Recently I momentarily contemplated trading in my ’09 C4S for a 2011 Carrera GTS after reading all the recent reviews on that car on every Porsche magazine. Then I turned here for advice to see if anyone here would make a compelling case for the switch. The jury unanimously rejected my idea. One of the members (Adias) even sent a detailed and very thoughtful response as a PM. I came to my senses and felt that my thinking was flawed. I made up my mind to stay put. I had spent too much time, effort and money all these 14 months of ownership devoted to TLC for my 997.2 C4S which has been my daily driver. I just could not bear to see her change hands. Recently with the Cayenne purchase and prior to that with the 3.2’s entry into the garage, I did ignore my C4S for sometime. Today when I came back from work in my 3.2 and parked it besides my 997.2, she spoke to me in several ways. She made me realize (and also made me feel really bad) that although she has been with me for the longest time compared to my 3.2 and Cayenne S, she has never been given it’s due credit or was never photographed with the enthusiasm and pride as my other two Porsches even though she was the reason I fell in love with Porsches. I told my wife and kids that I needed some one on one time with my 997.2. My wife and kids even said “really the 997 ?”. I said yes, grabbed my camera and took off for an extended drive today pushing PDK and the suspension settings to it’s limits after a nice warm up of 20 minutes. She rewarded my camera with some striking poses reiterating the fact that she was elegance personified in metal, leather and glass and simultaneously rewarded my senses with her tactility and time and again reminding me what the four-wheel-drive safety net was all about. During this process of one on one interaction I hit 10,000 miles on my C4S. What the first 9950 miles did not teach me … these last 50 miles did. IT IS ONE AMAZING CAR....ONE THAT I HOPEFULLY NEVER GIVE AWAY.

Here is the stat sheet for her first 10,000 miles.

Mods so far:

-Ventureshield paint protection film around all painted portions of the car. Reasons for this are multifold. Too many “nice” cars have been keyed at the hospital parking lot (ya they can always break the glass), incredible amount of loose gravel on the road four months a year during winter and frequent travel over mountain passes during winter time. I have been taking very good care of the film with regular washes and Metropolitan detail Benjamin (who is a highly skilled plastic “film” surgeon) who installed the film and John have their crew apply sealant free of charge every three to four months. The optical clarity is still as good as it was on day 1 of install 9000 miles ago.

-35 % tint with 3M color stable (not really a tint guy carport at work and
summers get really intense). Great job again at Metropolitan detail. I would have loved to have a 50% tint but her did not carry it at that time. I wish I had done the 50% as even the 35% IMO detracts the look to some extent.

-Clear side markers.

Oil consumption: One quart every 1400 miles.

Untoward events:

1) Windshield replaced due to a rock chip related crack.
2) A Lexus with rear parking sensors backed into my rear bumper and wheel. No body damage. Minor scratch in the rear wheel. I fought hard with that driver’s insurance and got a new replacement wheel as I was worried about clear coat wearing off with time even with a quality refinish. The bumper’s paint was re-sprayed for a dime sized area and then entire bumper refinished with clear coat.

Things that need attention (haven’t found the time to go to my dealer):

Creaking noise when going on uneven bumpy roads noted only at very slow speeds especially when temps are below 40 F.

Wind noise heard from driver side window when travelling above 75 miles/hr
not that I go that fast. Not sure if it predated the tint job.

Things I would love to change:

-Steering wheel: Not liking the thin caliber of the wheel. Would love something beefier. ? Techart or OEM sport steering wheel w/ proper paddles.

-Not really a big fan of aftermarket exhausts, or any mods for that matter but would love a little more grunt to the exhaust. ? FVD brombacher street exhaust ? Tubi.

I would appreciate your thoughts on my post, pictures (taken during this afternoon's one on one session) and suggestions on my questions.

 

I'm blessed with endless twisties in my neck of the woods ..

 

...and the milestone

 

GTS lol

 

Thanks for sharing your story and the great pics....I too have a 2009 C4S...it is the same love affair and I am not big on mods either. How much did the full coverage on the film run you....I did the front half of my nose and mirrors.

 

Nice pics! Thanks for the narrative about the paint protection film. I think I am going to get the hood covered, and just leave the bumper alone (it already has a couple rock chips in it ) I figure full hood coverage looks better than a line on the finish halfway up...

 

Car looks absolutely stunning . It makes me want to start taking pictures of my cars again . Good call in your decision to keep it .

Funny that you mention both the Tubi and FVD exhausts . My Turbo has the Tubi race and the FVD is in my 997.2 . In terms of quality both are extremely well made .

I chose the FVD and selected the quiet version . It is a complete exhaust which replaces the cats, headers , and mufflers. The FVD software added some zip and cleared the initial cel message . I love the system for this 997.2 car .
I also lowered the car with Bilsteins and felt that the overall road feel and crisp sound complements the modest Hp gain that i notice . Now keep in mind that up until I started moddig the 997.2S I was accustomed to my Turbo where the gains were HUGE . That car went from a somewhat fast but boring luxury type car into a hard core monster with face smearing acceleration .

If you left your car the way it is .. it does save money . You may decide to wait just to see what the new 991 has to offer .

 

Good call, save your money and buy some mods for it, your C4S and you will be much happier with the money saved. Great pics, thanks for sharing. I didn't know we have so many photographers on this forum.

 

I also have a 2009 C4S and absolutely love it. Thanks for your post.

FYI my only mod is the newest FVD cat-back exhaust system, the Street-Sport PDK system (includes both side mufflers and a merging X-pipe) and it sounds fantastic. Good for +18hp/+15tq. I highly recommend it.

I also use about one quart of oil every 1400 miles. What is curious about that is that my wife's 2009 Boxster S (with the new 3.4L DFI engine) doesn't use a drop of oil and both cars were broken-in exactly the same. Same new DFI design, different displacement, and very different oil consumption. Oh well.

Great descision to stay with the C4S. Enjoy.

 

Beautiful pics Op and nice decision to keep her.

I had Tubi on both of my 09 C4S & 09 C2S cab but if I had to do it over again, I'd pick the FVD's route because it sounds much more aggressive.

Happy driving...

 

Also happy with your choices. Congrats on getting back in touch with her.

 

This is a follow-up to the introductory post on this thread where I contemplated to trade in my C4S for a GTS. Just test drove the GTS this weekend. Yes, it is the best package for someone who likes the alcantara, center locking wheels coz you get the wide-body look (which everyone may not want or like) and the powerkit essentially for free, but during the test drive, for not even a split second did I get the feeling that it is much different than my 997.2 C4s. Yes it is lighter but for those who have not driven a C4S, you really should drive this second gen "all-paw" variant to see how close it compares to the other lighter, rear wheeled 997.2s in the way it drives. I am such a novice when it comes to driving, I certainly did not see the extra hp or the subtle difference in the way the torque is delivered on the powerkit. So I thought I would share my experience (take it for whatever it is worth) and some pics during my three hour drive to the dealer. I am sure you will like these two shots. I am not a big fan of the tint on a sports car but necessity demanded it. Summers are brutal here and car gets a good amount of exposure to sunlight.

 

Your car looks great. Love the tequipment pdk lever/e-brake.

Your center console is SCREAMING for a leather covered PDK shift surround though.

 

Really glad you posted this update.
I just made a deal on a C4S Cab which is still on the boat. Been having second thoughts about should have gotten a GTS, or waited for the 991...
First Porsche.
First sports car in 35 years unless you count the mini... :-)

Yes we are a little anxious!

John

 

Tell us a bit more about your winter tire and wheel package...what make, size and cost etc...tks