[wombat7]

I will agree that the F430 and Gallardo are refined... to a point. They do not have all the high tech gadgets and stuff that you find in a current 911. They still have the raw feel of a sports car where the 911 unfortunately does not. Even Car and Driver commented on even though the interior of the 430 was luxurious and modern, it still had the raw feel of a sports car. If you compare the ride and handling of a 997 to that of a 993, you will find that the ride is softer and definately more tame. You should also find that the handling of the 997, while still spectacular is not as precise as the 993. Porsche has been forced to change its philosophy in order to survive in today's market. There is no longer a large market for the raw, unrefined pure sports car that the 993 was. People now want a sporty car that they can just putz around town in. Now granted there are still some of them that are tracked, but the majority of newer Porsches are garage queens and are not bought for the pure sports car that they were.