Why you would pay the £10k extra for a base model 992 911?

In this video Jonny struggles to work out why you would pay the £10k extra for a base model 992 911, or the £35,000 extra to join the back of the queue for the Cayman GT4 RS (released on the day of this shoot at the LA Autoshow) when the naturally aspirated, manual gearboxed GT4 is such an exhilarating and satisfyingly simple car to live with.

The GT4 uses an adapted version of the 911 992 3.0 block, bored out and without the turbocharging. It delivers 420PS (414bhp) and 420nm of torque, but above 4500rpm – right around to 8000rpm is where the difference is felt. You can order the GT4 as a 6spd manual or 7spd PDK, whereas the RS can only be ordered with the latter 2 pedal set up. The GT4 has 50% more downforce than the previous 3.8 GT4 (which was manual only) and is quicker around that big green hell German toll road than the Carrera GT V10 of 2004. It’s as quick as the 997 911 GT3 4.0, which was launched 10 years ago and is probably worth double most of our houses by now.

So at £75k you are being offered Cayman practicalities, balance and semi-balljointed suspension/ giant 380mm brakes taken almost directly from the GT3 911. Yet GT3s are far more expensive. And how badly do you want that 2+2 seating arrangement? The manual GT4 is 1mph faster than the PDK equipped version, but 0.5 sec down o. 0-62. Can you feel it? No. Does seat time in the GT4 make Jonny feel like this is every bit what you’d want from a performance, naturally aspirated sports Porsche? Absolutely. The RS has extra lairy styling, extra lightness and extra power but you have to question whether we really need it. Especially when the price point with this car as tested is so…. well… Bargainous. Relatively speaking.

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