- Sep 1, 2005
- 704
Ah, there's no place like home after extended wandering. I kind of feel that way about the GT community and this Forum. Some of the old timers around this joint may recognize my username from the early days. I bought a spankin' new GT back in '06, and kept it for nearly 7 years and 23,000 miles. I was besotted with the car, and it became the benchmark against which I judged many of the other exotics I owned during that time.
I sold the car in a daft pursuit of a McLaren P1, which never panned out. I thereafter drowned my sorrows with some other incredible cars, including, among many others, these two beauties:
I mention these cars not only to show off how awesome I am, but also to give some context as to what just happened: I done bought myself another GT. And no, it ain't the new one, it's a late '05 with a whopping 800 miles on it. Funny what can happen to a guy while innocently wandering around Jonesboro, Arkansas.
So, after owning these paddle shifted, launch controlled, pin-your-ears-back, carbon fiber wonders, why would a serial car buyer retrograde to a 10 year old GT? The answers are simple, but man did I spend a fortune to figure them out:
1. The GT is a known quantity; it is what it is and it ain't gonna change. The new GT, thankfully, goes in a completely different direction than the old. Cool, yes, but different. This makes the "old" GT even more desirable to me. It has stood the test of time nicely. I still dig the styling and especially that it so perfectly evokes the Mark 1. When I see one on the road (almost never) I still turn around and follow it for a few blocks like a goofball groupie. When you buy the latest Ferrari, it's cool. One year later, you own the latest outdated Ferrari. Oh, and if you DARE to put any miles on it, you have shot its value in the head. I sold my first GT after loving on it for 7 years and 23k miles and actually made money. I asked my wife to carefully document the moment, as it was a once in lifetime event.
2. The GT is the perfect combination of American Hot Rod and exotic performance. I don't think there's a car that compares in this regard. I Whippled my last car, and for this one I'm adding a little Heffner TT action. I predict that when we are done, it will produce power which is "adequate" as Mr. Bentley used to say. All this fun for significantly less money than the cars I've been driving recently.
3. I miss shifting my OWN gears. Yea, the paddle shifts are certainly faster, and at the track there is no substitute. I've owned at least 10 paddle shifters, and there is no debating their efficiency. I'm also sick of them. I've got a 991 GT3 with an exquisite PDK in it. When I want to paddle shift, I can scratch that itch quite nicely.
4. I can have service performed on the GT without selling a kidney. Really, in comparison to my McLaren LT, it's mechanically quite simple. Can you imagine an out-of-warranty repair on a McLaren or Ferrari? I can. As I have noted before, I'd sooner wipe on a big gob of Jalepeno-laced Preparation H than own an exotic after the warranty expires.
5. I took my prior GT to the Mojave Magnum. I went 210. I'm STILL bragging about it. I have yet to drive a car that produces the effortless, rock solid speed of a GT. I can't imagine what the thing will feel like with Twin Honkin' Turbos on it. Gettin' misty just thinking about it.
So, as Samwise Gamgee said...
"Well, I'm back".
I sold the car in a daft pursuit of a McLaren P1, which never panned out. I thereafter drowned my sorrows with some other incredible cars, including, among many others, these two beauties:
I mention these cars not only to show off how awesome I am, but also to give some context as to what just happened: I done bought myself another GT. And no, it ain't the new one, it's a late '05 with a whopping 800 miles on it. Funny what can happen to a guy while innocently wandering around Jonesboro, Arkansas.
So, after owning these paddle shifted, launch controlled, pin-your-ears-back, carbon fiber wonders, why would a serial car buyer retrograde to a 10 year old GT? The answers are simple, but man did I spend a fortune to figure them out:
1. The GT is a known quantity; it is what it is and it ain't gonna change. The new GT, thankfully, goes in a completely different direction than the old. Cool, yes, but different. This makes the "old" GT even more desirable to me. It has stood the test of time nicely. I still dig the styling and especially that it so perfectly evokes the Mark 1. When I see one on the road (almost never) I still turn around and follow it for a few blocks like a goofball groupie. When you buy the latest Ferrari, it's cool. One year later, you own the latest outdated Ferrari. Oh, and if you DARE to put any miles on it, you have shot its value in the head. I sold my first GT after loving on it for 7 years and 23k miles and actually made money. I asked my wife to carefully document the moment, as it was a once in lifetime event.
2. The GT is the perfect combination of American Hot Rod and exotic performance. I don't think there's a car that compares in this regard. I Whippled my last car, and for this one I'm adding a little Heffner TT action. I predict that when we are done, it will produce power which is "adequate" as Mr. Bentley used to say. All this fun for significantly less money than the cars I've been driving recently.
3. I miss shifting my OWN gears. Yea, the paddle shifts are certainly faster, and at the track there is no substitute. I've owned at least 10 paddle shifters, and there is no debating their efficiency. I'm also sick of them. I've got a 991 GT3 with an exquisite PDK in it. When I want to paddle shift, I can scratch that itch quite nicely.
4. I can have service performed on the GT without selling a kidney. Really, in comparison to my McLaren LT, it's mechanically quite simple. Can you imagine an out-of-warranty repair on a McLaren or Ferrari? I can. As I have noted before, I'd sooner wipe on a big gob of Jalepeno-laced Preparation H than own an exotic after the warranty expires.
5. I took my prior GT to the Mojave Magnum. I went 210. I'm STILL bragging about it. I have yet to drive a car that produces the effortless, rock solid speed of a GT. I can't imagine what the thing will feel like with Twin Honkin' Turbos on it. Gettin' misty just thinking about it.
So, as Samwise Gamgee said...
"Well, I'm back".
