2005 Gt3??
 

Well, I am being offered a 2005 GT3 with low milage, but the thing is I still love my boxster and not sure if this is worth the upgrade at all....

I have limited knowledge about GT3, so I am wondering if you guys could help. My questions:
1. Does it handle like boxster?
2. How's the mpg compare to the boxs? I don't really care about mpg but it is good to know whether I need to fill gas in every stop or not.
3. Yeah it has more hp, but does it worth adding about $60K? My boxs is 2004 with 9900km (about 6000 miles?) and in super excellent condition, which I need to trade it in IF I bite their offer.

I am sure it would be a great car, but it is not a convertible!!! Food for thought.

It has sunroof, but yeah nothing beats convertible :cool:

Do a test drive of the GT3. It is the closest thing Porsche makes to a full-blown race car that could, possibly, be driven on the street.
Race cars, however, generally make poor street cars.

Gt3 IS a race car that is street legal. It is NOT comfortable nor civilzed as compared to the Box.

It will have higher repair and maint costs.

It will eat rear tires at 5K per bunch AND they are expensive tires.

It will cost more to insure.

It will get less MPG than the Boxster.

It will likely be harder to sell.

You will not find an aftermarket warranty available.

Is this sufficient or should I add to the list?

Caveat Emptor!

if this is even an option, which it obviously is, because you are considering it. i personally couldnt afford it, so i can't consider it. take it!!!!!! i just can't justify spending another $60,000 on a car. the car is amazing, and rare. a tuner car at its finest. can't touch it.

the only problem is that this car is a 2005, so you should expect problems, because it is in its first year of production. not sure if there were really big changes from the previous GT3's. but that might be the only problem.

my next porsche will defenitly be a GT3 or the 2007 turbo with a push button turbo boost. i'm thinking when i'm in my 40's. which is about 12 years from now...lol

done

GT3 = the purest driving experience you will ever partake in (that can be driven on the street legally)

This shouldn't even be a thought......buy it!

I don't think they came with a sunroof....better double check that one....I'm not sure.

They'll get less MPG...prob around 15 mpg-19MPG or so compared to the Boxster.

KRZ

Sweet Ride!! I thought the 'new' version of the GT3 was for 2006 model year, expected to come out later this summer. So is this the new version or the 2005 would be based on the old version (which wouldn't have the interior upgrades etc.. that went into the standard 911 and Boxster). The 'new' GT3 starts at $105,000, so not sure how you would get it for $60,000.

Either way it's a great car that wants to be on the track. Not sure I would buy one unless I was planning to do some track time.

Here is a link to a 2005 GT3 available on ebay. As I expected it does have the old look headlights and interior etc.... But still looks sweet!

Note it is alot more than $60,000.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2005-PORSCHE-911-GT3-ONLY-5-000-MILES_W0QQitemZ160003088205QQihZ006QQcategoryZ1015 6QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Get to know your Boxster very very well before even considering this car as your fun toy. Its not a car to be driven frequently or daily driven at all.
Lots of power and its not an easy car to drive quickly. That's why the GT3 owners love it.
I hear there is not much difference for the money between the 2004 GT3 and 2005 GT3.
If you want some big power and want the easy driving/comfortable frequent driving experience look no further than a nice second hand 911 Turbo.
A true exotic that can now be had for less than $70,000.

1. Does it handle like boxster?

No, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. It's a rear-engine car and that comes with different handling characteristics. Really, REALLY good handling characteristics mind you. But with all that weight right over the rear tires, it's a whole different set of physics there.

2. How's the mpg compare to the boxs? I don't really care about mpg but it is good to know whether I need to fill gas in every stop or not.

I don't know about the GT3, but I saw a brand new 2007 911 Turbo at the dealership today and it was rated at 18/25. So decent.

3. Yeah it has more hp, but does it worth adding about $60K? My boxs is 2004 with 9900km (about 6000 miles?) and in super excellent condition, which I need to trade it in IF I bite their offer.

That is up to you. If you do trade up, you will be exiting the sports car arena and enter supercar territory (they RACE these things in LeMans after all). The elite of the elite if you will. And this car is so much more than extra horsepower. You will be able to take down ANYTHING that you cross paths with.

Is it worth it? As someone said, the GT3 is about the purest driving machine you can get (with the exception IMO of the Ariel Atom 2: Nothing but performance on that one). You'll be giving up your convertible (and some major $$), but you'll be gaining just about everyone here's dream car. So that might be all you need.

It is certainly not my dream car for a car that is intended to be driven on the street. I have ridden in one and I can tell you, not a very kind experience at all.

If I was racing, well the GT3 and the Z06 are at the top of the list.

Choose wisely!

one thing that you must consider.........

i think most of us here had a choice to buy a 911. if it wasnt a brand new one it was a used one for in and around the same price of the boxster....

for example, i paid about $63,000 taxes in, for my boxster. i could of bought a used 911 fairly easy. buttttt i chose the boxster for many reasons.

meaning that you bought the boxster for a reason. which you must consider...seems like you could of bought a 911 also, if you are considering a GT3.

there is a considerable h.p difference, which to me does not really make a difference, 200hp or 400hp.....on our streets 200 hp is very good, and 400hp is useless.

when i drive or look at my boxster i feel like i will never ever need to drive a 911 or for that matter a gt3. the boxster is the perfect sports car..........which you must consider.

and brucelee points out very good things, in that this car is not really a daily driver!!!!

threpwood

lets be clear with something, 1st you can afford the GT3 ,ie buying and upkeep!
2nd you do not want to listen to all the old rags telling you not to buy it even if all their points are totally right!!
3rd you have to listen to all the mad lunatics who think you should buy it because....well I am one of them and if I had the opportunity, you know the answer, one last thing just come back to this forum to tell us all what it is like!!

Why not keep it for a year or so and sell it? Then go back to a Boxster if you dont like it?
I can personally say after being in one and driving along side one that those things are damn intimidating. When I drove along the side one of one,listening to the exhaust note,feeling the guy gun it on the on ramp(literally),"oh cra*,thats awesome" isnt something I will forget anytime soon. But at the same time I didn't think anything less of my Boxster,just how darn amazing GT3s are. A GT3 will make you popular at PCA meetings as well,almost as popular as the guys with Carrera GT and GT2s. Make sure its the decision that YOU want. Best of luck!

You guys are making this too hard for the guy, If you can buy a 2005 GT3, surely you can afford a used boxster as a 2nd car.

All of your advice and comments are very helpful for me in order to consider the car. Keep it coming!

I can probably handle the upkeep of gt3, but I don't plan on keeping 2 porches as I would probably never drive the other. My current boxster is almost a garage queen anyway.

Currently my logic says no on the gt3 (thanks to Bruce), but my heart says yes....

I will get a chance to test drive it first and if the hp is too much for the streets here, I would probably just skip it. Included are the pics of the gt3 that is sitting on the car dealer so you can see it more clearly. It has about 9K km (or about 6000 miles).

The butt
 

Pics of the butt

DO IT! DO IT!! DO IT!!! :dance:

If you really wanted a GT3 you would already have bought it and you wouldn't give a shizzle what other people said. Mostly because you wouldn't hear them.

dude, if money grows on a tree, sure I would already have bought it :rolleyes:

I just don't want to make bad decision in this, and stuck with it. It's not like buying a car with 30 days money back guarantee, so getting opinions from people that KNOWS Porches are probably a smart idea.

" so getting opinions from people that KNOWS Porches are probably a smart idea."

I would agree. It is amazing how free folks are with other people's money!

Good luck on your decision.

:)

The one I drove was very loud in the most awesome way. That is what I meant by "you wouldn't hear them"

I would drive it before I got opinions. You have no idea online about who knows what about anything. Let your butt(as in seat of pants) and heart decide if you want it. Then let BruceLee hit you with reality(the list above) and you can decide if you need it.


Would it have been better if I said "If you wanted it, it woud have let you know"


I wish I could rent a GT3 or be in a fractional ownership. it is a very tightly focused car, so a lot of money for one purpose.

Not to be Mr. Knowitall here, but that picture is not that of
a 997 GT3.

Note several things:

The sunroof
The wheels
The exhaust

And last, but not least, they are not out yet.

And it certainly is not an '05, which was a 996 based car.

Hope this helps...

-Mark

..........

Dealer explained that it is an "euro version". I'm gonna test drive it tomorrow and see how it goes.

The center radiator vent, in front of the trunk cover is also missing.

THere is a nice article on the GT3 in "christophorus 320".

..........

hey you only live once right? :p

The dealer explained that previous owner made some "modifications" and insisted that it is a gt3 from its VIN (ho humm). From your pics and description looks like they may have made a mistake...

Test drove it today, LOTS of power all right...but, now I know why you said that it's not a daily driven car ;)

The price quoted has increased to near $70K (due tax) + my box, so I don't think I'm gonna get it unless I'm going to track frequently.

Thanks for all of your advice. It's good to know things in advance before making any commitment.

That IS NOT a 2005 GT3

The '05 GT3 was a carryover of the 996, the GT3 in the 997 body style is just now appearing as an '07. Also, I don't think they ever put sunroofs in GT3's.

Get the VIN and get a certificate of authenticity from Porsche if you are serious about this car.

At best that's a base 997 (325 hp, about 70 hp shy of a GT3 and a few hundred pounds heavier) with the GT3 front and the Aerokit wing and side skirts. It's a hack job, I would stay away from it.

This sale has SCAM written all over it... "Modified Euro car" my ass. I can't believe they are trying to pass that off as an 05 GT3. That's not even a mistake a Porsche dealer could make, they are straight up trying to rip you off.

I have been looking alot at 911's lately for myself and that car is a Carrera S with a GT3 bumper and spoiler. So it has 355 hp and would logically feel fast compared to the Boxster. Nice ride but definately not a GT3.

If you look at other Carrera S's for sale, a well optioned 2005 with low miles (around 5k) will cost you between $80-$85. Not sure what your Box is worth but the price sounds high if it is worth more than $10K.

Keep in mind that since this is the more 'civilized' Carrera many of the negative points brought up earlier related to the GT3 don't apply.

If I understand this situation correctly, this is a Porsche dealer that is trying to sell you this "GT3." If so, this whole situation is really wierd. First off, the dealer certainly should know what a GT3 is and what it is not.

If they don't, they are morons. If they are trying to scam you, they are morons and are risking their business license in the bargain.

Let us know what you decide.

That aint no GT3...

Indeed it is not a GT3, it is a 997S (Exhaust tips, red calipers). I wouldn't go as far as calling it a hack job, it has the OE Aero Kit not some home made crap.

Agreed, that is one Beautiful car but not a GT3, it has the GT3 look aoreikit.

Yeah that is sooo a fake. Even if it was a euro GT3, it should still have the GT3 rims. Nobody in there right mind would swap the rims for Carrera rims. GT3 rims have a unique spoked style, and are probably the best looking stalk rims. I've tried so hard to locate these rims, but nobody sells them used. Cause nobody removes them to buy carrera rims........or aftermarket rims for that matter.

fake

one of the lads here is on his secong gt3, the first was black but his new one looks very similar to the one in your picture, except......yellow calipers
bargain the price down if you want a carrera S there is your chance!!

good luck

Apples and Oranges man. A Box is a very practical DD for me. My jaw would drop at the idea of swapping it for a GT3. Yeah, maybe I would do it – for some of the same reasons why I joined the Army so many years ago, or married my wife – or jumped from an Acura CLS to a Box in the first place. This is not an intelligent conversation to have. There is no practical reason to make this trade, it is all about passion. But then again, there is no practical reason to buy a Box instead of an Accord – just educate yourself as to what you are doing – this may be an even bigger jump than what landed you driving Porsches in the first place.