Porsche 996 Turbo vs Lamborghini Gallardo Test

[theduke]

hi,

I found an interesting, informative and entertaining comparison of the 996 Turbo (X50 X73) 450 HP with the Lamborghini Gallardo with the sport suspension set up..

click here

www.sportandperformance.com

what do you guys think of it??

[moslerporschefreak]

Thakns for the great link, I enjoyed the article greatly. As my user name would indicate, I am a huge porsche fan, especially with the 911 Turbo. I love the turbo and if I could onlyhave one car, it would have probably been what I would have chosen. Until recently with the Lambo.

Because I love the looks of the gallardo (crisp, clean, aggresive) I have slipped from my previous bias. I've been looking for a good comparison test between the two (though one including the Ford GT and 360 would have been even better) and after reading that article, even though it was such a close tie I would now switch my decision to the gallardo.

Another person who liked the gallardo a lot was the guy from top gear. I don't know the exact url but google top gear and in their website look under road tests, its one of the recent ones (its also under oddball in the road tests). He too like the gallardo, and his review is a little more detailed, check it out.

[theduke]

thanks moslerporschefreak.. will do that

[theduke]

your link proved to be interesting reading!

The most impressive part was that it should handle like a big LOTUS ELISE...

great car

[Guyanson_Mendiola]

interesting article.

[EL Z06]

sorry but the guy from top gear told people that it isnt anything special and that a 360 is more of a fun car to drive

[moslerporschefreak]

Uh...Tiff Needell said he prefered the 360, Jeremy Clarkson (a ferrari fan) said that he truely believed the Gallardo was the better car. If you watch the video, you'll see that he liked it (except the x-factor bizz).

[PUBLIUS]

The problem with Lambos is visibility.

Never having driven one, I would still say that the Gallardo is a better car than the 360. For one thing it is 60% Audi parts...(and Audi makes very good cars.)

The 360 is better looking though. I never have thought much of Lamborghini looks.

[PUBLIUS]

oh, and of the 3 choices, I would take the Turbo, with or without the X50 package. But that was a given anyway...

[moslerporschefreak]

Hmmm... Publius, am I sensing a pro-German anti-Italian sentiment. No biggie, just a matter of opinion. I don't know, if I wanted an everyday car, of the three the 911 Turbo is the easy decision. But for not so everday driving I would take the Gallardo. IMHO the looks are stunning, but again just an opinion. The only 360 I like is the Spider.

[PUBLIUS]

I have never made any secret that I do not like Ferrari. I really don't give a damn about Lambborghini, as they are a non issue.

There are many reasons why I do not like Ferrari, but the two biggest are as follows: 1.) The cars are simply inferior to Porsches, and 2.) The company / dealerships / owners thing they are the hottest shit that ever happened.

Taking these issues in turn: The 996 Carrera and Ferrari 360 have nearly identical performance. Bothe are hand made products. The Ferrari costs twice as much. Also, their race cars, the 360 GT, for example (and excluding F1) are constantly losing to Porsches (mainly variouse versions of the GT3. I judge a car by 3 things: aesthetics, street performance and racing results. Aesthetics are clearly a matter of opinion, and I find myself vascillating on the issue between the two marques. While both are frequently referred to as exotic cars, the Ferrari is clearly the bigger attention getter. I gat enough unwelcome attention with my Boxster, who needs a Ferrari? Street performance is nearly identical, and quite frankly, if the 996 does fall a little bit short, I guess the $70,000 price difference makes up for that. As far as race results, well, I already covered that.

Also, it has been my experience that the dealerships and owners are holier than thou when, as I have just enumerated, they have little to be holier than thou about. The bottom line is that just because you drive a 575 and I drive a Boxster, you do not necessarily have more money than me (nor are you better than me.) Not that my personal finances are any of anyone's business, but I am a 26 year old guy who is lucky enough to be able to afford the finer things in life. I chose a Boxster over any other Porsche model because I happen to like the way it looks more than a 996 based car. I would never say that a Boxster is better than a 996 or any Ferrari, it just happened to be the car I wanted.

Now, I must apologize for being entirely off topic and thank those of you who took the time to read my rant.

[moslerporschefreak]

No problem , I like hearing other people's opinions, especially on this subject because three months ago when I joined this forum, I was a rabid porsche fan, would take the Turbo over any other car any day of the week. Since then , I have found myself leaning more towards the Gallardo and other Italian designs, only recently to find myself drawn again to the heritage of the Turbo. Fact is I respect both makes and love both cars, its like choosing between 1,000 K in cash or by bank account. One's fun to look at, the other's more convenient. Anyways, you seem to know a great deal about Porsche cars, on another forum there was a controversy ove their reliability especially the 911's, apparently faulty gauges and engines. Care to commment?

[PUBLIUS]

The only problem I have had is the axle bolt issue. Chalked it up to human labor vs. robot and didn't worry about it. The dealership handled everything for me, and my salesman came to my house to pick me up and arrange for a rental. Now thats what I call service!

I ran over something last night and punctured two tires. Wont hold ANY AIR! anyway, it was about time to replace them anyway, so guess what I am doing tomorrow? Thats right, replaceing all four tires.