Thanks McJohn - this makes me feel better and the more I think about it the more I'm sure there must have been some fuel on the ground. It was an unexpected spin and there was a real fuel smell when I stopped. Thinking this gives me more confidence in the car again. Not enough confidence to try anything silly, tho! Like the sportsbike analogy a lot

 

I thoiught so too! - Traction lost though on spilled fuel / diesel is a totally differnt situation -
Re-settling the car with a little touch of the brake or a little touch odf the throttle is situation dependent. On ice or spilled fule changes the whole story and all you can do is go for the ride - hpoefully correcting with sterring to miss the big stuff.

Interesting. I had thought that with a 911 lifting would cause a lightening of the rear and could cause the back end to step out. I was under the impression that getting back into the throttle, if only just a bit, would re-settle the car and was the proper action. Though I'm not sure I'd have the courage or presence of mind to do it!

 

Wait untill it happens in the dry.............................twice I've had the car pendulum on me, once on a shell grip roundabout....It frightened the hell out of me, and in both instances I had to back off the accelerator and catch it on the steering, both times it was swinging like some demented ape.....refreshing it most certainly isn't...ha ha.....

Kevin

 

As Geoffrey said once in the spin if you lift the back end will snap back rather quickly so long as your back end is not already too far around. Always makes for a rather exciting moment.

 

I can safely say that an LSD seems to make oversteer more predictable which is great fun but at the same time - if indeed it was a diesel spill then I don't think there is much you could do....

 

Another thing to think about with the 964... The old saying two feet in does two things; first it protects the engine and geabox by pushing in the clutch which prevents the engine from spinning backwards and likely bending valves. Second, in a normal car it locks the wheels and allows the car to spin in a straight line. With the 964 however, the ABS will not allow the wheels to lock and your direction will be unpredictable compared to a car without ABS which allows the car to spin straight. Beginning in the 964, the motorsports cars (Cup, RS, Turbo LM) there was an ABS disable switch on the dash, and later a pressure override switch was installed which allowes you to press through the ABS and spin the car.

 

I had a spin when I hit a patch of ice in a turn.As the car was spinning I was heading right to a palet of bricks for a house undergoing an addition.The car spun a few times on the ice.I was mearly along for the ride.I think I was to shocked to be firghtend untill after the car stopped and I had a moment to think what had happened.I was traveling on a four lane road.Eventhoe I had been from one side to the other the car stopped one lane over facing the rigth way.It was at this point I thought I was going to vomit and loose controll of my bowel and bladded function.Haven't had here out in bad weather since.

 

When i had my 88 carrera i was told never take your foot off the gas when going round a bend.Always use the slow in fast out technique.I had a rear end out experience when i had to suddenly slow down at a traffic island in the wet due to an accident ahead ,i managed to save it spining but the car fishtailed a bit.it taught me only drive in the wet with a rwd 911 if you really have to.
So far my c4 seems a load more stable in the wet.

 

Given that all driving situations are different and under certain conditions each car is going to act a little different based on the way it is set-up - but I know that for most of the conditions where I have had the tail coming out underpower where I have backed off fully, I hav lost traction not gained it and had the rear end go further out trying to create a spin - it is only the reapplication of power, along with a steering control movement, that has brought the car back under control. Given - this is in a situation where the rear wheels can regain traction (not on ice or in a fuel spill).

 

The fuel smell may well have been from your own tank, I got this on a driver training day every time I span a strong smell of fuel entered the cabin - I guess because I had a full tank and petrol was coming out of the filler neck due to the violent movement of the car.

The only time I get snap oversteer like that is in the rain with too much throttle and too many revs - when this has happened to me, I've never been able to recover it.

This is different to the 'classic' 911 moment where you enter a bend too fast, lift off the throttle causing oversteer - this is usually recoverable by getting back on the gas and for me is the most enjoyable part of driving a 964 - it's so adjustable on the throttle.

 

Ah, this reminds me of my semi spin thanks to some fuel on the road...

Hmm, it was a few years ago so I can admit it now. The night before I filled the tank, in the process I had to move my car from a broken pump to a working one. The next morning, I was out early to go to an autocross. The engine was cold, so I was taking it easy while taking this 270-degree right hander. It happened so fast, it was unbelievable. All of a sudden I was facing the sidewalk, with a splash of some liquid on the windscreen.... Hmm, must be water, I said. Only after pulling onto a safer location I was able to realize that I forgot to put the gas cap on the evening before, and the centrifugal forces conveniently dumped some fuel straight out of the filler neck, under the right rear wheel... oh man... then I went to the gas station ans claimed my cap

 

Not a Porsche moment, but once got diesel on both rear driving wheels on a Lexus I had. The thing would hardly even climb a hill, until the stuff was gone. Worse than ice actually !"

 

I stayed on the road this morning! Go on my driving skills!