Ride Comfort and Practicality of the Sport Chassis?

The 981 Sport Chassis is 20mm lower than the standard chassis, with springs 20% stiffer in front and 25% stiffer in the rear. The roll bars are also reinforced by 10% in front and 36% in the rear.

You can easily see the difference by comparing the wheel arch gaps.

Sport Chassis

PASM

Although the Sport Chassis lowers the car, the owner says he hasn’t scraped anywhere so far, and compared to a GT3, it’s much easier to live with. Indeed, the front lip shape doesn’t protrude much and the center section is a bit shorter, so it offers reasonable practicality.

As for ride comfort, even after focusing carefully, on normal paved roads there’s little difference from PASM. There’s no harsh jolting or banging, and I think it’s about the same as PASM in Sport Plus mode.

On the other hand, the “shaking” feeling when going over road joints or manhole covers is greater than with PASM. The body sways more side to side, which I think is mainly due to the stiffer roll bars.

Whether you can accept this is probably the key point in choosing between Sport Chassis and PASM. Personally, it’s within my tolerance, and compared to a GT3 it’s much easier to live with.

The owner currently owns a 991 GT3 and previously drove a 718 Cayman GTS with Sport Chassis, and he says the 981’s ride comfort is better and makes him want to go on long tours.

Final Thoughts and Afterword

Since it’s the same model I own, honestly I hesitate to praise it too much. But I can’t help it. Good is good. I want to say it without any bias.

The 981 GTS is simply the best.

If you want outright speed, high performance, and cornering speed, the latest Porsches are obviously the way to go. No argument there. But the feeling of joy even at low speeds and the desire to keep driving forever often come stronger from Porsches of each era.

The charm of air-cooled Porsches is a prime example, and I think the 981’s appeal is of a similar kind.

This time, I drove the same model I own but with different options, and it’s clear that Porsche’s character changes with options.

The difference between PDK and manual, and the presence or absence of Sport Chassis and PASM, all affect the feel.

Generally, Porsche options don’t get much credit in the used market. Visual options are somewhat better regarded, but driving-related options especially are often overlooked.

I think this is because buyers don’t focus much on those options and they don’t differentiate the cars enough. But I want to tell anyone buying used:

“Porsche’s (driving-related) options make a real difference in feel.”

I recommend paying more attention to options when searching for your ideal used Porsche.