BrokeAss

Friday afternoon on the eve of a two-day drivers ed, we finally get the kinks worked out the PDAS system (details in seperate thread) I'm feeling relieved and ready to get loaded up and on the road to Sebring.

I pull into the garage and hear a horrible hissing noise. I grabbed a pair of vice grips and pulled a 3" long galvanized roofing nail from my rear tire which immediately goes completely flat. (Same damn thing happened the week before we went to PCA Parade!) I yank the tire off and head down to the local tire shop and have it patched. The patch doesn't hold air and has to be done three times before it holds air! The tire shop managed to beat up my rim pretty good, but naturally I don't notice the damage until Monday morning.

Our Porsche convoy hits the road two hours late. Dorothy is driving the C4 and I'm driving a rented van full of 22 tires, tools and other track gear for our friends. About 45 minutes into the drive Dorothy gets on the radio and reports that she's hearing a whining/squeaking noise coming from the car. I do what comes naturally to all husbands and completely dismiss my wifes report and chalk it up to squeaking from the Pagid Orange pads.

Monday morning we hit the track. The "blue" (intermediate student) group hits the track. My instructor for the day, Hugo, is at the wheel as we take a warm up lap around the track. We complete one circuit around Sebring's 3.7 mile, 17 turn course and begin our second lap when we hear a huge BANG from the rear of the car! The dashboard lights up like a christmas tree, the central alarm goes off and we roll off course in the direction of a group of safety workers. I see that the "belt" indicator light is illuminated as is the low battery light. I think to myself, we're cool - we just broke a belt. I'll have that replaced in no time flat - quick enough to get Dorothy out in the next run group.

Hugo and I stay in the car and limp it back to the pits with a safety vehicle escort. I hop out of the car, lift the deck lid and just walk away from the car cursing under my breath. Here's why.....

Oh sh*t!


I'm glad this thing didn't go through the deck lid!


Fan shrapnel and broken belts

It appears that an alternator bearing siezed. The fan belts just grabbed that thing and snapped it right off! I was pulling bits of fan blade shrapnel out of the engine bay with a pair of needle nose pliers.

Neither Dorothy or I was able to turn a single lap at Sebring! ....All that preperation! New turbo brakes, brake bias valve, Pagid pads, new 17" Yokahama tires - all the B.S. with the PDAS warnings, repairing a punctured tire. Needless to say we were both heart broken.

However, PCA people are the best! A local Sebring mechanic and PCA member offered to repair the car that night and began making phone calls in a vane attempt to find parts. Our region's treasurer loaded my wounded car onto his trailer and let me drive his 944 home. Tonight after work he's going to drop the car off at the garage for repairs and we'll load his 944 onto the trailer. It's great to have people like that helping you out when you need it!

Adrian

Dear Terry,
I actually a photo in my book of an alternator rotor that did the same thing on a UK based 964.
I would imagine your bad luck is really over now and once you stop calling your 964 names it will co-operate (just kidding).
Once you are back on the road I am sure you will feel better even if the wallet is a little lighter.
Anyone reading this post will now understand that when people post about rattles and whines in the rear end I always tend to get a little abrupt and say fix it. This is why.
Ciao,
Adrian
964C4

TMH

Terry,

How many miles on your car? I was reading your story and it sounded too familiar to another post from a guy I spoke with in July:
https://rennlist.com/forums/showthre...threadid=22652

Within that post, another 964 owner discusses the same thing which has just happened to him!

I note that there are some recommendations by other posters for replacements to be performed at the 75-100k mile range for possible prevention of what you and they went through. Hence my question on your car's mileage.

Thanks, and better luck on your next DE.

Tom

BrokeAss

Tom - thanks for the link to a similar thread. Somehow I managed to miss that one.

I've owned my C4 for a little over two years now and it has 66k miles on it. I drive fast but don't think I "beat it". I like to exercise it regularly at autocrosses. ....basically I think I use it the way Porsche engineers wanted us enthusiasts to! My car is regularly serviced and is in top-notch condition otherwise. Not a single oil leak! Ice-cold air, tight suspension, blah, blah, blah.

Adrian - I'm really looking forward to buying a copy of your book! As for name-calling, well I've tried lots of love and devotion. That hasn't really helped me out so I thought I'd try a little "tough love" to see if she'd respond to that. ....I guess she did, but not the way I expected!

Before it happened to me, I had never heard of this type of failure.

As a consolation prize, I did get a ride around the track as a passenger in a Radical SR3!!!! (details to be posted in the 993 forum) ....but we broke down too. (I must be jinxed!) An oil line to the oil pressure sensor backed out of the block and ended that ride.

Flying Finn

Terry,

I was so sorry to hear your misfortune when we heard it. But it was truly nice to see you guys not bithching etc. about it, instead you were taking photos, helping etc..
You even smiled when we made jokes about it (aren't friends wonderful?!).
I'm glad to see you didn't take us seriously and got pissed or something!
And like you said, it was great to see you got tow back home etc.

I hope you get if fixed soon and see you back at the track again!

BrokeAss

Thanks Finn! I was sick to my stomach that morning, but I snapped out of it pretty quickly. ....You can't change what's happen, but you can control how you react to adversity.

I spent most of Saturday afternoon snapping more than 100 photos with a friends top-quality digital camera. I even got permission to photograph from some of the corner worker stations. ....There will be lots of happy people who are going to have incredible photos of their cars at Sebring.

Wachuko

OMG!!! I had not seen this post when I updated the other one... forget about the buying that lotto ticket!

Sorry to see this mishap... man, do not give up on her...

Flying Finn

Terry,

I have new name for you car, it can't be called ungrateful b*tch (because oif revenge).

I think she should be called MS. BEHAVIN'

Check Billy Lane's Choppers Inc. (www.choppersinc.com), he's awesome chopper builder here in Florida (Melbourne).
Their "mascot" is called Ms. Behavin' and I think you can get their signature sticker of her.

johnfm

Look on the bright side.....with your much lighter wallet you'll turn in much faster times at your next autocross!!

Jeff Curtis

Wow Terry!!

...that's quite a story, with GREAT pics to boot! Almost makes me feel like my weekend wasn't that bad - just kidding, I'll leave that for YOU to decide, read my story.

The "Jeff Curtis-are you okay" thread.

Well, I guess I'll give the typical, "at least everyone was okay and the car didn't have any real damage".

I heard that ALL weekend.

I know, I know...what else are people going to say?

I'm sure you'll get it fixed in a jiffy, good luck on that...sorry you didn't get one lap in either.

BrokeAss

The good folks in the Suncoast Region (Tampa Bay Area) took pity on me and gave us both full credit towards a future drivers ed in their region. (how cool is that?!?!) I just completed a registration form for their November 15 event at Sebring.

PBOC is holding a two day event next month at the itty-bitty Moroso Motorsports Park in Palm Beach.

....so I'll get some seat time soon!