ked

yeah, I think of the 911 rear as a "further development" of the swingarm based upon lessons learned - maybe a swing too far.

the only way I can surprise (irritate) my friends w/ new Porsches is to dive in underneath (when they aren't paying attention, obviously), get sideways (driver-induced snapping) right in front of them, look through the side window & smile. thank God the new cars have great brakes & understeer so well.

Makmov

In Excellence Was Expected a 934 driver said the same thing. You don't drive it like you would anything else. Forget driving it in the corners and hitting the apexes. It was just hard on the brakes, slide into the corner, you were basically out of control of the car and hoped that you got it right. Then when it was pointed the right direction hard on the gas. That was the only way to be fast in one.

rusnak

That is how to drive on dirt.

The trailing arm was a huge advance over the swingarm. I've gotten into slides that could not be saved in the 356. The longer wheelbase 911s are much more stable, and late 80s 911s handle much better than late 70s, at least when comparing stock setups.

Porsche did not just slap wider tires on the car. They had a test drum that stayed in use until recently, when it was donated to a Stuttgart university, with Porsche retaining usage rights.

Porsche was very well of camber and toe changes, and the effects of roll, pitch, and wheel travel.

ked

in the early days of 356 competition in Germany, TTO was called "wischening" - maybe wischen you'd get out alive. some wags call the 356/911 "the most under-designed, over-engineered car in history." thus it is with many visionaries who eventually attain success - constant refinement of a wild idea.

the 934's single turbo set-up was not easy on the suspension - or the driver.
I've noted some top drivers comments on newer 996s & 997s; "they need some adjustment to eliminate understeer."

911tracker85

I have owned my '85 911 for over 20 yrs. but before I got it I recall reading an article about the IROC series when they used 911s.

I don't recall the drivers name, but remember his comment why he hated driving in the IROC.

to paraphrase his comment:
if you get into a corner too fast you have only one option. floor the gas and drive like a mad man.

whalebird

When Autometrics got their first 997 GT3, they had a lot of adjustments to make. They were discouraged in the beginning.

Makmov

I heard that one before.

Sounds good to me, when in doubt floor it.

whalebird

Makes you wonder what was wrong with the competition when all these flawed 911s were winning championships globally.

Makmov

They are not flawed.... They are just not like other cars.

They have always been a little underpowered and slow in the strights. They just killed everyone in the corners.

Ed Hughes

I think that was Bobby Allison, who up to that had probably never set his butt in a 911. But, you gotta give him credit, he got in the car and figured it out pretty quickly and learned to drive around the trait. Good race car drivers are those that can get in anything and go.

whalebird

"giant killers": Light, efficient, and flexible. Porsche could be consistent as much as anything else. I think that was a part of their stratagy, at least early on.

whalebird

Dayumm, 40% off at Advance Auto Parts(just saw the header at the top of the forum) I'm gonna kill em with my Ford trucks. I don't think you can use it for oil.

Sorry about the thread drift...this thread has had some TTO since the second page.

Makmov

And there bullet proof reliability went a long ways.

They have a 911 overall victory at LeMans! Beating out two high classes of prototypes.

I think they had a similar win at Daytona.

rusnak

All I EVER see up ^ there is AAA auto insurance. I think the new interwebz adverts are need based or something.

whalebird

YES. More than anything else. In many ways the same still applies today.