Nick Jeffery
Surrey, UK
Model 991.1 GTS
Year 2015
Acquired AUGUST 2022
The GTS is absolutely filthy at the moment following a wonderful weekend exploring some of the finest roads West Sussex has to offer.
First up was a Cars & Coffee morning at Cast Iron Roasters near Goodwood Motor Circuit. Set on a small industrial estate, the team there really know their coffee! I asked for a recommendation and was directed towards the Granada beans from Columbia, which I took as a flat white and is arguably the best coffee I’ve ever had. I then tried their Unity Espresso Blend, which was less strong tasting but still fabulous. I’m looking forward to making a return visit, especially given how regularly I seem to be at the nearby circuit.
Speaking of which, following coffee, we convoyed to the circuit for a photo opportunity by the Porsche Classic garage on the perimeter of the final corner, which turned out better than expected. A pal then asked me to testdrive his 2005 987.1 Boxster S. Coming from a 996 Carrera Cabriolet he was worried the car wasn’t handling correctly and wanted a second opinion. I grabbed the keys, got comfortable behind the three-spoke steering wheel and quickly settled into a flowing rhythm on the local roads, which I know well.
The car was showing 107k miles on the clock and yet was rattle and squeak free; the suspension was supple and compliant with no nasty noises or surprises from lock to lock; and the midmounted 3.2-litre flat six powerplant was silky smooth with plenty of shove!
I brought the roadster home with a clean bill of health, establishing he had only paid £8k for the car. It’s proof you don’t need to spend bundles of cash to get into Porsche ownership and have great fun.
The following day around 50 of us met up for a drive in and around West Sussex, heading out from Chichester to our first venue: George Edward Specialist Cars Ltd in Brook Green near Horsham, which specialises in Porsche and Aston Martin servicing and repairs. It shares the industrial unit with Becketts Car Storage, which meant we had plenty of cars to ogle – including our own. With fresh coffee and cake we were made to feel most welcome and, like Cast Iron Roasters the day before, it’s always good to find somewhere new.
We then headed out for the next leg of our journey to one of my favourite pubs in Surrey: The Mulberry Inn near Chiddingfold. John the landlord was as hospitable as ever, serving fresh coffee and the odd bacon bap, with our Porsche literally filling the pub car park so much so that we had to move on at midday to allow their regular customers who had booked the venue for Sunday lunch somewhere to park up.
The convoy then headed out for the third leg of the journey down to the historic town of Petworth and on to Goodwood Motor Circuit for another photo opportunity near the Porsche Classic garage. Given I’d done that the previous day, I bailed out halfway and took my usual loop back home across some brilliant and largely empty roads.
Having spent the last couple of weekends in both Spyders it was great to be back behind the wheel of my 911. The GTS really is the best all-round Porsche I’ve ever owned. It can deliver huge levels of excitement and performance without any of the compromise of a GT product. In fact, I made an observation during the course of the day that in those damp and wet driving conditions, I don’t think it would be possible to travel faster in any other Porsche.