Race Car Driver David Donohue becomes PCNA's '918 Client Relationship Manager'
06-30-2014, 03:14 PM
#17
Nordschleife Master
Thread Starter
Part 2b - 'Start the Engines' event at Sonoma Raceway!
The second 918 Spyder was Vin# WP0CA2A10FS800128. I don't think this was a series production car, although I failed to photograph its official markings inside the cabin or outside in the back*. The color appeared to be 'GT Silver' (not yet confirmed) with a beautiful 'Garnet Red - Silver' interior. It was also not a Weissach, but it did sport the lighter (and expensive) magnesium wheels.
Correction: David Donohue informed me today that the color of this 'silver' 918 Spyder is actually 'Rhodium Silver'. That makes me 0 for 2 at the batting plate! Feel today just like Obama felt yesterday at the Supreme Court!
The designated drivers (two - deposit holder & his guest) were told to first get in the passenger seat of the 918 Spyder. In the driver seat was an instructor from the PSDS. One of the instructors was veteran driver Cass Whitehead, who is the lead instructor at the Porsche Sport Driving School based at Barber Motorsports Park just outside Birmingham, Alabama. A few years ago I met Cass at a Porsche road show at Laguna Seca and I asked him about a model I was consider buying at the time - the then new Boxster Spyder. Cass, who has a distinguished career as a professional driver, told me that the one of the few new Porsche models that he seriously considered buying for himself was a Spyder! He was that impressed with it. I went ahead and custom ordered a '12 Spyder and had a wonderful year with this vehicle. Ever since I often contact him when I want an opinion on a model or a particular option related to a Porsche under consideration. Cass was also my instructor at the 918 test drive at The Thermal Club near Palm Springs, CA, back in November of 2013.
Ahead of each 918 Spyder was positioned another 911 Turbo. 918 Spyder # 134 was mated to a 'White' 911 Turbo Coupe. The other 918 Spyder was mated to a 'Basalt Black' 911 Turbo S Cabriolet (with a stunning two-tone Garnet Red/Black leather interior!). Each of these 911 Turbos was driven by an instructor from the PSDS, including at those sessions when the instructor was driving the 918's to teach the guest drivers what to do at the track! The only time I saw a 918 Spyder go 'solo' at speed on the track was at the end of my group's session when the instructor of #134 generously offered the wife of the guest driver in our group a demo lap at the track!
The instructors drove the 918's for a couple of laps to explain the operation of the 918 and the various 'modes' of operation - E-Power, Hybrid, Sport Hybrid and Race Hybrid. The final mode - Hot Lap - is usually not allowed to be used at these road shows...but perhaps some lucky few were able to push that magical red button! Porsche calls their version of the famed Ferrari manettino by the totally unsexy name of 'map switch'. Leave it to the Germans to be...well, Germanic in their usual technical way. The instructors made the point of leaving the pit lanes in their 918 Spyders solely on E-Power, gliding silently at first but then quickly hitting the maximum of 93 mph by the time they cleared the pit lane and started up turn 1 & past the 'Go Pro/Toyota/Sunoco' pedestrian bridge! Right after that you heard the roar of the mighty 4.6 liter V8 as it added its powerful 608 hp gasoline engine to the mix! The two electric motors that started the locomotion provide aggregate power of more than 286 hp...with a maximum torque of 350 lb.ft that comes 'on' almost instantaneously. In total, the 918 Spyder has at least 887 hp and 944 lb.ft of torque at its disposal!
Soon, the caravan was back and the occupants switched places. Now the guests were taking the 918 Spyders out for their two scheduled laps around the track, accompanied by their instructors as passengers and their Praetorian guards riding shotgun in the 911 Turbos up front! Interestingly, NONE of the guest drivers left the pit lane in E-Power! Although Porsche has carefully designed this Hybrid system to, in part, please the Green Party in Germany and their fellow eco-travelers worldwide (including our recent past & present government here in the US), it was clear that on this Wednesday morning at Sonoma Raceway NOT ONE deposit holder or prospective buyer was interested in trying the 'silent treatment' of pure electric power! These folks apparently do not worship at the same altar as the politically correct Prius/Tesla crowd...and that accelerator pedal went past the kick-down switch less than a micro-second after they started forward motion from pit lane! Hallelujah brother!
And just a few minutes later, the caravan of 911 Turbo and the 918 Spyder was back at pit lane. The test drive for this group was finished. It appeared to be over in a 'flash'...but that is to be expected when one is at a track and at the wheel of this technological wonder from Porsche called the '918 Spyder'! Get one...if you can.
End of Part 2b
Saludos,
Eduardo
Carmel
*For the record, the proto-type 'Dark Blue Metallic' 918 Spyder that was on display at the Porsche Zentrum at Sonoma had Vin # WP0CA2A14FS800925. And the proto-type 918 (don't know if it was working model or not) that I observed on display at the Porsche Zentrum at The Thermal last November had Vin #WP0ZZZ91ZES800970. I failed to record the Vin # of the Weissach we drove at the track. My bad.
Correction: David Donohue informed me today that the color of this 'silver' 918 Spyder is actually 'Rhodium Silver'. That makes me 0 for 2 at the batting plate! Feel today just like Obama felt yesterday at the Supreme Court!
The designated drivers (two - deposit holder & his guest) were told to first get in the passenger seat of the 918 Spyder. In the driver seat was an instructor from the PSDS. One of the instructors was veteran driver Cass Whitehead, who is the lead instructor at the Porsche Sport Driving School based at Barber Motorsports Park just outside Birmingham, Alabama. A few years ago I met Cass at a Porsche road show at Laguna Seca and I asked him about a model I was consider buying at the time - the then new Boxster Spyder. Cass, who has a distinguished career as a professional driver, told me that the one of the few new Porsche models that he seriously considered buying for himself was a Spyder! He was that impressed with it. I went ahead and custom ordered a '12 Spyder and had a wonderful year with this vehicle. Ever since I often contact him when I want an opinion on a model or a particular option related to a Porsche under consideration. Cass was also my instructor at the 918 test drive at The Thermal Club near Palm Springs, CA, back in November of 2013.
Ahead of each 918 Spyder was positioned another 911 Turbo. 918 Spyder # 134 was mated to a 'White' 911 Turbo Coupe. The other 918 Spyder was mated to a 'Basalt Black' 911 Turbo S Cabriolet (with a stunning two-tone Garnet Red/Black leather interior!). Each of these 911 Turbos was driven by an instructor from the PSDS, including at those sessions when the instructor was driving the 918's to teach the guest drivers what to do at the track! The only time I saw a 918 Spyder go 'solo' at speed on the track was at the end of my group's session when the instructor of #134 generously offered the wife of the guest driver in our group a demo lap at the track!
The instructors drove the 918's for a couple of laps to explain the operation of the 918 and the various 'modes' of operation - E-Power, Hybrid, Sport Hybrid and Race Hybrid. The final mode - Hot Lap - is usually not allowed to be used at these road shows...but perhaps some lucky few were able to push that magical red button! Porsche calls their version of the famed Ferrari manettino by the totally unsexy name of 'map switch'. Leave it to the Germans to be...well, Germanic in their usual technical way. The instructors made the point of leaving the pit lanes in their 918 Spyders solely on E-Power, gliding silently at first but then quickly hitting the maximum of 93 mph by the time they cleared the pit lane and started up turn 1 & past the 'Go Pro/Toyota/Sunoco' pedestrian bridge! Right after that you heard the roar of the mighty 4.6 liter V8 as it added its powerful 608 hp gasoline engine to the mix! The two electric motors that started the locomotion provide aggregate power of more than 286 hp...with a maximum torque of 350 lb.ft that comes 'on' almost instantaneously. In total, the 918 Spyder has at least 887 hp and 944 lb.ft of torque at its disposal!
Soon, the caravan was back and the occupants switched places. Now the guests were taking the 918 Spyders out for their two scheduled laps around the track, accompanied by their instructors as passengers and their Praetorian guards riding shotgun in the 911 Turbos up front! Interestingly, NONE of the guest drivers left the pit lane in E-Power! Although Porsche has carefully designed this Hybrid system to, in part, please the Green Party in Germany and their fellow eco-travelers worldwide (including our recent past & present government here in the US), it was clear that on this Wednesday morning at Sonoma Raceway NOT ONE deposit holder or prospective buyer was interested in trying the 'silent treatment' of pure electric power! These folks apparently do not worship at the same altar as the politically correct Prius/Tesla crowd...and that accelerator pedal went past the kick-down switch less than a micro-second after they started forward motion from pit lane! Hallelujah brother!
And just a few minutes later, the caravan of 911 Turbo and the 918 Spyder was back at pit lane. The test drive for this group was finished. It appeared to be over in a 'flash'...but that is to be expected when one is at a track and at the wheel of this technological wonder from Porsche called the '918 Spyder'! Get one...if you can.
End of Part 2b
Saludos,
Eduardo
Carmel
*For the record, the proto-type 'Dark Blue Metallic' 918 Spyder that was on display at the Porsche Zentrum at Sonoma had Vin # WP0CA2A14FS800925. And the proto-type 918 (don't know if it was working model or not) that I observed on display at the Porsche Zentrum at The Thermal last November had Vin #WP0ZZZ91ZES800970. I failed to record the Vin # of the Weissach we drove at the track. My bad.
Last edited by Z356; 07-02-2014 at 02:30 AM.
