Nine9Sixer

so far, have spent about 1500 miles behind the wheel of my 997. i previously logged about 6000 miles in my 996. for those who care, some thoughts:

while porsche driving position is by far the best i've known, i'm a bit bewildered by the controls of the 997. while the interior is leagues better than the 996, the control layout could've been better imho.

while bmw, audi, MB sought to reduce clutter with i-drive, etc., seems like porsche intentionally went the opposite way by overloading the button clutter, thereby increasing driver distraction and fatigue. while the temp and fan controls are pretty logical, i find myself hunting a bit for the controls for nav, radio, etc. and once in them, it's hard to navigate through the functions without taking your eyes off the road longer than i'd like. also, changing radio stations and cd tracks using the flimsy phone pad is pretty absurd.

also, the 997 dial layout/setup appears to require more focus before getting the info. the tach appears a little less noticeable, and while one glance gave you the digital mph reading in the 996, it takes a bit longer to do in the 997.

just some humble thoughts on a day i'm trying to avoid doing some serious work.....

Edgy01

First of all, you don't drive these cars enough to take your comments seriously. 6000 miles in your 996? 1500 miles in your 997? I've got 10,700 plus on my 06 997 and I haven't had it that long. The multifunction steering wheel which you probably didn't order cuts out a BUNCH of that button hunt and seek work. I doubt very strongly that Porsche could car about your observations considering how little time you have in them. I have logged over a quarter million miles in 911s. They work just fine.

Nine9Sixer

easy, cowboy. don't worry, your d!ck is bigger than mine. i was simply making some observations and threw in the mileage as a disclaimer, intentionally suggesting i don't know these cars inside out. i haven't had my 997 for long either, 1500 miles in a couple weeks. and, yes, i agree the multifunction wheel would help tremendously. but, geez, man.

Frino

[QUOTE=Nine9Sixer] while the interior is leagues better than the 996, the control layout could've been better imho.QUOTE]

I agree fully. After one year of ownership and 9K miles I still have to take my eyes off the road to turn on the heated seat switch and adjust the hvac controls. A minor grievance for sure given my overall high level of satisfaction...but Porsche can do better...much better.

nkhalidi

And that's the point. I agree that the audio/nav controls could use significant streamlining. Even the mini-MMI system on A4/S4s with nav works better than the Porsche system. In BMWs and Audis, I can figure everything out in a matter of minutes, no big deal. Porsches just aren't as intuitive, at least for me.

Targa Tim

Believe me, the 997S buttons are much easier to use than the i-drive in BMW (I own both of them). I found that with driving a Porsche 911, there is not a lot of buttons that I need to push. All I need is 5 things - the steering wheel, the clutch, gas, and brake pedals, and the 6 speed short shifter.

Fishdoc

Good thread friends. Still eagerly awaiting my delivery in about
a month. I hear so many complaints about I drive and now just
more buttons and switches with 997's. I think I can live with it.
I think my biggest complaint and I havent even got a mile on it
is the key.
I love my fob for my M45 Infinity.
This Porsche key thingy I am not
looking forward to.


Frank

caf

I still remember my first Porsche, which I bought new in '88: A 944 Turbo S. Like all 944s, it had the sideview mirror adjustment on the door near the mirror (like it usually is now). The switch to go back and forth between the left and right mirrors was on the center console, nowhere near or related to the other mirror control.

Talk about bad ergonomics! Porsche has never been the paragon of great interior design, but I still prefer the Porsche approach to the BMW one, where you have a zillion gizmos controlled by one big ****, with a system that is slow and unreliable.

Nine9Sixer

i'm not faulting porsche by any means-- i love the car. guess it was an observation that, despite flawless execution, perhaps porsche engineering doesn't always start with the best design (e.g., having the engine hang out past the rear axle-- perfected over many years and lotsa engineering dollars).

with every car i've had (hondas and non-idrive bimmers), the controls were intuitive enough where i could change controls without looking. in the end, isn't that the ergo goal? one thing i noticed on the new bimmers and porsches is that they moved the window switches to the doors. the switches on the consoles i thought were some of the most ergo-correct designs. your left hand always on the steering wheel, while you're right hand was free to change all the controls, including windows. although i agree with caf about the mirror switches on the console- doesn't seem inuitive and not it's like a **** you change often.

Edgy01

If you knew where some of the controls USED to be on the 911 what we have today is a quantum leap of an improvement. Ask old-timers where the sunroof rocker switch used to be. Remember,--you're talking about Porsche here. They have always seen themselves as perfect.

Nine9Sixer

yea, i've seen those whacky controls and locations. basically, the common denominator appears to be that, throughout its history, porsche has always done things their own way-- that was pretty much my point. they do things that aren't necessarily the best design, but at least they will execute the design very well, even if it takes many iterations (again, e.g., rear-engine design). in this vein, your comment about porsche always seeing themselves as perfect is so true.

Targa Tim

The window switches on 911s are always on the door from my ownership of 911s over 10 years. Same as putting the key on the left side, this has become automatic for me and I don't find any ergo problem with that.

Alan Smithee

The 997's interior is a giant improvement over the 996, but I agree that the 997's console is a mess. Especially for those of us without navigation. I much prefer the more simple Boxster/Cayman/GT3 console, but even on those cars the buttons are too tiny for my average-sized fingers; I must take my eyes off the road to sharpen aim to execute a button push for something as simple as selecting a pre-set station with either console design. Ridiculous. About 1/3 of my 997's console buttons serve no purpose whatsoever given the options on the car.

And I have the MFSW; I use it for volume control, but that's it. On my M3, I was able to use it for scrolling through pre-set stations as well...on that car I never had to move my left hand from the wheel or take my eyes off the road for radio functions.

THPorsche

Think about this, we use our left hand to open the door while our right hand is holding the key. Shouldn't the key hole on the right hand side?

nkhalidi

The rationale for the left-side key was that in Le Mans-style starts, the driver could leap in the car and, in one deft motion, insert the key in the starter. Nice bit of trivia.

Now, it becomes more natural if you open the door with your right hand while holding the key in your left. It always takes me a second to get back familiar with this motion when I get into a Porsche.