Dana Pawlicki

Maplewood, New Jersey

Model 993 Carrera Year 1995 Acquired may 2007 Model 991 Carrera S Year 2013 Acquired march 2013 Model 930 3.3

Year 1986

Acquired April 2014 Model 964 Carrera Year 1994

Acquired June 2014 Model 930 Targa Year 1988

Acquired April 2015

Proving once again that the car sickness runs deep, I made a new vehicle acquisition right before Thanksgiving. As previously alluded to, I have several other performance cars beyond my five 911s, including a 2011 Audi R8 Spyder. While the car has proven to be incredibly reliable, and sounds fantastic with a STASIS exhaust, after six years of ownership (and the extended factory warranty coming to its end in the spring), I was toying with the idea of replacing the car. After my unsuccessful request for both a 991 GT3 RS and 991 R, I was keeping an open mind as to what to buy next.

I happened to see a new R8 for sale at Hoffmann in Hartford, Connecticut while searching online. While I have owned two previous-generation R8s, I felt the new R8 redesign did not go far enough from an aesthetic perspective, although the performance is difficult to argue with. I would have much rather seen them make the sideblade more prominent like the GT-40, rather than reduce its visual impact. What drew me to this particular R8 was that the owner of the dealership had special ordered it in Porsche Grün green. It is believed to be the only one in North America.

I had previously been offered a Grün green 991.2 Targa GTS by Penske in Cleveland, where I had bought several of my cars, but the car was optioned to such an extent that price really eclipsed the model in my opinion.

I was able to pick the R8 up on one of the last pre-snowfall days, and was not disappointed in any way. I love the colour, and the biggest difference from my old R8 is the dual-clutch gearbox, instead of the clunky single-clutch unit from the Lamborghini Gallardo in my convertible. Driving the car home was great fun. While the transmission was similar to the PDK in my 991.1 C2S, it had a more mechanical feel to it. Sammy Hagar’s I Can’t Drive 55 coming on the radio assured a spirited drive home (although it was tough to keep the revs down until adequate break-in).

While at the dealership I checked out their Porsche showroom. They had some great cars, including a menacing black pre-owned 997.2 Turbo (it’s a good thing I couldn’t drive two cars home), an equally evil black C4S Targa and, finally, a bright-yellow GT4. The staff at Hoffman were truly exceptional, and dealt with all aspects of the transaction in a very professional manner. I will definitely be back!