars.

 

I like my tt...and the power is awesome....some 996's actually look great. The 997 is more audi for sure.

JB