Horological Meandering

patrick_y
[PuristSPro Moderator]
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Driving 911 are extremely difficult.

The earlier 911 models such as the 996 and 997 chassis were fickle machines. If you didn't feather the throttle mid turn, you could spin the car. And one thing that's unique about 911s is that you can actually start getting on the throttle super early mid-turn. Right around the point of the apex, you can start accelerating again. Where in traditional front engine or mid-engine cars, you can't really start thinking about getting on the gas pedal until after you've started to straighten the steering wheel out. This makes driving the 911 very unnatural, and to drive a 911, you have to reprogram your brain around this unique attribute to get the most out of the car. The reason for this is due to the unusual weight distribution of the 911 and other factors. While you're right at the apex in a 911, you're actually in a time where you have the least amount of grip in the entire driving process. At this point, the back has very little grip and is about to "spin out" or start to rotate. Also, by the time you sense the rotation, it is often too late to correct in a 911. And the rotation is so small at first, that if you correct, you may likely overcorrect and start a counter-rotation. Thus, at the apex, you have the least amount of rear grip. Thus, what should you do? You should actually hit the gas early! Increasing pressure smoothly on the gas pedal actually brings more weight to the back! Meaning you have more grip in the back, and this reduces the likelihood of spinning out! But don't do this in a front engine or even a rear engine vehicle, as this will likely be too early and you'll create an oversteer/understeer situation. So it's a delicate balance and precision, a slight imbalance or not enough throttle precision and you'll break the traction bond and spin out and hit the wall. Too late of a throttle application and you'll lose way too much time (about 0.3 to 0.6 seconds per turn) and you'll definitely lose to a mid-engine car or a 911 driven well. When I was in my 20s, I could just never really master driving a 911. And thus I decided I preferred the mid engine cars more. I guess I'm kind of stupid or stubborn in not being able to learn how to adapt to a 911. But in a 911, this extremely counter-intuitive thought is what makes the car very fast through corners. Now I think you need a nice whisky to drink to think about all of this! Here on WPS, most of us are Scotch drinkers - we just had a little Macallan party in Le Sentier in June at Amanico's factory tour of JLC. But what kind of Bourbon do you like? Oh, and modern 911s, since 2012/2013 all don't have this problem, since the 991 generation, all of these difficulties are programmed out thanks to extensive computer programming that makes the 911 super easy to drive. There's no more risk of spinning out. So just remember to start apply throttle much earlier than you expect and all will be fine. Even if you're not precise enough, the computer knows the traction limits of the machine, so if you put in too much power, the computer will reinterpret your actions and keep the car on course. What a computer!

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