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Coupes & Convertibles Porsche 911 Porsche 911
2052 messages, Last post on Dec 08, 2009 at 6:52 PM
You are in the Porsche 911 Forum. Your Host is claires
I am considering my first Porsche, a 2002 911 Cabriolet. I drove it while vacationing in AZ last week. I know little about the cars, but am learning quickly. The car seems in excellent condition and was acquired at auction on the East Coast by the present dealer in used cars. It has the 18" wheels that seem to be a point of contention among owners due to vibration. I believe they were an original option on the car. Any advice on that issue and others? It spent its past year in Pennsylvania. Should I be concerned about corrosion? live 100 miles from my nearest service center. Thanks.
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Replying to: novice14 (Jun 06, 2007 4:58 am) These cars are not hard to find, so you don't have to jump at the first one you see either. As for the 18" wheels, most of the complaints were excessive creaking and cracking noises at the windshield and the rear windows, from chassis flexing due to the 18" wheels. So if you hear no such noises over rough roads, then you're okay. As for vibration, I've heard and read mention of it but can't get any details beyond a kind of "rumor" about that. Could be it's so rare as to be dismissed as likely. |
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Chromedome: I agree entirely. I have a few more years on you (about to turn 63) and one more Porsche, just acquired my 5th. Had a '69 911 back in the early '70s, then a new 914, then a '73 911 targa, then nothing for 25 years. Got married, bought houses, put 2 kids through college, etc. Leased a 2000 Boxster new and drove it for 3 years, then got out of the program again. About a month ago I picked up a 2004 C2 cab with 17,500 miles on it. I think I could win the part of the Cheshire Cat in an Alice in Wonderland performance. The feeling and enjoyment are almost beyond words. Did I get the best deal on the planet? Probably not. Did I pay too much? Probably. Practical? No way, shape, or form. Trunk space is an absolute joke. But I got a car with almost 2 years of warranty left on it; got it from a Porsche dealer with whom I have done business with in the past, and a service manager whom I trust implicitly. Atlas Gray, black top, black interior, BOSE upgrade (waste of $$$, I want to hear the mechanicals), bi-xenons, heated seats, 18" wheels with color crest centers, and not much else. So far it has been outstanding. I'll worry later about where I'm going to get the $1,000 for new tires next year. Unlike you I did not pay cash for it so I am looking at car payments. But, the house is paid for, the kids are out of college, my retirement is secure, I can handle a car payment. If this is my mid-life crisis, what a way to go!
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Replying to: jerseyguy1 (Jun 07, 2007 11:46 am) Congrats , and enjoy your car... ain't life great! Chromedome |
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"ain't life great! " so far, so far. just got to those PSA test numbers looking good! |
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Greetings; I have a good friend, a younger man, who enjoys fast cars and in our discussions always states that he uses his car in a manner for which is was built. ( He scares the crap out of me when I'm the the right seat ! ), he holds the edge on safety..reasonably close anyway. Taking his heed, I warmed up the old 997 yesterday and went to my favorite, cop-less stretch of road and pushed it. Running through 2nd and 3rd, trying to come as close as possible to redline to see what my C2S was capable of, I went over a bit, maybe to 7600 rpm and the rev-limiter kicked in....boy the engine just died and re-engaged at 6800rpm.. Has anyone ever done that before...guys??? I'm sure the limiter is there for that reason... I've never experienced that before. Chromedome.
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Replying to: chrmdome (Jun 11, 2007 9:13 am) 
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Replying to: chrmdome (Jun 11, 2007 9:13 am) |
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Replying to: chrmdome (Jun 11, 2007 9:13 am) And it is, in fact, unnecessary to eek maximum performance out of the car. As the host pointed out, peak power in any gear comes before redline. The practice of pushing the car a little past redline was used in early 911's that were 4 and 5 speed manuals, in order to increase the rpms for the higher gear you were shifting into. But with the perfectly geared 6-speed in the 997 model, shifting at 6,800-7,100 rpms puts the next gear in its entry point sweet spot for maximum acceleration. You will not find any accomplished Porsche driving instructors hitting the rev limiter on their way to track times that you or your friend couldn't come close to matching. For someone who, if I'm not mistaken, meticulously takes care of their car and drives it sparingly to keep it looking perfect, running the rpms up to 7,600 past the rev limiter is a ill conceived way to "see what the car can do". That manuever will also show up on a computer readout of the engine and, frankly, I would never buy a car that had been rev limited, no matter how clean your interior and wheels were. Did you do any damage this one time - unlikely. But Porsche engineers put the redline there for a reason - and give you the ability to achieve maximum acceleration and hit top speed without exceeding it. You wouldn't run into a wall to test your airbag system. Running the engine to 7,600 rpm to test the rev limiter isn't a whole lot smarter.
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Replying to: redsoxgirl (Jun 12, 2007 3:11 am) I don't quite understand the relationship between my keeping my car clean and using the car, whooo edgy! If anyone had an intention to actually see if the rev limiter would function, it certainly would not be me. It was a mistake on my part. I can't see anyone here on this forum at some time or another not having the rev limiter kick in in 1st gear at least once. Oh well...logically if you have driven the car 400 times and reached red line 399 times your warranty would go void...they put the rev limiter there for a reason and it is most likely at a point relatively far from engine damage, unless you over-rev on a DOWNSHIFT! Have you ever missed a shift? The rev limiter is there for a reason... just like child resistant caps on a prescription medication vial... it's used before damage occurs. If it's chronic it's a problem. The people at Porsche are smart and I'm sure there is a great deal of latitude between cut off and damage. I am sure that I never mentioned in my post that I was running a test...I was looking for info because it was unintentional. See ya! Chromedome |
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