Dumb things you did in your Pcar

[porschemikeandnancy]

When we were young(er), we all probably pushed the envelope. What did you do "outside the box?"

Here are "my stories"
1. I was stuck behind the slowest driver on the planet. Doing perhaps 20 mph on a four lane suburban street (no homes or buildings at this part of the road - just woods on either side). Posted limit 40 mph. This driver was also straddling both lanes making it impossible to pass - other than crossing a double white line between the two lanes on each side of the road. And there was oncoming traffic anyway.

So I passed on the right hand side - actually driving off the road and onto a sidewalk (no curb at this point - just road lanes, maybe 4 feet of grass, then a nice wide sidewalk). Only took 5 seconds or so to rocket past. The car was a '72 911T (with sportomatic tranny). Wow, was the slow driver surprised. (As an aside, the Sportomatic tranny had one very insidious feature. There was a microswitch in the gearshift lever - which declutched the car as soon as you moved the gearshift even slightly. The problem was if you went around a left hand turn at speed, your right leg would naturally move to the right (centrifugal force). Occasionally, ones right leg would contact the shift lever - instantly declutching the car - which on that year car would induce terminal oversteer.

2. A decade and a half later. Driving an '89 911 Cab. on Route 3 North between Burlington Ma and Nashua NH. My passenger was an ultraconservative engineer (drove an econosedan - and never more than 10 mph below the speed limit). So, I gradually crept up to about 90 mph. The passenger sort of "tensed up" and casually asked: "how fast are we going?". I then increased to about 110 mph. I said "110 mph". He started screaming. I slowed down back to about 70 and said: "I kept it to only 110 on your account. Normally, I cruise this stretch at about 120". Funny, he never rode with me in a car again.

What are your stories?

[AOW162435]

I jumped a creek like Luke Duke in my 993.


Andreas

[jhummel68]

Originally Posted by AOW162435

I jumped a creek like Luke Duke in my 993.


Andreas

Are you serious? I just can't see you doing that with your car - maybe if it was a rental or borrowed?

[ReinerFink]

I drove around for two days with the lug security key stuck on the right front wheel nut...

[haygeebaby]

I first got into Pcars when I was working in HK. At that time I was searching for the right 911 to buy. I looked at a lot of cars and decided to check out a 996 that was being sold by Jebsen. The car was a C2 3.4, black on black, but the prevously owner had spent a bomb on it. He must have purchased the car in anticipation for the GT3 Mk1. The car had heaps of options - full gt3 body kit, sports design wheels, large carbon fibre kit, sport seats in carbon, alcantara roof lining, sports suspension, and more - hell - the vents on the air conditioner where covered in leather as well. It was one great looking car.

Anyway we took it for a test drive. Jebsen who are in Lai Chi Kok district use a great uphill road for test drives - 3 lanes either side and uphill with not much traffic. We went up and down a few times, swapping drivers (my friend and I) during the 1st run down and 2nd run up. I took the first drive up and then the final drive back down to the show room. Well - on the last run I decided to really test drive the car and I decided to turn the traction control off. Going down hill at around 120kph around a bend the rear came out and the car drifted into the lane of the on-coming traffic - and there was a big double decker bus coming towards us.

Luckily I was able to control the car and the 3 of us lived. I vividly remember the sales man - who was stuffed in the back - yell out as the car driffed, and my friend who was the passenger grabbing onto whatever he could find. I drove back very slowly and apologized several times to the passengers.

[haygeebaby]

After getting a silver C2 993 in Hong Kong, I started to go on spirited drives at night, to find nice roads to drive on. HK is a small place, traffic is real bad, and the roads are generally shite. Anyway, I lived in Kennedy town and it was near Cyber Port - a newish area that was a failed tech city. They had great new roads and where by the ocean.

I remember driving up the hill just after the round about from the Meridian Cyberport hotel. It's a nice new road, long and curving to the right, overlooking the ocean. I remember gunning it up the hill the first time and I have never driven on the road before. So going uphill and just as you pass the peak of the hill the road takes a sharp right. I must have been doing around 140kpm in second at around 5k rpm - the car was moving. Then I saw the sharp right - in my mind I said shit and thought that I was going to go over the cliff - I slammed on the brakes hard and turned the steering to the right to follow the road. Man - the car just went with it and I negotiated the turn.

My heart was pounding and on the way home I drove home slowly as you can expect. If some dudes where watching they would have thought I was a good driver - crazy - but skilled in the 911. But man - I figure that's another 1 of the 9 lives I have gone.

[race911]

Dumb? Which one? Certainly not much in either of the 993's (too old now). Nor likely the 964's. So we've got to step back to the mid-'90's I suppose. From 1980 until then there was more than one occasion of "not taking it to the track". Even some off pavement running; first motorsports interest was off road rallying. Can't say anything untoward happened in the back of any of my 911's. But more than one dumb thing (hey, beer goggles?) maybe happened in the passenger seat up front????

[haygeebaby]

I got plenty more stories - but one more for you guys.
In HK I always parked my car on the Peak - in the Galleria. The best car park in HK in my mind. So I would drive up and down the peak regularly. It's one of the best drives in HK. Being the Peak in HK, you can expect to see a lot of exotics going up and down. You name it - someone living on the Peak will own it.

One day I was driving up and in front of me was a red F430 and no traffic. We both went for it. Now the peak is a two lane road with traffic going up and down. The roads are very curved and they hug a mountain (the Peak) and on the other side is a great view. So if you go over - you go down a long way.

I could feel the F430 pull away, but on this type of road with curves and short straights, I'm keeping up in my dinosour 993. When the F430 was cornering - man - I could see it was planted and on rails. My car was on stuffed Monroes - but considering - still keeping up.

So here we are - doing a run on the peak - enjoying the tight corners and good cliff like views. At one turn I'm up the F430's arse and all of a sudden a big double decker comes around the corner. He's taking up 110% of his lane - since the roads a narrow and the bus is megga big. We both slam on the brakes. The people on the bus must have been calling us dickheads. And we where in hindsight. Lucky to live but a real enjoyable and memorable moment.

After these events - all I can say is slow down - drive safe and know your limits. Hope you enjoyed a few of my stories.

[RJT]

I'm not telling........

[Robin 993DX]

I ran from a cop in Georgia, and got away.

[truegrit]

My first porsche was a nearly new 02 996. Showing off for my father on his first and only time in the car I took a corner to fast entering a freeway. Rear end slid out, spun a 360 on the narrow one lane ramp and ended up in the dirt incline shoulder crushing in the front and rear bumper covers and breaking the beads on two tires and damaging the wheels. Limped the car home with grass embedded in the bead lock. Two months later the car was totaled in downtown Oakland by a red light runner. Thankfully the motorist had good insurance and paid for my 97 S so all turned out well. I think about that incident everyday when I use the freeway on ramp.

[twinreds]

Not on my 993 but on my 930.
I had just gotten the 930 and was like a kid on Christmas day. I went down into a "parkway" (somehow, in Pittsburgh they call their throughways within the city that way) and stuck the pedal to the metal. I reached 160 mph (I swear, I'm not lying) before I had to quit because obviously the exit came in too soon (and maybe I was getting a little scared). Five minutes later I learned that if the police catches you over 100 mph, is not the license they ask for, it's the wrists (to put handcuffs on). Luckily, I learned it from the friend that was sitting next to me during the escapade, to whom I did not listen at all sinnce I was so enthusiastically breaking the law...

[Arena993]

I changed my oil for the 1st time on my 1st P-car (1986 911 cab) and had no idea how much oil it held. I had a 6 quart container under the car and removed my drain plug. Well it looked like the Exxon Valdez rand aground in my garage. I've never changed my oil from that date on. Seriously, that was a huge mess.

Mike

[Cactus]

Originally Posted by AOW162435

I jumped a creek like Luke Duke in my 993.


Andreas

Was this on the way to Thomas when you took off down that dirt road? Dummy!

[jhummel68]

What happens in WV, stays in WV!