981 GT4 Review: Here’s What You Need To Know If You’re Buying One.

As much as I'd love to have a GT3 with that 9000rpm redline, l'll never let go of my 2016, Euro-delivered, GT4. It was a dream to pick up with my son in Germany seven years ago, and it's a joy to drive now. I know I'd regret parting with it, so it won't be trade-bait on another car in the future. I drove a 2018 GT3 because I had become obsessed with getting one, and while I'll always prefer the shape of the 911 having had two of them prior to the GT4, the experience with the GT3, while incredible, wasn't as mind-blowingly different as I thought it would be. It made me feel even better about the GT4, which is the best-looking Cayman produced IMHO. Again, I'm not saying my 981 GT4 is the equivalent of a modern (or any, for that matter) GT3. It is however, it's own legend and a modern classic. Incredibly fun to drive and adequately quick with a killer exhaust, it's a keeper even if a GT3 joins the garage one day. Enjoy yours!

Great video and you’ll love the GT4. One tip. Change the side markers to clear. Will transform the look.

Thank you Will for your business. I’m happy to see your enjoying your GT4. I appreciate the shout out! Love the video!

Living with a modern Porsche is just so much easier than the older cars, it’s as simple as that. Both are great experiences when driving. I do think if you are a more project guy and like the journey of maintenance and mods the air cooled provide that at a pretty steep cost. I love my 981 cayman base, it’s the best for spirited street driving and going to Home Depot or any other daily errands.

Have a twin to your Sapphire Blue GT4. My wife & I drove it to Rennsport Reunion VI from Portland, Or (and I was 68 at the time) w/ buckets. We both thought that they were vary comfortable & supported us well. The GT4 is a blast to drive. Definitely made us feel younger. It was a very memorable drive. The sound is incredible & plenty of room for road trip luggage.

If I could afford 2 Porsches they would be a 70's orange 911 and a Cayman GT4. Congrats and enjoy the heck out of it. Stunning car.

Another great video. I understand moving away from the air cooled. Still cool to have one in the stable but I totally get it. Many of the air cooled mechanics are retiring etc. hard to find local shops to work on them.

My 2016 981 GT4 is a keeper, absolutely love it

Nice video and the color is great. I like what you did on the seats. My neighbor had a gt4 with the stock carbon seats and boy they were so uncomfortably hard and especially getting in over the high bolsters. I am not a track person so prefer a more softer seating experience.

Excellent example and enjoyed your drive of what is imho the best water cooled Porsche without spending too much 👍🎯

Love the seats. With regard to new water-cooled versus old air-cooled, no doubt you got stung by big repairs on the 964 and the 1976 (green). New cars are just easier. I always see 5-10 late generation 911s and 718s when I drive across town in my 964, and they are great cars. I think you have to sort your priorities and go for whatever experience works for you, because ultimately no one really needs a sports car. For me, a 2.4L 911S would be the best weekend fun car, and the 964 is the “comfort” end of that lineage. In either case, they are more maintenance than the newer cars, but they are quite a bit better than their contemporaries — Ferrari 348, for example. I could definitely see a 981/991-generation in our garage and as more of a daily driver, but not as a replacement for a classic 911. If you keep a 993 and have the newer cars, you’ll probably be happy with the fleet. My own sense is that if you have an air-cooled 911 that’s sorted and really dialed in, it’s something you can’t easily replace.

Great review of what can only be succinctly described as a brilliant car. I’ve had mine for over 5 years, and its never skipped a beat. Back in 2016 when these launched I was unable to obtain an order allocation for one due high demand, but a year or so later I fortunately found one for sale that had been barely driven, sourced from a local collector in the same exact spec I was initiallly after. I’m just as thrilled with it as the day I bought it. As this car is a permanent member of my garage, I’m currently considering taking it to a nearby specialist to have the ratios for gears 2-5 shortened, along with upgrades to the flywheel and limited-slip differential. But even in stock form, it’s a gem of a car.

Great review. Honestly, I appreciate you seeing the light again with water cooled, modern P cars. They're amazing. Especially a GT4! I appreciate I have both air/water models and each have their own driver characteristics. Thanks for sharing your passion Will. Sapphire IS the best color hands down on those GT4's. ✌️

I agree with your thoughts on the buckets - it works on a weekend vehicle, but I had them on my 991.2 semi-daily car and they were not fun (and I'm not even 40 yet)! They are a must on a GT4 though, you don't lose a backseat like with the 911 either.

Congratulations Will on the new water cooled car(s). As a fellow air cooled and watercooled Porschephile, I agree with everything you've stated. In fact, I remember back early on when you said something along the lines of the water cooled cars just didn't have that appeal you were looking for. I knew you'd come around. If you're fortunate enough to have both, it's amazing. Enjoy the cars and keep the awesome videos coming. Cheers!

Great to see an actual enthusiast enjoy the package as it is. I don’t modify my cars and drive them for what they are meant to be, and drive them a lot. Though it’s difficult to be on the right side of the price curve sometimes

Hey Will - I’ve been following your channel & story since the BMW days. Think you are doing the right thing mixing air & water cars. I’ve car two air cooled and two water cooled and it’s the perfect mix. Agree the air cooled are a labor of love (and money) and are not the sort of cars to trade in-and-out. Fascinating to hear how you go with these - and thanks for your honesty, we always know you say what you think irrespective of what people might say. Although I will miss your mid-year and 911T, great cars. Keep it up 👍

super cool car and i think your right about the 981 being a good value prop.
Where I am in the UK there are currently around 60 718's and only 16 981's on Autotrader

Congratulaton on your new GT4! I shopped for a longhood hotrod for a good long time, checked a number of them out and despite my love of classic cars (I've had a C2 corvette for 20 years and rally it regularly) I was so disappointed at what was for sale for $100K your 69 would have been perfect, but out of my budget. Ended up buying a 981 GT4 like you with 8K. miles, an original msrp of $127K for less than I had budgeted for the air cooled car. I've now got just under 14K miles on it hasn't missed a beat and I've spent less than $200 on maintenance in the last year and a half (do my on work for the most part). Just for laughs, one of the cars I went to look at was the WEVO car on BAT it was right at $100K when I checked it out.The car was dirty, worn, corrosion every wear, had cracked dash, sticky knobs a speaker grill flopping all over the place (may have even had a pair of vise grips on the window crank if memory serves) shook and rattled down the road (remember I drive an old survivor vette so the bar isn't very hight) It was at best a $60-70K car even with it's cool ownership history. It ended up not meeting reserve at I think $105K if I'd have bought it sight unseen and it showed up on a trailer at my house I'd have probably cried. I see that it sold on another site someone got a surprise, glad it wasn't me. https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1972-porsche-911t-45/

Cool complete video, thanks.
I only had the opportunity to drone the spyder. Did you notice other differences that the sound perception (with open top) when you tried it ?