In 2017, I went to the Porsche Experience Center in Atlanta. Other than my Dad’s 1984 Porsche 944, I had never driven a Porsche before. I booked two driving experiences, the 911 Turbo vs GT3 and the GT3 vs GT3RS. Both were about 1.5 hours of driving on their track with various stations including skid pads and slaloms. When I got into the Porsche GT3, I was astounded by how well the driving position of the car was designed. I felt like Porsche built this car around the driver, where other car manufacturers designed the car and then plopped a seat in it like an afterthought. You can read all about my Porsche Center Visits here. I liked Porsches before this experience, but now I loved them.
It’s around 2019 and I decided it was time. I was going to buy a GT3. Little did I know at the time, you don’t just go to the dealer and order one. You have to be given an allocation for the car from the dealer, who only receives a limited number of them each year. Also, most first time Porsche buyers can’t start with a GT3. The dealer wants you to buy other cars and establish yourself as a customer with them first. My visit to my local dealer got me put on a waiting list, with a $5000 deposit. I didn’t realize how hard it would be to try and buy this car. Sure, I could go buy a used one that is marked up over MSRP, but part of the experience for me is customizing your car and receiving the brand new car at the dealership, so a used one wasn’t an option. After some time, I got impatient and realized I wasn’t going to get that allocation, so I got my deposit back and came up with a new plan.
In 2021, the Porsche GT4 was upgraded to include a 7-speed PDK transmission and a flat six engine. I was getting impatient with the attempts to buy a GT3 and thought maybe I had a shot at this one. This car seemed like it might be easier to obtain, so I once again visited the Porsche Center in Atlanta to test drive the GT4. You can read about that here. I came back from the trip excited and called my local dealer to show my interest. I was in luck, they had just gotten an allocation for a GT4 and would sell it to me at MSRP. I immediately jumped on the chance to get the car, but I backed out when it came time for the deposit. I knew I was settling, and I knew I would just want the GT3 anyway. So I canceled the order and started calling every Porsche dealer on the east coast for a GT3 allocation. They all had similar answers such as we have none or we will put you on the waiting list. So again no luck. I was beginning to think it wasn’t meant to be.
2022 came along and COVID messed up the world. I thought car prices were bad before, but now they skyrocketed and availability dropped even more. This time, I went with a different strategy in my attempts to buy the car of my dreams. I bought my wife a 2022 Porsche Macan S. Yes, she got a Porsche before I did. I thought building some history at the dealership would get me my GT3 slot. And if I still didn’t get my car, at least my wife loved her Porsche. I continued calling different dealers from time to time, but never found an available GT3. GT3s are going for $80,000 or more over sticker price and reselling used at even higher prices.
We are now in September 2024, and I am still jealous that my wife has a Porsche and I don’t. I keep reading all the news that Porsche is shifting to EV cars in 2025. The Macan, which my wife has, is changing to all electric. Soon, Porsches 718 models, which includes the GT4, will be that way too. The 911 has already gone hybrid, so the time is near. I can feel the end of the naturally aspirated flat six with a 9,000 rpm redline soon fading away.
Let’s rewind a bit and go back to 2022 when Porsche introduced the 718 GT4 RS. RS stands for rennsport, which is German for racing. RS is a badge reserved for the highest performance models. The GT4 RS was an amazing looking car, track focused but still good for the street, aggressive styling, a perfect looking car. The best part was they put a GT3 engine in it, so it had the same 9,000 rpm redline. I had made some earlier inquiries about obtaining one, but was told it would be harder to get than a GT3, so I quickly dismissed the idea. They were selling over $100,000 over MSRP. But now in 2024 with the EV cars approaching, I decided to inquire about one again. I once again started calling all the Porsche dealers. This time, to my surprise, I found a local dealer with an allocation. An allocation that they were willing to give to me. My first question was what was the ADM (additional dealer markup) on the car. In other words, how much over MSRP will I have to pay. Luckily for me, after some negotiation, I got the ADM to a reasonable number in my mind and got the slot!
My 2025 718 GT4 RS is scheduled to arrive around Christmas this year, and I am so excited. Even with a deposit down and a delivery date confirmed, I find myself skeptical that this is even real. After the years of trying to get a Porsche, I all of a sudden have one being built, just like that. I am able to track it’s build status online and find myself checking it daily, hoping to see some progress that makes me believe this is really happening.
Here is the list of options I selected:
Color: GT Silver Metallic
Wheels: 20" 718 Cayman GT4 RS Forged Aluminum Wheels painted Silver
Interior: Leather/Race-Tex Interior in Black with Arctic Grey Stitching
Full Bucket Seats
Front Axle Lift System
Sport Chrono
Porsche Ceramic Composite Brakes (PCCB)
7-speed Porsche Doppelkupplung (PDK)
LED Headlights incl. Porsche Dynamic Light System (PDLS)
Auto-Dimming Mirrors with Integrated Rain Sensor
Sun Visors in Race-Tex
Storage Compartment Lid in Race-Tex with "PORSCHE" Logo
Fire Extinguisher
Light Design Package
Smoking Package
Luggage Net in Passenger Footwell
BOSE® Surround Sound System
Deletion of SiriusXM® Antenna
Weissach Package which includes:
Exterior:
- Exposed carbon fiber front trunk lid
- Exposed carbon fiber side air intakes and combustion air blade behind the driver and passenger windows
- Exposed carbon fiber exterior mirrors
- Exposed carbon fiber rear wing
- "PORSCHE" logo on top of the rear windshield in Dark Silver
- Titanium tailpipes in 935 look
Interior:
- Exposed carbon fiber air box and air intakes with "GT4 RS" logo in silver
- Upper section of the dashboard in Race-Tex
- Dashboard trim with "Weissach Package" logo
- Headrests embroidered with "Weissach Package" logo
And here are some of the rendered photos from Porsche’s online configuration tool.
Once I take delivery, you can expect a new post with lots and lots of pictures! Hopefully it will be a VERY Merry Christmas to me this year.