Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by a disintegration of the process of thinking and of emotional responsiveness. Let me explain my behavior when it comes to my two Porsches and ask you for yours:

The story:

Recently my friend had visited me with his family and we went to the park for an evening stroll. He drove his X5 and me in the Carrera 3.2. When it was time to go home we were walking towards our respective cars that was parked besides each other. Just as I was about to enter my car, I was caught completely by surprise when my good friend asked me to throw the keys to my ’86 coupe so that he could take a drive it back to our place (approx 4 miles). I had in fact asked him that very same morning if he wanted to take a ride with me in my ’86 coupe while I drive it. With no time to react I could not say no and did land up turning in the keys. What worried me the most was the fact that I was not next to him when he drove the car as I had to drive his car to come back home. I do know that he is a very experienced driver and has driven several manual transmission cars in his lifetime. But after hearing all the horror stories about how one missed shift can ruin gearboxes with synchros like the 915s … to this day I regret having given him the keys... what if he missed a shift ... gosh I should have politely said no to him which leads me to this interesting question for you all.

1) Does anyone say "no" 100 percent of the time?
2) Does it make a difference if the person is close to you ? (ie. your spouse or relative versus an casual aquaintance who admires the car).
3) How about when you are trying to sell the car ? Does the thought of a stranger taking the car for a test drive (usually a harder drive than a leisure cruise) raise fears in you mind ?
4) How many in this forum would say no even if they have several attributes like these: Courteous in general, respectful to cars, obey laws of traffic, knowledgeable about cars, skilled/experienced drivers, those who are passionate when it comes to caring for their own cars or those who are even hesitant to ask you if they can drive your car as they are well aware of what the car means to you.

Let me tell you my answers:

997

1) No
2) Yes.
3) No
4) Not me

3.2

1) No, atleast from now onwards.
2) No
3) Yes
4) I will still say no.

So as you can see I am less choosy when it comes to who drives my 997. You really cannot over-rev the engine that has a PDK gearbox and cannot burn the clutch since there is none. So any friend who shows respect and admiration for it gets to drive it. However I will always be the passenger next seat and will only let the other person drive it after I warm up the engine with a 15 minute self-drive during which time I educate them about the do's and don'ts of gear shifts. But why am I so concerned about my 3.2. Cars are after all meant to be driven and if not for Ed (Ivangene) who let me (a total stranger to him at that time) drive his 3.2, I would not have entered the air-cooled era. I have special respect and admiration for that guy. You rock Ed.

So is my schizophrenic behavior justified ? .... let me here yours ...

 

I think I mirror yours.... I would've spent a couple of minutes explaining some important issues, which would have probably scared the friend, and caused them to drive 60% of what they may have, but I probably wouldn't say no, if I knew the person, and I got to keep the X5 while the 911 was in the shop...

 

I have said no before.

 

When I test drove my car the owner offered for me to drive out of his house and I declined. He drove it for 15 minutes and then I asked to drive it. If I ever sell my car I will probably do the same, I'll drive it first and then let him/her drive after.

BTW, only my wife and my brother in law have driven my car.

 

I only let people I know well, and who can afford to fix it, drive my baby.
It's a short list that I can count on two fingers.

 

The only people who are allowed to drive the 3.2 are:

a) Related to me via blood or marriage (Most know better than to ask)
b) Life-long friends who have owned or driven 911s (not 996/997)

He put you in a tough spot and assumed you have the same level of indifference toward your car as he does his. Not a cool thing to do to a friend, IMHO.

 

1) No
2) No
3) Yes
4) No

I've only let one person drive my car, and he has his own Porsche so I figured it would be OK. I don't know if I'd ever let someone drive it without riding along though! ;-) I think your behavior is totally justified, w00t!

 

It's a car, pretty much anyone who wants to drive any of mine can. Yes, that includes the Radical.

If you think there's some secret handshake to driving a 915, I can recall 50+ customers of '72-'86 cars who had no clue how to drive a manual transmission, yet the cars soldiered on for years. Even more curious is how the 901 box'd cars survived day-to-day use into and past 100K.

 

I am tired and didnt read the entire post - but I will tomorrow


as for letting someone else drive my car HELL NO!! Aint never gonna happen!!

(unless.....I trust them, and I have trust issues)
SOOOO oddly I will toss my keys at only a few people. Here is the list:

Amar - Jason - Chris - Scotty

yup, thats about it, and there is NO WAY I would let anyone in my family/friends drive it !

So why Amar... I just have to say, from the moment I met Amar I knew without a doubt he was a real Porsche nut. There was an instant connection, and somehow I knew things were going to be OK - and after I got him over 3500 rpm, his eye lit up, the smile grew and his voice became exicited beyond my imagination - truly a moment of discovery where had I not allowed him to drive it I would have missed out on something very special - not sure how else to explain it.... I wont even let my own dad drive it......(professional truck driver for 50 years and avid pilot, knows how to shift and understands aircolled motors)

 

I let my wife drive my cars and would only let a few members of the local club, but I haven't let but 1 yet and he is my neighbor.

 

Some generous people who trusted me in their seat changed my life. I've had dozens of laps in highly developed track cars that were loaned to me on trust. I am anxious to share my Porsche with anyone who has the desire to experience it. Especially younger people who's brief, undivided, attention can be used to impart a responsible and safe driver's "lesson".
Ken...can I drive the Radical? Please please please.

 

I would let any friend drive any of my cars, as long as they could drive manual.

However, in that same situation I would have said: "Sure, but just let me give you a short drive first just so I can show you a little how it works... The clutch and gearbox are pretty different feeling to other cars." This would give me the chance to explain how I would two part shift etc. I would certainly not try to understate things... a little fear of doing damage would not be a bad thing to instill.

But at the end of the day, it is just a car and it's not that fragile.

However, when the shoe is on the other foot, I am much more conservative. I NEVER ask to drive a friend's special car, and decline if offered. I will glady go for a ride as a passenger though. I just don't want to take the risk (however remote) of doing something bad to it. Not that I think that it's virtuous (it's not), rather it's just my level of personal risk-aversion playing out.

When I am looking at a car to buy, I ride with the seller driving. I will only drive it when I get very serious about buying. As a matter of fact, I've ended up buying every car I test drove. I find I can get enough of the answers I need to rule a car out when riding as a passenger.

 

Dude you ruminate way too much. I think the disorder you are referring to is correctly named neurosis, not schizophrenia.

Relax, have some beers, watch some Porsche racing on TV.

 

In the year that I have owned my 3.2, no one else but me and the mechanic at the shop have driven my car.

I offered to let my wife drive it. She has driven manuals for 20 years, but she said "absolutely no way am I driving your Porsche!" I think she figured that would be the exact time something failed and she didn't want to be behind the wheel...

When I showed it off to my father-in-law we went on a long drive on some great roads and he shared in my enthusiasm. I offered to let him give it a try and he politely declined - probably for the same reason as my wife.

I would let select guys in the local club drive it... I would let some other car guy friends drive it. But I agree with many of you who would school them on it first and scare them with repair costs.

 

Hey Paul, can I borrow your Carrera

It will be five years since I picked up my Targa and I have given the offer to let someone else drive but they all declined

Only one that wants to drive the Porsche is my teenage daughter.
I will probably give her the opportunity in the spring as long as she keeps her grades up in school.

John