Porche Experience!
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 943
Likes: 3
From: Chicago IL
Porche Experience!
Saturday was a nice day so the family and I drove to see my father who has a 1985 and 1997 911 Porche’s. I rode in both before, but he let me drive the 1997 on Saturday with him. WOW, that thing is an amazing car. That thing corners like it’s on rails. One thing I did notice is that the steering, even though it corners better, was not as tight as that on my C4. Seriously, going into a corner in the C4 you can feel the car. The Porche just seemed too easy. It really didn’t feel like you had to drive it. Now, I know that is a good thing, but when driving I like to actually drive the car. I honestly think my C4 would stay close to this thing in some tight turns. No doubt I would blow his doors off in a drag race as his 911 is not a turbo. Later, I let my dad drive the C4 and he said the same thing about the steering. He was very impressed at how it tracked in the corners. Oh well, I thought I would share this experience. I suppose you have to compare apples to apples and both these cars are two different animals.
Race Director
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 17,551
Likes: 26
From: El Paso Texas
Saturday was a nice day so the family and I drove to see my father who has a 1985 and 1997 911 Porche’s. I rode in both before, but he let me drive the 1997 on Saturday with him. WOW, that thing is an amazing car. That thing corners like it’s on rails. One thing I did notice is that the steering, even though it corners better, was not as tight as that on my C4. Seriously, going into a corner in the C4 you can feel the car. The Porche just seemed too easy. It really didn’t feel like you had to drive it. Now, I know that is a good thing, but when driving I like to actually drive the car. I honestly think my C4 would stay close to this thing in some tight turns. No doubt I would blow his doors off in a drag race as his 911 is not a turbo. Later, I let my dad drive the C4 and he said the same thing about the steering. He was very impressed at how it tracked in the corners. Oh well, I thought I would share this experience. I suppose you have to compare apples to apples and both these cars are two different animals.
Well, my Porche experience is a bit more limited, and I have to admit I'm baffled by a few things.
The last Porche I encounted was a 8x16 unit we built out of Cedar at my mom's place. It offers panoramic views, and is wonderful for BBQ's, watching the sun set, or even reading a nice book. In fact, on this Porche you can even get a full dinette set on it with room to spare. A Cedar Porche is perfect for family get togethers. It's quite sturdy, and cedar is known for its maintenance free properties and insect resistance....and it weathers to a nice shade.... but I wouldn't say it handles well as I can't figure out how one would drive it. And even my Crossfire Corvette is considerably faster than this Porche.
Maybe I measured something wrong during the construction.
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 943
Likes: 3
From: Chicago IL
Yeah, my dad really seems to like but I wasn't all that impressed. Maybe if it had the turbo it would be more fun. It seems like you have to keep the RPM's really high just to feel any power. I suppose that would be the same with turbo in order to keep in spooled up.
Race Director
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 17,551
Likes: 26
From: El Paso Texas
It's a different kind of sports car experience. Like you said, they like to wind up, which can be a whole lot of fun in the right situation (curvy mountain roads and spirited shifting come to mind). The Vette is a torquey car....tons of fun stoplight to stoplight. Each has their place, and neither is a slouch.
I'll see if I can dig up a pic of my sis's 911.
I'll see if I can dig up a pic of my sis's 911.
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Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 943
Likes: 3
From: Chicago IL
It's a different kind of sports car experience. Like you said, they like to wind up, which can be a whole lot of fun in the right situation (curvy mountain roads and spirited shifting come to mind). The Vette is a torquey car....tons of fun stoplight to stoplight. Each has their place, and neither is a slouch.
I'll see if I can dig up a pic of my sis's 911.
I'll see if I can dig up a pic of my sis's 911.
What year is your sisters? Is it a turbo?
Racer
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 299
Likes: 0
From: Bahrain
So the boy scouts came around and the old guy says "I don't know much
about painting so here's a can of paint, I'll give you $20 to paint the porch".
Two hours late the scouts knock on the door and get paid.
As they were leaving they said "you don't know much about cars either,
it's a Ferrari, not a Porsche!"
about painting so here's a can of paint, I'll give you $20 to paint the porch".
Two hours late the scouts knock on the door and get paid.
As they were leaving they said "you don't know much about cars either,
it's a Ferrari, not a Porsche!"
Race Director
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 17,551
Likes: 26
From: El Paso Texas
Race Director
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 17,551
Likes: 26
From: El Paso Texas
Here's a pic.....scanned from a 25 year old snapshot, forgive the quality. The pics don't do it justice, it's a very nice car. They don't drive it much anymore, but back in the 80's we had a lot of fun with it.
Last edited by Frizlefrak; Oct 26, 2009 at 03:40 AM.
Race Director
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 17,551
Likes: 26
From: El Paso Texas
Wow, your dad's car is sharp! Porsches are great cars and a lot of fun to have. They can be on the pricey side to repair....both for parts, and labor if you don't wrench on it youself. My sis has offered to sell me hers a couple of times....I may take her up on it some day. It's never spent a night outside of a garage, never been in rain or snow etc.
Cool thread.
Cool thread.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 1,061
Likes: 99
From: Seattle WA
It's a different kind of sports car experience. Like you said, they like to wind up, which can be a whole lot of fun in the right situation (curvy mountain roads and spirited shifting come to mind). The Vette is a torquey car....tons of fun stoplight to stoplight. Each has their place, and neither is a slouch.
I have a '78 911 targa and have had a 924 turbo and 928 in the past. Any of you ever driven a 928? You should. GM actually had one on hand when they were designing the C4. The 928, IMO is like the C4 but without its shortcomings (body flex, crappy interior). They're cheap to buy, but owning one sucks since there isn't much of a following and parts are $$$ and/or hard to come by. Little mod potential, too, which is too bad since the early ones are a bit underpowered by today's standards.The 911 is a different animal - light (24-2700lbs), tossable, and the most "road feel" you'll get in a car. The DO have to be driven differently, though (think 4000-6500rpm).
Race Director
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 17,551
Likes: 26
From: El Paso Texas
I've never driven a 928, but what kid that came of age in the 80's didn't want to? After all, Tom Cruise immortalized it. I always loved the look of the car. I do remember there was some backlash from Porsche-a-philes about having a liquid cooled V8 in a "traditional" longitudinal layout.
They do seem to be cheap to buy these days, but as you said, parts prices and availability could be an issue. Too bad....I wouldn't mind adding one to the stable some day. On the other hand, if I can squeeze a V8 into a Fiero, I'm sure I could adapt other parts to work in a 928 as well. Hmmmmm......
They do seem to be cheap to buy these days, but as you said, parts prices and availability could be an issue. Too bad....I wouldn't mind adding one to the stable some day. On the other hand, if I can squeeze a V8 into a Fiero, I'm sure I could adapt other parts to work in a 928 as well. Hmmmmm......
Roadster Madness. 😠
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 6,289
Likes: 2,357
From: Ventura Co Ca
SoCal Regional Events Coordinator
St. Jude Donor '13, '20-'21
So the boy scouts came around and the old guy says "I don't know much
about painting so here's a can of paint, I'll give you $20 to paint the porch".
Two hours late the scouts knock on the door and get paid.
As they were leaving they said "you don't know much about cars either,
it's a Ferrari, not a Porsche!"
about painting so here's a can of paint, I'll give you $20 to paint the porch".
Two hours late the scouts knock on the door and get paid.
As they were leaving they said "you don't know much about cars either,
it's a Ferrari, not a Porsche!"
Roadster Madness. 😠
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 6,289
Likes: 2,357
From: Ventura Co Ca
SoCal Regional Events Coordinator
St. Jude Donor '13, '20-'21
They do seem to be cheap to buy these days, but as you said, parts prices and availability could be an issue. Too bad....I wouldn't mind adding one to the stable some day. On the other hand, if I can squeeze a V8 into a Fiero, I'm sure I could adapt other parts to work in a 928 as well. Hmmmmm......
If you have not seen the program, they show you how to buy a car, then how to repair it, and then how to sell it. They do differant makes each program.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 2,940
Likes: 5
From: Chesapeake VA
My Godfather had a 1984 928 and a 1999 Boxster
My Friend has a 2007 911 Carrera "S"
I have an 86' auto and 99' 6 speed vette.
I have had the good fortune to drive all 3 cars. All are very nice cars.
The 928 is definitley the closest to a vette and has the V8 rumble and low end grunt.
The Boxster is a nice car, but I drove it in 99' a few months after I bought my 99' vette and all I could think about was how badly my C5 would destroy the Boxster. The Boxster was also waayyy too quiet. If I paid that much money for an engine, I want to hear it.
The 07' 911 was very, very nice and I was surprised at how much low end torque the car had. The sound of the flat 6 coming through the rear seats into the cabin is addicitive! It seemed to handle well, but I was hesitant to throw around a relatively new (it had 10K miles on it) $80K+ car that wasn't mine.
I would like to own a 911 at some point, just for the experience. A 996 carrera, 2 wheel drive, 6 speed, while looked down upon by the Porsche community, will be perfectly fine for me.
One more thing, the "Wheeler Dealers" program that vette Jocky refers too is a great show!
My Friend has a 2007 911 Carrera "S"
I have an 86' auto and 99' 6 speed vette.
I have had the good fortune to drive all 3 cars. All are very nice cars.
The 928 is definitley the closest to a vette and has the V8 rumble and low end grunt.
The Boxster is a nice car, but I drove it in 99' a few months after I bought my 99' vette and all I could think about was how badly my C5 would destroy the Boxster. The Boxster was also waayyy too quiet. If I paid that much money for an engine, I want to hear it.
The 07' 911 was very, very nice and I was surprised at how much low end torque the car had. The sound of the flat 6 coming through the rear seats into the cabin is addicitive! It seemed to handle well, but I was hesitant to throw around a relatively new (it had 10K miles on it) $80K+ car that wasn't mine.
I would like to own a 911 at some point, just for the experience. A 996 carrera, 2 wheel drive, 6 speed, while looked down upon by the Porsche community, will be perfectly fine for me.
One more thing, the "Wheeler Dealers" program that vette Jocky refers too is a great show!
Last edited by Square; Oct 26, 2009 at 05:52 PM.