So no one wants a manual

I have found that electronic throttles(drive by wire) are just a computer remap away from goodness.
The way cars are tuned, for fuel economy and emissions on a test cycle means electronic throttles may have lag or leave the car feeling lazy, powerbands are also narrowish with dips.

Its simply a matter of correct fueling and timing to set things right. Not every computer remap gets it all correct, in fact most adjust too few parameters and just open the throttle quicker..

On my e46 M3 I spent the first 4 years wondering what all the fuss was about, power came on high in the rev range and tapered off. the car had noticable aero drag at 120 and put on speed relatively slowly thereafter.

While most remaps just quicken throtle response and fiddle with a few bits, a full remap will redo fuel flows, timing, throttle opening rates, temperature adjustments etc.

The result was maybe 10% power gain but thats only 10% of the story. What happened in terms of driving was an infinitly smoother motor. Proper throttle response, Torque comming on strong at 3500 rpm as opposed to 4700, and a hp that seemed to grow all the way to redline. Where before I had used 2nd gear for a cornrer the car was equaly fast and responsive being left in 3rd. Where aero drag slowed things above 120, the car now easily blew past 140. 6th gear felt like 5th in terms of response and was actualy useable.

Headline number changes 10% but instead of narrow peaks and dips the power range was consistent and broad, frankly the car felt like it had an extra 150 hp so great was the transformation.

Moral of the story, for various reasons factory tuning on many cars sucks and is a compromise, a remap unlocks the potential dialed in. Like tire or pad change to me a remap is a must.
Did the same thing on the elise, which stock imo runs lean, the stock cam changeover also makes no sense. Now the lotus too has throttle response, additionaly the 2nd cam changeover is now at 5700 rpm which means that you dont drop out of cam/power when going from 3rd to 4th. Maybe the hp is the same but the car significantly better.


All that being said, I admire the e46 m3, but in the end like many a modern it is a bit too anodyne.

 

Agreed on the e46 anodyne, yet today its lauded as having great moves in comparison to the new one. Perhaps the last really great drivers 3 series was the e36, not surprisingly we see many as track cars today.

Taming a car, yes spent today at the track inthe Gt40, it had no problem digesting a new vette and cayman. Second day at the track in the Gt40 Each lap I kept on learning ways in which I could go faster. Probably years of learning and improving such are the dynamics and secrets of this car. Once I break 2:10 at the Glenn then maybe one will start getting there. I know of one expertyly driven Gt40 that broke 2 mins.

For comparison a well driven but not pro 997 GT3 4.0 was breaking 2:15.
All of which is to say that the driver is THE key componant, and all these paper specs of moderns are interesting, but its much more fun to learn to drive somehtign alive to its limit.
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It looks like it could be a recreation car, I say that because the period builds did not have the eyebrows above the doors. Those are newer street wheels, and the paint scheme is not quite period correct. But then other elements look period orig. Hard to say as most origionals are really newbuilds by superformance or gelescoe with period bits and period chassis plates, plus any race car from the 60s that has been run on track has had numerous alterations and restorations. Based on one photo, could be either.

Superformance cars are built under license from the Gt40 type holders, hence having chassis numbers that begin with P2.... as opposed to 60s built cars whose chassis begins with P1...

The other differences are that all superformace cars have the stronger Mk2 tub even if wearing Mk1 bodywork as above. The suspension uprights are aluminum as opposed to magnesium, disks are vented willwood units as opposed to solid girlings and switchgear is very similar but not exact. So basicaly a new build of the same car as built int he 60s.

From there completion may differ. many built for the street run a bored and stroked 351 to 427cu and even have FI for fueling. In period they were either 289's or 427 FEs on Mk2's.

New build race or track cars need to comply with historic race rules and in USA run a 302 block(basicaly and evolved 289) and are carburated, but you can run aluminum heads.
All continuation newbuilds run the same zf transaxle as in the 60's.

In period the highest hp quote I have seen for a 289 was about 425 hp. Nowadays a worked 302 is going to be in the 550 to 650hp range with alumninum heads, but you need to spin above 7k to get there and use really good bits to keep it all together.
If you historic race your GT40 in europe it must have a 289 block and iron heads, but unlimited budgets get the same power levels.

For comparison a bored 351 stroked at 427 cu will be about 550 hp but mega Tq all at low maintanace lower revs of 6200 ultilising inexpensive internals, however you cant historic race, and you gain about 100lbs mostly on the top part of the motor, the heavier internals are also slower to rev, but tq is massive. Great for a street car.

At last years Goodwood historic revival where the Gt40 was celebrating its 50th anniv there were a number of new build by gelescoe and one or two from superformance, all built to period spec and accepted by the FIA and Goodwood to race in the historic revival .

In reality Its highly unlikely that any currently racing GT40 is runnign its orig 60s tub or bodywork, superformance and gelescoe having a good trade in supplying replacements.

The tubs on these cars are built much like an aircraft wing with ribs to which sheetmetal is riveted making a very rigid monocoque. If you figure that in the 60s there was no rust protection in any of the sheetmetal or ribs and that the tub has numerous voids its not hard to undersand why there was massive internal rust within the voids between ribs within years of manufacture.

Restoration requires a new tub, and bodywork being fiberglass and raced is unlikely to have survived 50 years either.

Superformance was sent a period car to restore, they used the dismantled pieces of the old rusted tub as a pattern, made digital blueprints of each part. Thats how they got started int he Gt40 buisness, given the accuracy they got the type holders to license their new builds.

Perhaps one of the greatest examples of an automotive GW axe is the lemans GT40 sold last year for $11 million. thsi is a car which in period had its roof cut to become a camera car and then it burned competly to molten blobs. It or some pieces of it were "found" buried in a junkyard and it was "rebuilt", basicaly new tub and bodywork with period correct switchgear and block to which the period chassis number was attached.

Point is today you can get the same car as won lemans numerous times int he 60s for under 200k, just without the period chassis plate and enjoy to suit, this includes historic racing if you build to spec.

If you are into older cars, analogue driving and being on track, this is imo a combo impossible to beat. A 60s lemans car to play with. Kindal like being able to buy a licensed new build 250swb for pennies on the dollar.

The livery on my car is what I would call period style, but no GT40 int he 60s ran that scheme. I just liked the baby blue and the race stripes so did my own thing. Being an inauthentic paint scheme means it should not be taken by any anoraks as trying to fool someone that its a period 60s build.

 

I think porche is figuring how to segment their client/market further. Offering 95% appliances and adapting some platforms to offer anologue passion.

Ferrari has become the BRAND company, they have been so rich in customers why even bother offering segments within a model line, after all its a lot of extra work to run a second transmission choice through regs and does not necessarily gnerate extra margin. If you are production/supply limited and your bulk client base does not care they figure why bother.

The reason to bother is that brands are built on perception and credibility. If you dont have a driver core in there somewhere your brand ultimatly suffers. That is unless ferrari figures some drivers will just buy their cars despite having no choice and F1 gives it all the spurious cred it needs.

Now maybe that sweater man is running ferrari, and now that the FIat colossus needs more profit, ferrari willl look to more sales. Easy way is to offer segmentation within a product line. So maybe we will see the 488 purist edition with manual.

 

Based on some coments elsewhere it could be orig, but who knows from one photo, thats how good recreations are and how much varistions orig cars had.

 

very well put.

 

Yet the stats you have provided elsewhere belie your contention. The cayman Gt4 is the "highest pererfroming" cayman its stick only, is totaly sold out before first deliveries and this one "option" has single handedly doubled cayman sales. Its a runaway sucess, even togh a lesser model with paddles may go 0-60 faster.

A 997 Gt3 sells for more now than new, and more than a 991 Gt3 yet its just 2 years old, normaly superceded cars sell for less than the improved model..

The difference. The 997 gt3 and Gt4 are models aimed at people who value driving and the experience of it over other factors. Its a core audience, the type that built porche. What do i mean by driving, well speed control vicerla experience, a connection tot he machine, where it tlaks to you and there is high dgree of inetraction, This is a demographic that is more than happy to give up sound deadening, ride suppleness convenience, daily comfort for a more pure and harder drive. Its also a demographic that values durability esp on track over the last few tenths.

So what we dont see is these people paying significantly more to to have PDK or 4ws. They pay more for a used Gt3 and more for a new GT4. Its also not an insignificant market.

BTW Ferrari is not sold out significantly in advance, in fact they "volontarily" reduced production to "maintan exclusivity" In other words prior limited production levels were not sustainable, because well there are only just so many wnabees and fashionistas, and its a notoriously ficlkle crowd.

Ferrari would do well to explore the performance niche of a viceral durable and fun to drive car. Porche seems to be doing it with increasing vigor.

We drive for fun and speed. On the speed quotient, just look at the specs on a manual z06 and relaize that any performance given up is irrelevant, but the loss in expoerience going to a paddle is great.

Tech is great when it adds to the experience, ie more powerful smoother powerplants, light weight, great brakes, betetr steering, cooling, ac etc, when it dilutes things then there is a loss for those of us who drive.

A paddle is convenient in traffic, its "faster" on track. Many of us dont buy stortscars ti drive in traffic, they are for recreation. As to the track, few go there, but those of us who do regularily can observe a few things. If you are serious about track then any number of cars are going to be way faster than any streetcar regardless of transmission choice.

To the extent you drive a streetcar on track, and many do for various reasons, the manual gives little to paddles, but losses much in the experience/challenge stakes, and drivign a street car on track is pretty much only about expoerience/challege, because a street car is by definition slower.

Why would a serious driver give up a big part of what makes a sprtscar so much fun, just to have convenience in traffic and some spurious bragging rights?

A modern ferrari for 99% of users is a highly stylish lexus, same for many porches.
The smart companies have figured or are figuring out how to make products for the 30% core enthusiast. You know the 30% core who buy vettes in manuals, the 40% who buy BMW m cars in manauls and the 50% of cayman buyers who frankly wouldnt buy a cayman but for the manual Gt4 option.

If you are sellign sprtscars, then yes the "majority" of buyers will be poseurs by definition, but you need to serve the core too, firstly because its a good and worthwhile market, and also because without the core ultimatly your brand losses street cred. Well maybe ferrari can maintain pseudo F1 fanboy cred from grandprix.

I think Chevy will be limiting its market if the mid engined vette is paddle only.

 

The real reason quoted was fuel economy, easy to do with DCT. The article also refers to the huge manual fan base which they dont want to alienate.

car companies like some here want us all to love DCT but while its the easy option to many still want manuals for it to easily dissapear..

 

Right so everybody exploits the DCt max accleration performance everytime they acclerate away from any stop or slowdown?


People skip gears on manuals specifiacly when they are going slower because if you are not going all out its convenient and approprioate, especialy if you are one with your machine and can judge the ammount of power speed and revs required to execute a less than 10/10ths manuever. In other words for recretaional driving mnauals are all the more engaging of the driver hence their appeal, whereas a DCT is faster on paper for the majority of people who dont really "drive" and need bragging rights. Yes DCT is quicker on track, although that is a relative irrelevancy for most track drivers in a street based car simply becuase in many ways their skills are not up to it in many other parameters. For a Street car a DCT has better fuel economy and works traffic well, most people drive in traffic and sort of floor it here and there on occasion..

Was at the track this week, a DCT equipped 991 in the right hands is a pretty epic machine in terms of outright track speed, and its still a commuter car, but then so is a manual z06. Thing is thet 991 DCt is a not an epic and engaging backroad machine, and is the extra speed on track and convenience in traffic worth the tradeof, for 70% yes for 30% no. Just as most people prefer a comfortable sedan a Gt car or even suv to an inconvenient lower riding possibly less comfortable sports car. Priorities.