SSST

I was just reporting facts. I definitely prefer the hand brake.

Mike in CA

Just curious, are you referring to the slight engagement of the clutch at rest? How does that relate to the "P" parking lock position? I guess I don't understand what you mean.

Bob Rouleau

I believe one of the reasons for the electric brake relates to people who did not pull the manual lever hard enough and watched as their cars rolled away. Lawsuits ensued of course. "Whaddya mean I should have left the car in gear with the wheels turned into the curb?" .....

carcommander

I dont mind the electric hand brake. And do read the manuals. Hard to remember what it said on page 305 in an emergency though. Nothing is Idiot proof. :-)

Carrera GT

That was a pretty vague description. I mean, when parking a car with a conventional automatic transmission, the gear shift is put in "P" for Park, then, as the driver takes his foot off the brake pedal, the car will roll until the locking mechanism in the transmission engages and stops the car. The car will have a brief rocking action as the slack in the drivetrain flexes. The same is true for PDK, so I prefer to put on the handbrake (even though it's now inconveniently below the dash and it now makes a pathetic whining noise.)

It just strikes me as incompetent and neglectful -- the kind of thing you expect from a minivan soccer mum or hockey dad, like rolling down the freeway in the fast lane with faster traffic piling up behind, like leaving the turn signal blinking when it doesn't automatically cancel after a lane change, like wearing a hat, or steering with one lazy wrist hung over the top of the steering wheel ... all things not characteristic of someone that takes pride in their driving.

Just a laundry list of pet peeves, along with people that use a conventional handbrake without depressing the release button with their thumb, so it makes the clattering noise as it's engaged. They then ratchet the brake up as if trying to hold the car on a steep hill, even if they're on level ground.

The parking brake button, the PDK "shifter" assembly, the array of Nokia cell phone buttons and the minuscule storage space ... I'm seriously tempted to start "hacking" the 991 to put some of the controls where I'd like to have them and then figure out how to delete the whole console and PDK shifter ... I think the cabin would be much more comfortable without a center console. And for some strange reason, I think the car deserves a nice push button starter instead of a key ... after all, the ignition is located "outboard" for a reason ... to still have a key there when it could be a starter button suggests ignorance of that original design innovation ...

(okay, the elipsis key has worn out )

Mike in CA

Ok, now I get what you're talking about. PDK does have a mechanical lock. This from the 2009 Carrera Technik Introduction:

Parking lock
Even if the vehicle is in gear, it cannot be prevented from rolling back in the
same way as on a manual transmission because the clutches are opened in a
depressurized state and threfore do not stop the vehicle from moving.
The parking lock prevents the vehicle from rolling away, as with an automatic transmission.

When the vehicle is stationary, the parking lock is engaged (purely mechanically) using the selector lever and blocks the pinion shaft via a catch, which engages in the toothing of the parking-lock gear. The final drive is blocked in this way.

I imagine they had to have some slack built in to allow for successful engagement of the catch which would result in the rocking motion. Maybe they can refine it somehow in future PDK iterations. The mini-van comparison isn't a flattering one.

Carrera GT

Sadly the electronics people (the ones responsible for the car now having a calm "bong" noise for just about everything that can happen) have taken over the asylum. F'rsintance, if you're driving the 991, stop and take of your belt without stopping the engine, a little notice comes up and says "You've taken off your belt, don't you know how dangerous that can be?! Put it back on right now or I'm going to keep making this incessant bong-bong-bong noise."

This is one step away from those idiot-belts of the late 80's (like they put on the F40 for the USA driver ... the ones that ride along the door frame from the A pillar to the B pillar to compel the front seat passengers to be tucked in ... common in low-end Honda's ...)

Mike in CA

I agree about the electronic nannies. I was in the garage in my 997.2 today trying to set something up on the dash computer with the engine running. My seat belt wasn't fastened so I couldn't enter the computer menu. So I buckled my seat belt and the car still wouldn't let me do it because the hood was unlatched. (I know, I'm in the garage!) Had to wrestle myself out of the sport bucket and close the frunk just so I could access the damn computer. The 991 is just carrying on the tradition....

Carrera GT

I didn't realize the 997 is that finicky. Madness.

Overlapping this sort of "you've got to be kidding" excess of technology, I finally got to drive the 991 again after a week of my wife being quickest to grab keys and "generously" run errands and take the kids to school, etc. I finally noticed the damn car doesn't have memories for the mirrors and seats. Bugger me. $130K and no three little buttons on the door to keep the mirror settings? Sheesh. So I have to pay for the Nav as "standard" and no option to delete the $3K of obsolescent gadgetry and use my phone, but I don't get the $20 worth of buttons to access the memories (no doubt the electronics are in every car) but I paid $4500 for Sport "Plus" seats in leather ... under-facking-believable. And I didn't want to get the *** seats or the PDLS and pay $6000+ but that's the only way to get the keyless entry option.

Standard functionality on that damn Toyota Sienna minivan, but $6K options in a Porsche for three times the sticker. Can the dream team at Porsche marketing really think this is anything except insulting to the customer?

Why can't we go back to the 993, have a thick book full of options with a description, a drawing and a line-item price.

Packages should make things cheaper and convenient -- for the customer, not the factory or the order-takers at the dealership -- not more expensive and restrictive.

Mike in CA

+1

Palmbeacher

You might want to make sure your pharmacy didn't slip you some Chinese knock-off Zoloft...seems like your meds aren't working well.

Frankly I detest talking on the 'phone whilst driving, as much as I detest having the radio on. But I have to be reachable by my office or service for emergencies.

SSST

No memory buttons on the seats? Seriously? My 5 year old pickup has memory buttons on the seats. That would seriously annoy me since I'm 10" taller than my wife.

Wiley Hodges

I noticed that on the configurator for the 2013 models you can no longer order the 14-way power sports seats without the Premium Package or Premium Package Plus. Those packages also include the driver seat, mirror, and steering column position memory. And other stuff.

Zmoney3982

Carrera GT --
I have a 991 C2S and there are three memory buttons on the drivers side door. The memory saves not only the seat position but the mirrors, steering wheel, etc. Not sure what you are talking about?

Carrera GT

That's what I mean -- memory buttons on the door. It should appear as a separate line item on the window sticker of your car or perhaps as part of one of the premium packages just as "driver memory."

I won't be near the car for a couple of weeks, but I'll be endeavoring to have those little switches stapled onto the door. I assume the various wiring is already hanging behind the panel. PCM reports "key 1" and "key 2" and there's some settings for "personalization" that includes "auto store" (IIRC) but no additional explanation of how those settings all tie in. Just a niggling annoyance -- Porsche shouldn't "nickel and dime" the customer, as if that needs to be said.