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2021 Macan GTS vs 2018 Macan Turbo w/Performance Package

16K views 86 replies 23 participants last post by  JoeInBucks 
#1 ·
Hi Everyone!

What an awesome forum! As a potential first time Macan buyer, the info here is awesome.

As the title implies, I’m trying to decide between two cars and would love feedback.

Trying to decide between a 2018 13k miles, PTS, Macan Turbo with the performance package vs a 2021 Macan GTS built to my spec.

Both are right around 100k, ’18 had a low 130s MSRP when new.

Would be curious which people prefer.

Thanks!
Drew
 
#2 ·
Hi Everyone!

What an awesome forum! As a potential first time Macan buyer, the info here is awesome.

As the title implies, I’m trying to decide between two cars and would love feedback.

Trying to decide between a 2018 13k miles, PTS, Macan Turbo with the performance package vs a 2021 Macan GTS built to my spec.

Both are right around 100k, ’18 had a low 130s MSRP when new.

Would be curious which people prefer.

Thanks!
Drew
Well, I am probably partial since I have a 2018 Macan Turbo PP, so I would go that route, though would be curious to test drive a new GTS. But at the end of the day, the old PP combines the best of both worlds, Turbo Power and lower factory stance. I know which Macan Turbo PP you refer to, if I did not have one already I'd get that one for sure!
 
#3 ·
Turbos with the performance package are pretty rare. Is the Turbo CPO’ed? What is it’s warranty start date? You may get more than four years of warranty with the ‘18 Turbo. I think CPO warranties are now unlimited miles rather than the prior 100,000 miles. I’m leaning toward the Turbo. You might be able to get a better price as the new model year will be clicking over soon as the ‘21’s start to come in.
 
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#5 ·
Car is not CPO'ed and has about 18 months left of warranty or ~35k miles.

Dealership is a Porsche dealer so may be willing to add a CPO warranty. I know other brands are sometimes amenable to this, but not sure if Porsche dealers will add CPO to non-CPO cars. Anyone know if this is common? Any ideas on cost?

Thanks!
 
#6 ·
If they don't CPO it I would walk. It may mean a previous accident. I have a Turbo PP also and love it. It has everything a GTS has with 440 HP. Very fast. If I couldn't get the Turbo CPO's I would lean towards the new GTS. I think 100k is kind of pricey despite the 130k msrp. I would think around 90 would be reasonable.
 
#12 ·
If they don't CPO it I would walk. It may mean a previous accident.
CPO does not mean no accidents. In fact, Porsche’s CPO specifications specifically allow for them. On top of that, the forum has seen repeated examples of CPO cars which were later discovered To have been in serious accidents because some dealers don’t correctly perform the CPO inspection. You need to get an independent prepurchase inspection to protect yourself.
 
#7 ·
The 2018 TurboPP is exceptionally well optioned. CPO generally adds $2500 to the price tag, assuming it has a clean Carfax and qualifies for CPO. Probably some negotiating room on price, as mentioned in the previous post. (y)
 
#8 ·
Thanks for the comments/info. $2500 is consistent with what I have seen for cost of CPO from other manufacturers. Assuming nothing wrong with the car - would a dealership have any reason to be unwilling to CPO a car if the buyer was willing to add $2500 to the price? Said differently, is unwillingness to CPO a car a red flag or a yellow flag?
 
#9 ·
Carfax looks clean, the fact that it does not have CPO would not scare me at all, I would inquire if it can be added. My hunch is that they did not include it to keep the price under $100k out of the gate. To your question Drew, I love the Macan Turbo PP, would not change anything other than I miss Burmester, which you have in your spec. Again, I have not driven any of the new GTS or Turbo models but cannot imagine either one being better. I like Max from AutoptopNL on YT and sent him an email before buying mine and he endorsed the old PP over the new Turbo from a performance perspective. Anyhow, the combo that this car offers is pretty unique, will be hard to find again or would be extra costly to spec if you do your own build.
 
#10 ·
Thank you very much for taking the time to look and for the detailed response. Will be interesting to hear what the dealer has to say about a CPO.

My current DD is an e 63 amg which has the burmester 3d optioned - it's pretty amazing and has spoiled me. I bought that car as a CPO also - it's even better when someone else has to pay to spec it and I just get to listen to it. :)
 
#16 ·
I found your car . The car fax looks spotless . The car itself looks beautiful . 100K is a lot though .

This is a very tough decision . I believe the dealership will CPO the car but expect more money so they are leaving the choice open ended .

So .... my opinion I myself am looking at buying a GTS . I am simply waiting to see the direction of this economy a little longer and hanging onto my 18 GTS in the meantime . As much as I like that car you are looking at it's not a new car . I also feel its way too high to spec a GTS at 100K .You must be overloading it to get it there . I go the opposite direction of shaving down my builds because after 25 years of buying the cars it gets old to lose 30-40 grand every 3 years .

If that 100K is a must for the GTS I'd buy that Turbo . If I need a car today I'd buy that Turbo . However if I really wanted to be practical (after all this is an SUV) I'd shave that 100K off that GTS into the low 80's and buy a new car .

It;'s very easy to get swept off ones feet with Porsche buying infatuation . The good part is neither is a bad choice . Good luck.
 
#17 ·
I found your car . The car fax looks spotless . The car itself looks beautiful . 100K is a lot though .

This is a very tough decision . I believe the dealership will CPO the car but expect more money so they are leaving the choice open ended .

So .... my opinion I myself am looking at buying a GTS . I am simply waiting to see the direction of this economy a little longer and hanging onto my 18 GTS in the meantime . As much as I like that car you are looking at it's not a new car . I also feel its way too high to spec a GTS at 100K .You must be overloading it to get it there . I go the opposite direction of shaving down my builds because after 25 years of buying the cars it gets old to lose 30-40 grand every 3 years .

If that 100K is a must for the GTS I'd buy that Turbo . If I need a car today I'd buy that Turbo . However if I really wanted to be practical (after all this is an SUV) I'd shave that 100K off that GTS into the low 80's and buy a new car .

It;'s very easy to get swept off ones feet with Porsche buying infatuation . The good part is neither is a bad choice . Good luck.
'It's very easy to get swept off one's feet with Porsche buying..' So it would appear! :) This will be my first Porsche but I can see how it could quickly become addicting. Thank you for sharing your perspective, over-specing is probably not super-wise. Certain options probably seem more important when deep in the weeds before a purchase.

One thing I have a hard time understanding the value of... if I purchase a new GTS to my spec, I can purchase it from my local dealer and begin the process of building a relationship for the future. It's hard for me to gauge though - will buying one GTS Macan even register on the radar of a dealer so as to ascribe any value to it?
 
#18 ·
I'd definitely would go the way @yrralis1 suggested. I'd either go new and pare down the option list to a lower price point or go new for a Turbo. I like the performance of the new Turbo much better than the GTS. You should test drive them both. The advantage of the new Macan outweigh whatever cost advantage the used Macan has. The newer PCM in the new Macan also makes a world of difference.
 
#20 ·
Thanks for jumping in! Is the main difference between an 18 turbo w/pp vs a 20 turbo the updated PCM? Are there any other major differences that give the 20 an advantage? Is there rumored to be a PP or S on this generation of Macan in the future?
 
#27 ·
Hi pdidrew, would you consider purchasing my car which is half the price and the main thing it's missing from your '18 PP is extra HP which can be achieved through a stage 1 - stage 2 upgrade for far less. It comes with a remainder of the CPO till Nov 5th, 2021, and super easy to transfer. It's a very special car that needs someone who would appreciate all its glory. If you want to discuss it and I can share with you my journey in getting this car and my test drive of the Macan S, GTS, Turbo, and Turbo PP all back to back with my wife, what she observed, etc...

 
#29 ·
Some comments, I believe you can no longer order PCCB's unless they have reinstated it. For our turbo, it was one if the first ones so took a while to get in due to covid as well as EPA approval. Should be better now.

Vs the 2018 turbo PP, if you dont need the updated PCM screen, and new rear look, I would go for the 2018, you get more torque and ceramics.
 
#30 ·
For me, if the Turbo PP had every option/color I wanted, then I would go for the Turbo PP.

I’ve driven newer Macans when mine was in for service. The new PCM screen is neat. For me, I am not doing anything other than music and don’t mind that it’s not wireless.

The Turbo PP is a unicorn, especially in PTS. I would hope that regardless, you drive the car often and hard just as they are meant to be driven!
 
#32 ·
"I would hope that regardless, you drive the car often and hard just as they are meant to be driven!" Haha yessir - this is the plan! I've gotten a bit calmer as I've gotten older but the cars have gotten faster. :)

Do you think the uniqueness of the PP/PTS car is such that it will demonstrably hold its value better than a less rare car?

I'm sure it's been covered but I can't seem to find a thread on the difference between the old PCM and the new one. Does anyone have that info?

Thanks!
 
#37 ·
I wouldn’t get either one. But that is me. If you don’t get the turbo, at some time you will wish you had. Now IF it was me, I would save a lot of money ( and maybe buy another toy!) and get a 2017 Turbo with low miles . Look for one that has the options you really want, don’t worry about CPO...it is not that great anyway as this is a pretty solid car. Put a Cobb tune on it and drive.
Recently I saw a 2015 Turbo with 49k miles..options of Burmeister, air suspension, sport chrono, 21 inch wheels, stainless steel brush guards, full leather, Sun roof, heated cooled seats, heated steering wheel, carbon fiber, exhaust tips, embossed head restraints, even had a hidden hitch already install and almost new tires. It was locally owned , sold and serviced by the local dealership. It had 100k sicker price in 2015 and sold for 46K
last month. There are good deals out there.
 
#45 ·
Didn't see it but smokers package adds a tiny ashtray and cigarette light outlet with cover to front console. Also on pre 2019 you got a rear ashtray. On 2019+ same on front but rear ashtray is gone. It is a nice feature for the cover as it makes the console look complete vs the opening.

As to further comments, the 2018 turbo PP performance is faster in the mid range due to the larger engine. I have owned a 2015 turbo and now the 2020 turbo. My dealer sales person has the 2018 PP turbo. I can tell you that the low end torque is much better on the gen 1. That is the biggest thing I noticed vs the two gens. It is also louder which I liked vs the new motor, and my old one had stock exhaust vs the sport on the 2020. The two gens biggest difference is the engine, PCM and rear design look. Front hasn't really changed that much. Drive both and you will see the torque difference. If we had known the engine would be smaller and the extra long wait. We would have bought a gen 1 turbo pp. The new PCM is nice for screen size but if you use apple car play, it is a moot point as all the extra features from the pcm wont be used. I do miss the low end torque of the old car.

One last item I forgot, new turbo has the surface coated brakes. look at the replacement costs on sunset, they only last 30% longer than the steels so getting pccb was a no brainer for us even though replacement cost is more as they last alot longer. Mostly likely the life time of the vehicle in normal driving.
 
#50 ·
the 2018 turbo PP performance is faster in the mid range due to the larger engine. I have owned a 2015 turbo and now the 2020 turbo. My dealer sales person has the 2018 PP turbo. I can tell you that the low end torque is much better on the gen 1. That is the biggest thing I noticed vs the two gens. It is also louder which I liked vs the new motor, and my old one had stock exhaust vs the sport on the 2020. The two gens biggest difference is the engine, PCM and rear design look. Front hasn't really changed that much. Drive both and you will see the torque difference. If we had known the engine would be smaller and the extra long wait. We would have bought a gen 1 turbo pp. The new PCM is nice for screen size but if you use apple car play, it is a moot point as all the extra features from the pcm wont be used. I do miss the low end torque of the old car.
Very much agree. We own both the Gen 1 GTS and Turbo, and are about to order a new GTS to replace the current GTS. I test drove the new Turbo three times. Granted overall it’s probably faster, but you need to get the engine speed up over 3000 RPM to get to the power band. The power characteristics remind me of our current GTS.

I keep thinking of the old saying “there is no replacement for displacement”.
 
#47 ·
Link to Turbo w PP? My PP is PTS and love uniqueness of it
 
#48 ·
Found it. PTS fashion gray and black Interior w yellow deviated stitching. Well, fashion gray is almost chalk, so you might lose some of the uniqueness of the PTS since 99% won’t be able to tell the difference unless both Macans are right nex to each other. On the other hand, it is well optioned like mine with PCCBs (which are amazing) and has burmester and PTV. Also has sport design package. I’d lean towards that one over a new GTS
 
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#58 ·
Monmouth did not sell my car to someone else. They gave my build slot to someone else. I was able to see the build and it was substantially different than what I ordered.
[/QUOTE]

This is less galling but only slightly so - at least someone isn't driving around in your actual car. Thanks again for sharing.
 
#64 ·
[/QUOTE]

This is less galling but only slightly so - at least someone isn't driving around in your actual car. Thanks again for sharing.
[/QUOTE]Perhaps that's what happens when one does not establish a relationship with the dealer, but the experience left me with no interest in having ANY relationship with the dealer at all.
 
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#67 ·
I've never understood why there would be such huge variations for the Cobb tune from car to car. Do the engines in each of cars vary that much? I have never had any issues with my Cobb tune at all. Not implying some do not have legitimate gripes. Just wondering what would cause this.
 
#72 ·
At the risk of being declared a heretic, you max performance guys are glossing over the "Facelift" changes that went into the new GTS. Upgraded PCM, upgraded engine, upgraded trim. In the years to come, this stuff will matter. And, you are at least one ".1" into the future. I'd go with the custom configured GTS as I just did. Took delivery last Thursday.
 
#73 ·
Congrats on your new '21 GTS, must be awesome. Regarding your comment if the upgraded PCM matters more in the future, who knows? It could as well be the opposite. In ten years' time any PCM will be dated and if someone buys an older car, maybe the purity matters and the PCM is the least of concerns (certainly in the 911 world).

Anyhow, I just think everyone has to decide for themselves what they value and then act accordingly, not one single solution that fits all needs!
 
#84 ·
My comments are about pricing issues when buying new.

Late to this discussion obviously, and can’t add anything regarding the OP’s question about which model was better, but as a buyer of 2 Macans (2016 S, and 2018 GTS) I have found the dealers really vary on how negotiable they are.

For the Philadelphia market where I reside, you have to arm wrestle all day to get to a 5% discount, and they act like you are stealing the car.

But go out of this market, and all of the sudden you find dealers who will discount 9% off list, and deliver the car to you as well. If you are amenable to buying outside your area, try Hennessy or Perimeter, both in Atlanta. Everyone needs to make a living, but there is a lot more profit margin than Porsche would have you think.
 
#85 ·
My comments are about pricing issues when buying new.

Late to this discussion obviously, and can’t add anything regarding the OP’s question about which model was better, but as a buyer of 2 Macans (2016 S, and 2018 GTS) I have found the dealers really vary on how negotiable they are.

For the Philadelphia market where I reside, you have to arm wrestle all day to get to a 5% discount, and they act like you are stealing the car.

But go out of this market, and all of the sudden you find dealers who will discount 9% off list, and deliver the car to you as well. If you are amenable to buying outside your area, try Hennessy or Perimeter, both in Atlanta. Everyone needs to make a living, but there is a lot more profit margin than Porsche would have you think.
Wasn't clear on whether you were presently looking but I'm in the Philly market also but purchased my Turbo at Autohouse Porsche in Lancaster. I was looking for a used Turbo so I wasn't shopping discount %'s bit they were however pretty no hassle to negotiate with.
 
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