Jeff_DML

Towards the end of this smoking tire 997TT review, ~17:30, he states the handling of the 996 is weird, inputs are odd and 997 is way better I have never driven a 997 turbo so I cannot personally comment.

"02996ttx50

stock 996 turbo handling IS weird. it needs some tweaking, to be sure.

btw the abs, psm alarming interventions, and that it's nearly an amphibious ride height... lol. whatever.

Jeff_DML

I have been wondering about the PSM reactivation when you hit the brakes and what happens on the track

"02996ttx50

i'm strictly ( unfortunately ) a canyon guy and not a tracker.. but i can tell you that i always drive w psm off and even though ( as pwdr will readily tell you ) it's never fully or genuinely "off" ( e.g. stab the brakes once and its back "on" ) as you say, its's annoying. it intervenes in ways that never seem predictable and it's honestly the abs that seems to bother me, more so than the psm ( maybe because its rwd? ), but the combo gets squirrely when in reality it is trying to save us from that very condition. i do know that early in my ownership of my first one, it surely saved my a**, ..but once you *really* get a feel for the car and it's inherent capabilities/limitations, that stuff can kinda get in the way. but at the end of the day, i suppose it all boils down to a personal preference. but i'm 575rwhp +/- with psm dash button off when pushing. the rest of time it doesn't matter. i'm just puttin' along.

one of these days removing the psm pump and doing whatever it takes to gut that system. thy will be done lol

Räserperra

Like a lot. Well spoken!

wross996tt

I came from a '78 930 w/Andial upgrades. It was scary fast. They called it widow maker for obvious reasons if you ever drove one. The K27 turbo would kick in and you literally had to hold on. The 996 turbo is so much more civilized. Funny exactly why I can't understand removing AWD...this was a huge improvement over the 930.

Berra

Why would you remove the pump? Just unplug it...

"02996ttx50

i have to go back and remember why pwdr has said ( unless i'm remembering incorrectly, which is entirely possible?? ) that simply unplugging it, isn't enough ( unless i am simply confusing that for the dash button "disable" which we all know is a fleeting experience ).

is that true? because if all i need to do IS unplug it, we'll be working on the car this weekend. can you confirm, unplugging will fully disable? thx in advance.

996tnz

Powderhound will know best but yes, pushing the PSM button to 'turn it off' still sees it active under braking. Unplugging it under the brake fluid reservoir in the frunk kills it properly. I get quicker and happier lap times without PSM. IMHO once you get properly to grips with the 996Ts handling, it feels a lot more lively, satisfying and predictable with PSM fully off. Never felt worse than when PSM unknowingly stayed on once at the track and just sledged the car wide like a zombie in a fast falling right hander. Normally I'd trail brake a bit heavier and get ready to catch the rear with some power and countersteering if overcooking an entry but without appreciable engine power I pretty much had no choice but to wait for the damn PSM to give me my car back - which it finally did just before we ran out of track.

Unplugging PSM kills it fully. The car still pulls power though if you brake while still on the gas so that particularly annoying function must live somewhere else.

ABS can be fully defeated by unplugging a similar connector on the opposite side of the frunk. Most of my track and race time has been with both fully off but I'm now experimenting with leaving ABS enabled for sprints.

Unplugging ABS has some downsides. It seems to kill the electronic brake proportioning too though unfortunately, reducing braking effectiveness a little. One or other (the ABS plug I think) also kills the e-diff that brakes an unloaded inside wheel to stop it spinning away traction on exit.

But the car is far more responsive with PSM unplugged, and there is presumably no risk of sudden 'ice mode' engagement (hard brake pedal but almost no brake power) anymore when ABS is also unplugged.

Jeff_DML

Thanks, do you leave it unplugged on the street or plug it back in after the track? Does it throw a light in the dash?

"02996ttx50

highlighting what i intuitively know. x'lnt post. this is helpful. even though i hate the stabs of the abs? i'm first going for that psm. terrifically informative. thanks very much.

i will wait on the abs, though i wonder if running with a tbd wavetrac will help, that situation you describe, as i am currently rwd. the addition of the wavetrac has eliminated every single open diff situation i have encountered. or near as i can tell. it sure helps as it "locks" so there's never really an "open diff unloaded" wheel.

powdrhound

Like nz said, unplugging the pump kills PSM completely while leaving ABS intact. Just shutting it off with the button does very little because it comes back on under braking, which is exactly where you WANT it OFF so that you can slip and rotate the car under braking. If you unplug it you will have to live with a recurring ding and a "PSM failure drive to workshop" msg in the center of the cluster every 30 minutes. You just have to reclear it with the stalk.

By ripping the system out you can get some money out of it. I sold the ABS pump, PSM pump, and yaw sensor for $2k.

"02996ttx50

outstanding, thanks for checking in. i know i've been babbling about forever.. but summers comin'. it's gotta go. thx again, for the clarification...and that "resume after braking" is as annoying as anything about the car to me, as i feel i no longer need/want it.

996tnz

ABS typically still engaged on street (except for road Targa rally events with closed road stages etc), but for a long time it was failing out by itself and that didn't bother me either. As for PSM, I personally find it much safer to have power available whenever I need it, rather than having her engine being dropped down to minicar levels of power for a second or two while the car settles on pulling out of driveways with uneven surfaces. When turning into a line of traffic I look to accelerate hard enough to avoid holding anyone up, rather than wallowing about in front of them until the car decides it's ready to resume normal service.

Both systems throw a light (ABS red, PSM yellow) when disabled but that's never bothered me.

Not sure who else may read this but I will add that it's still a good idea to do some skidpan/autocross/gymkhana/track practice with those systems disabled to ensure appropriate reactions if the car gets a bit loose - particularly if in the habit of driving assertively on street. She's wonderfully predictable if driven with the right inputs but a sustained panic stomp on the brakes while cornering near the limit would not be one of those.

Berra

Too late here but yes, it will be fully off if you unplug it. I've tried it and you get the error on the dash ofc but that's a minor thing.

I'm still confused as to why Porsche did this. First, why let the GT3/GT2 out with No PSM at all? Why give us the Turbo which is Awd with it? Its more of a GT car for the roads! And to not be able to fully turn it off? This is one thing I hate about the car, actually pisses me off that a regular 3-series BMW can have its systems off but a Porsche Turbo can't...

Even the Carrera GT has no PSM...