Imagine being totally, hopelessly in love with a person. Every minute you spend, every word you exchange, every step you dance, every time you look at them across the room is a pleasure. You fit, in personality and body. You have an awareness that, whether it makes sense or not, this is a person with whom you belong. And yet you know that attempting to live together would drive you completely insane.
That's what our year in this Porsche has been like. I drive it and think, "This is the perfect sports car. It is what all sports cars have aimed at since the invention of the sports car. Why drive anything else?" It will cruise rock-steady with its toes just over the three-digit line, guided simply by two fingers lightly on the wheel. It's fast--even the guys down the hall who test tuned turbo cars like it. The brakes work. The steering is perfect. It handles very, very well. The exhaust is a world-class baritone. I'm sure the hairs on my neck tickle, but I hardly have time to notice when driving. When it's right, the Porsche has neither fault nor superior as transportation for one or two people.
Then there are the times it hasn't worked. The engine required replacement at 6,118 miles. That was surprising, but apparently Porsche was prepared to deal with it, because just a few days were required for the R&R. Then the boss hogged the car for another 2,000-mile break-in period, keeping the revs below 4200. The old engine was taken to Germany and inspected, and Porsche eventually relayed that the trouble was a failed auxiliary shaft bearing.
When the Carrera needed the front bumper replaced (inattention on the part of said boss), weeks were required to obtain the necessary parts. When the car was rear ended, it was absent for a full eleven weeks due to the combination of inadequate damage assessment and planning on the part of the technicians, and the fact that none of the required parts seemed to be available in North America. Carrying a parts inventory of just filters and brake pads must boost Porsche's boasted profitability, but surely the long-term value of customer satisfaction must carry some weight on a well-considered balance sheet.
Though visually as good as new, our loved one hasn't seemed quite the same since it came home. The rear struts were replaced during the repair, but they are reduced in effect enough that the car responds with less than its typical smoothness to changes of throttle setting in a turn, and it feels jiggly on the highway. With just 19,000 miles and change on the car, and theoretically fewer on the dampers themselves, I can only guess whether the problem is faulty installation or replacement parts failing to perform as original. When shifting into second gear hard enough to chirp the tires, there is a clunk from the rear of the car that I have not isolated to suspension or driveline.
When spending theoretical happy dollars on this car, owning the newest Porsche makes sense. But imagine making payments on an $82,000 vehicle and being able to drive it for less than nine months out of 12. Imagine the cost of having a suitable replacement vehicle to drive during the down times. Granted, the original causes of most of the shop time had nothing to do with the vehicle itself, but the support network, in our case, failed to deliver a satisfactory experience. If I had spent my own money, I would be very upset. I would think long and hard before I kept this car, but if I did that thinking from behind the wheel, it would be very, very difficult to let it go.
There are, actually, a few changes I would make to the 911 to make it perform even better. The car has a slight "heavy wheel" feel, despite Porsche's dramatic reduction of wheel weight on the 18-in. package for 2002. Lightweight, forged wheels are the easiest part to fit, and wheels are probably the first things I would change on the car. Limited availability and high prices for wheels that fit the car correctly are the only obstacles that would deter me. At speeds one had best not publicly admit to, aerodynamic stability can become interesting. I was on less than perfectly smooth pavement when I experienced it, certainly, but it made me think I might sacrifice the ability to not worry about parking barriers and sidewalks for a discrete front lip spoiler.
The 911 GT3 and GT2 have solid bearings in place of the suspension bushings. They don't increase road noise much but lead to quicker responses and more accurate control of suspension movement by the springs and dampers. If you're really serious about handling, get these. You should be able to source them from a variety of Porsche performance houses; Performance Products also carries a version under the Weltmeister brand, with a warning that they may be noisy for street driving. I am reluctant to reduce ride height and suspension travel on a car as aggressively suspended as the 911. However, H&R coilover suspension is O.E. on the GT3 and thus seems like a good place to begin shopping when one decides it's time to replace worn stock dampers. None of these changes is more than a light polishing of a clear jewel.
The 911 is a great car most of the time. If it were superior transportation all the time, it would be nearly perfect. We'll miss it terribly when it's gone.