2020 S vs GTS

[ecmacan]

Thanks for all your replies! All extremely insightful.

This being my first brand new car and my first Porsche, I just wanted to be absolutely sure that I have made the right choice and not have any sort of regrets/remorses/bad tastes in my mouth etc.


The attributes/values I am looking for in my Macan is a good balance of (in order of importance): 1) comfort and convenience ; 2) residual value ; 3) styling ;4) fun in driving.

Both builds of S and GTS certainly tick all of these boxes albeit in varying degrees. To compare by criteria (please feel free to add/correct me if I have missed anything):


1) comfort and convenience

the 15mm lower standard suspension in GTS from what I hear this will provide slightly more sporty handling at a slight sacrifice of comfort/ride quality due to the steel suspension being permanently more compressed by 15mm. If the sacrifice in comfort is noticeable, I guess S would be the pick for me? (And I am certainly NOT considering the air suspension, as I prefer the steel ones with PASM)


2) residual value

I understand these things are not necessarily ‘rational’ purchases but rather emotional - but having a solid exit plan is important for me as the there is a chance that I may need to sell the vehicle a couple of years down the line.

From the replies, it sounds as though in terms of return on the overall initial outlay, there will not be a significant difference between my builds of GTS vs S (+saving of £6.4k with S now).


Would like to hear more thoughts on this please.



3) styling

Subjective. Both builds are good enough for me and I can live with either. And yes, even the silver window trims on the S look fine to me, which I think in fact go quite nicely with the silver details of the turbo wheels! There are also other cosmetic parts of S that I actually prefer over the GTS such as the standard red LED bar but I do like the look of the coloured bumpers of GTS (though I am not sure how practical they would be compared to the standard... I think they’ll be more prone to stone chips etc? Keeping the vehicle clean and not having cosmetic flaws is important to me), and again I would probably NOT have paid extra for these if I had the choice (as is the case in my S build) but would have happily taken them if they were free .

And I think I prefer the silver/grey calipers over the red as I think they go with the overall colour of the wheels and vehicle I have specc’d better, but I do admire the sporty look of the red also.


4) Fun in driving
the 2.9L v6 bi-turbo engine of GTS has extra 26 horsepower over the 3.0L v6 of S. I understand this makes 0-60 a bit faster and the GTS unit is more responsive.
Some reviewers seem to suggest that GTS has marginally ‘better’ sound.

Hard for me to say since I have not physically experienced the GTS but from the clips, I don’t think I would be too bothered about the exhaust sound. Also, I think the S has enough power and handling capabilities for me (I doubt I am good enough/experienced enough of a driver to appreciate that extra 26hp bump). Between the base and S, the power difference was quite noticeable and was a no brainer to go with S, but I am less sure between S and GTS.

After all, to me this is a fun to drive, convenient, capable SUV not a performance sports car.


As aforementioned in 1) the 15mm lower standard suspension provides more sporty handling at a small sacrifice of comfort. I think i would prefer the higher setup of S for marginally better ride than marginally sportier handling, especially given the fact that I was quite satisfied with the handling when test riding a demo S.



I think both are good propositions in their own rights. I think I have fairly good idea in terms of points 1,2 and 4 but I am still unsure which would be the better pick in terms of 3!


Thanks a lot for getting through my version of war and peace! and any further input would be greatly appreciated!

[SAC1]

Regarding

"2) residual value

I understand these things are not necessarily ‘rational’ purchases but rather emotional - but having a solid exit plan is important for me as the there is a chance that I may need to sell the vehicle a couple of years down the line."

Can I suggest that you get your Porsche dealer to give you a PCP or PCH quotes on both of your proposed builds. You will need to provided them with your annual mileage, deposit amount and term of the contract. This will then provided you with a GFV / final balloon payment and give you a more accurate picture.

it does not matter whether eventually you intend to pay in full with cash or one of the finance options. This is all about giving you a realistic residual value figure for the S and GTS.

[Tracky]

Interesting thread.

Because I’m normally adopter of new models 981S/gen2 Macan S / 992S, I always miss out on the GTS but always spec to pretty much the spec of the GTS and thus my price differential is negligible

Might I miss out on residuals, maybe a bit but he didn’t feel like it when we sold the Mrs 981S.

I’m looking forward to going in my mates wife’s new turbo to see how the engine sounds compared to our S as that for me could be the only tangible difference in the Macan, irrelevant in the 981/992

[SmallWheels]

I’d look at it a different way. Bear in mind that I’ve got a lightly optioned S on order.
https://www.porsche.com/microsite/porsche-code/default.aspx?c=/PLWMC5M3

What’s your thinking behind ordering a GTS ? You said that your No 1 attribute is comfort/convenience so on that basis go for the S. The lower, stiffer suspension of the GTS will be harsher and the road tests already published confirm this. Go further, stick with the standard 18 inch wheels and get more comfort for a bigger £££ saving on the option price. I don’t, myself, see the value of an ionizer and power steering plus so deleting these would save even more. I thought the extra £500 for the surround camera on top of park assist is worth the piece of mind when maneuvering in tight spaces. It only has to save one crunch and it’s paid for itself.

You said you don’t want air suspension and I’m curious why. The comfort due to the air is impressive and there’s a reason that the demo cars are mostly spec’d with air.

Finally regarding options I’d recommend adding the collapsible spare wheel as it might help you out one day.

Last week I took up my Porsche Experience and drove an S on the Silverstone test track. It was a brilliant half day and confirmed that the S has many times more performance than I could ever use on the road. A GTS would just be paying for something I wouldn’t use.

[pmg]

3) styling

Subjective. Both builds are good enough for me and I can live with either. And yes, even the silver window trims on the S look fine to me, which I think in fact go quite nicely with the silver details of the turbo wheels! There are also other cosmetic parts of S that I actually prefer over the GTS such as the standard red LED bar]

I agree with you on both these points. I think also the GTS black wheels go fine with black trim. What does look weird is the black trim with the silver on the turbo wheels

[kmacuk]

Here is another slant on your specs. I know you are not interested in all options, but adding most of the missing GTS options to your S spec highlights the cost to add to an S, this might be interesting and if some are nice to have you should see an improved residual as future buyers will pay more and the GTS should be an easier sell if you have to bail in a couple of years , however reading your posts I think you are heavily leaning towards the S which is also a good choice.

S: http://www.porsche-code.com/PL1GJ733

GTS: http://www.porsche-code.com/PLHWEFJ1

[PaulR]

Based on everything you've said, and reviewing your proposed S and GTS configurations, I'd recommend the S model. The S model seems to fit your requirements better. I also think your GTS spec isn't right for a GTS model - some of the options chosen may be slightly detrimental to its future value and desirability. (This isn't the exhaustive list, but a couple of examples are the wheel choice and 'downgrade' from sports to comfort seats.)

[ecmacan]

Thanks gents.

I actually just realised that the 8-way seat is actually 'special' GTS seats at no additional cost. hmm...

[ecmacan]

Based on everything you've said, and reviewing your proposed S and GTS configurations, I'd recommend the S model. The S model seems to fit your requirements better. I also think your GTS spec isn't right for a GTS model - some of the options chosen may be slightly detrimental to its future value and desirability. (This isn't the exhaustive list, but a couple of examples are the wheel choice and 'downgrade' from sports to comfort seats.)

Thanks Paul.

Just out of interest, what would you consider to be the 'desirable' options for GTS (apart from the seats and wheels that you have mentioned)

[Bazza06]

Thanks gents.

I actually just realised that the 8-way seat is actually 'special' GTS seats at no additional cost. hmm...

I opted from having the 18-way adjustable and stuck with the standard seats. What I found interesting is that the review which I linked to earlier in the GTS Order thread said the 18-way can become uncomfortable on longer journeys.

I always thought I was the exception because I did find this when I had them on my previous Macan despite most people saying they were like armchairs, which they are.

It may just be that some are not in the car as long as others or that some just did not have that experience.