and currently drive a 997.2s as my daily. I can tell you the two cars are nothing alike. Driving the Ferrari was an experience every time you drove it, at first this is great but after a while you find that you don't want an experience every time you drive. The 911 is a car, not an experience. Don't get me wrong, you can and will have amazing experiences with the car, but from day to day it will function well with none of the exotic attitude you have to put up with. I enjoyed my Ferrari for a short time, but I have fallen in love with my Porsche.

Performance wise I think you will find the 997.1 a step up and the 997.2 is not even comparable, but as others have said the noise will be a let down. Unfortunately for you the noise of just about anything else in the world is going to be a let down.

Good luck to you with what ever you go with.

 

well if you really must have that sound..
http://www.automotto.org/entry/soundracers-simulator-adds-ferrari-v12-engine-sound-to-your-boring-car/

 

I wish I had one of those back in the day for my 93 honda accord.

 

a little more background... i guess the reason im looking to get rid of the fcar is I *think* i want something thats more a 'car'

a lot of my friends drive AMGs, e92's, Audis, etc. The more i think of it, i love the idea of having all the comfort of a luxury car. face it, there are a ton of faster cars out there than the 355. most luxury cars these days have similar power and handling.

my best friend drives an S5 and i love it. has similar power, just as fast, turns heads, etc... it does all this and its quiet and comfortable.

I guess the real issue is do i want to give up the experience of driving the fcar for something thats more practical, cheaper to maintain, etc

 

Curious as to why? have you test driven one?

 

yea. i had one for a week. did not like it. don't like the lines of it. the headlights are ugly. clutch had weird feeling. wicked bad turbo lag.

plus 4 of my friends have one. time to be different

 

Having owned two, I think a Ferrari can create emotional, visceral responses like no other marque.

That said, there was a time when I needed (for my own sanity) to move from the high maintenance, wildly attractive, unpredictable woman to an attractive, thoughtful, less dramatic woman that I could actually live with. Yep...less drama, fewer highs and lows....but overall, a better life. Only your own thermometer can tell you what you're ready for.

I have never gotten the sounds and feelings from a Porsche that I did from my Ferrari's. Yet, my Porsches drive well, are dependable, I can get in them and drive to the other side of the U.S. or down the coast without concern. I still miss the Ferrari's. But there are a lot of things I think I'd like to enjoy once in a while without the weight of ownership (or LTR).

 

Oh geez here we go…

There are just soooooo many options you can look at if you want to switch from a Ferrari. Like most have said, almost nothing is going to be as much of an “experience” as driving those cars. Possibly one of the most soulful brands around. But that doesn’t mean you won’t have fun in loads of other cars. Any newer pure sports car is going to perform as well if not better that the 355. Here is my short list of cars I would get into depending on the price range you are talking about:

Porsche – some type of 911 (C2S, GT3, GTS)
GT-R
Aston Martin
R8

Now those are all actual sports cars. You can look at M3, S5, AMG but those are all coupes or modified sedans and thus not a true sport car. I don’t think you will have any of the sport car finess or experience that you seem to be looking for.

All of the cars listed above have very loyal followings. Many people flip flop around and like each for different reasons. Some are cheaper to maintain than others, but all are fantastic. The Porsche is a true DRIVER experience. It takes a bit more to extract the most from it, but the reward are plenty when you learn to. The GT-R is a technical whirlwind. It will crush almost anything on the street or track in stock form for less than anything else. Although that does come at the cost of almost any prestige. Aston Martin, one of the best looking cars IMO. I have been in a few and they are just so luxurious in every way. May not be the fastest (depending on the model) but they are sweet in every other category. An R8 has to be one of the best new sports cars for the money. Looks, speed, handling…it has it all. I have been in one of those as well and it felt very nice both on the eyes and to the touch.

It really is a very hard decision. I can understand why you struggle with it. I don’t know that I would be able to let go of the Ferrari if I ever managed to get into one. My suggestion would be to explore all options. Experience each car and above all take your time with it.

 

Perhaps I can answer this way:

In Heaven, the Italians are the artists, the Germans are the engineers, the English are the diplomats, and the French are the chefs.

In Hell, the Italians are the engineers, the Germans are the artists, the English are the chefs, and the French are the diplomats.

One cannot have it both ways.

 

Porsche offers what many consider to be soul-less perfection, while Ferrari matches immense unreliability (surpassed only by Lamborghini and Peugeot) with limitless soul.

In a perfect world, I would own a Ferrari 330 GTC, but my Germanic frame will not fit, so the argument is moot.

The curvilinear roofline of the 911 series fits my height, and that's that.

 

An 07 or newer GT3 with a Tubi or FVD exhaust just might fit the bill. I'm still thinking maybe I should have gone with a GT3. Would have most likely if it hadn't been for a left leg issue.

You also mentioned the Z06. There's an ad in AutoWeek for a what appears to be a left over 2010 Z06 for I believe $64k. If you like torque they are hard to beat. Also, in the event you need a part you don't have to give up one of your parts in exchange.

 

The reason you're thinking of getting rid of the 355 is really close to my heart. I just dumped a MB G550 and took a $10k loss on it because after buying it brand new a year ago, it had a dozen trips to the shop and spent a total of a month there. I don't pay $100k+ for a car to have issues like that. And there was only one big issue where the entire car shut down while I was doing 75 on an elevated highway with no shoulders. Thankfully I was able to coast off an exit a couple of miles up (barely). The rest of it was just stupid little things that annoyed the crap out of me.

I test drove a 360 and 430 last summer when I was considering trading in my 996 Turbo, but the Porsche is just a much better car to drive on a regular basis. Maintenance costs are pretty reasonable, especially if you can do a few things yourself. And the cars are very solidly built.

Just curious, why no interest in a 996 Turbo? It's a faster, much more reliable car than your 355.

 

in a nutshell.... the looks

 

And that's how I ended up in a GT-R.

I actually started off with a 355, moved onto the 360, XKR, Vantage, R8, ZR1, Z06, 911 C2/C2SPDK/C4/C4S/TT/Cayman S/, and a few others.

Ended up with an R35 (and can't imagine any car suiting all of my requirements/needs better).

 

i know of at least 5 Gt-rs in my group of car friends lol
gf doesnt approve.

shes pushing me towards a vantage, cs2 or xk-r