Suwipin

Hi all,

After driving my 993 C4S for a few hundred miles in the last two days I got a few questions that I need to ask you all. This is my first Porsche and I'm really blessed to be able to drive this awesome car

Here are my questions:

1) I've never owned a rear engine car before and I felt like when I'm taking a corner/turn real fast, it feels like I'm going to spin the tail out and it scares me a little bit so the next time I took a corner, I slowed down instead.

I'm wondering if you guys can give me some advice on how to take a corner/turn in this rear engine car?

2) After shutting the engine off for a good 10-15 minutes, I noticed that the fan suddenly turned on by itself (blowing some air) for roughly 5 seconds and then it stopped. This happened at least a couple of times. Is this normal? Is it trying to cool the engine down even after the engine is shut off for a while?

3) When I start the car in the morning, should I wait for _x_ minutes for the oil to warm up before I drive it or should I just drive it off and keep the engine under a certain RPM (4000 RPM?) until the oil warm up?

I think that's all my questions for now.. This car is just awesome, I really enjoy driving it.

Gotta watch the World Series game now

Thank you in advance,
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97 993 C4S

Ran

And an answer from a rookie )
1) WAit for the experts to chime in but I'm sure you will get the hang of it atleast from a daily driving perspective - C4S - AWD - pretty safe generally. As usual, lifting off throttle in turns is not too good so modulate!! And braking is best done before turn and in a straight line as far as possible (though other ways are possible) but all this applies to many cars - just that it is all the more important here since even though AWD there are situations.... Just be cautious until you feel more confident. I'm no expert so I won't say any more in this regard. Maybe some of our other contributors will help you more.
2) yes, normal
3) personally i wait till the lights go off - about 15/20 seconds. drive off then and keep RPM below 4000 until engine temp is at 8 o clock. oil warms up in about 5 mins of driving. BTW, it probably does not apply as much to the normally aspirated car but it may still be a good idea to idle for a minute or two before switching off - again, see who chimes in and what the consensus is. I do it to all my normally aspirated cars for about 30 to 45 secs and 2 whole minutes to my turbo.

all the best. Have fun.

SundayDriver

In regards to #1
These cars understeer in sotck form, so it is not likely that the tail end is coming around as much as you feel it is. I suspect that you are feeling LESS understeer than other cars you have driven, and it feels tail happy, by comparison. As you get used to the handling, you will probably start feeling that it understeers. Even so, in a rear engined car, if you take a corner too fast and then lift or brake, you are likely to spin.

My suggestion is get the car to a DE event so that you can get the feel of it in a controlled environment. If you can get to a TracQuest event, you will find lots of instructors with 911 experience who can show you what your car (or their car) is really capable of. If you have not done this before, you will be shocked at the capabilities of the car. Also, at some tracks, they are able to run the skidpad which can really help your feel and car control.

The fastest way in a rear engined car is to brake early and get on the power early to plant the rear end. I have had quite a few students comment as to how early I get on the power compared to where they apply throttle. In other words, slow in - fast out.

STLPCA

Pin
I'd echo Ran's answers to #2 & 3 & Mark's for #1.

When I first got my 993, I too was apprehensive about the infamous Porsche (trailing throttle) "terminal" oversteer. My solution was a couple of DEs, including sessions as a passenger with my instructors. I emerged far more confident & knowledgable about just how hard you have to work to get into big trouble &, to my surprise, how forgiving & tossable the 993 is.

IMO, that is the only way to begin to really learn to drive your car & gain confidence. Just not the sort of stuff you can/should do on the street.

Edward

Pin,
Just a thought on #3, Warm Up:
It's really best to drive off pretty much right away. Every modern car I've driven seems to warm up and respond better to driving than to idling (air cooled engines, even more so).
You'll notice that your oil temp will rise to about 8 o'clock then it drops down a bit; this is the thermostat opening up to allow oil flow into the cooler up in the front fender. I've always understood that it's best to wait until the thermostat opens. My guess is that it's to avoid a pressure drop (when it first opens) at high RPMs when the engine most needs the pressure...perhaps someone else more knowledgable can chime in on this one. So for me, I drive off right away, keeping it more or less under 3500 RPMs, then at the oil temp drop, Vroooom to my heart's content...which BTW is every moment possible
Have fun!

Edward

Suwipin

Hi Mark,

I'm happy to hear about that since I'm actually registered for the next Tracquest event at Buttonwillow this coming Nov 17-18th. Are you going to attend too?

I went to Thunderhill with Todd (Tracquest) last July and I had a lot of fun while learning how to drive my ex M3. I'm hoping to do the same with the 993 now

Thanx to Ran, Dan, and Edward for your replies. I really appreciate it guys.

Thanx,
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97 993 C4S

SundayDriver

Pin,

I will be at Buttonwillow. Let's hook up and I will be happy to work with you on both the track and skidpad.

Suwipin

Thanx Mark, I appreciate your offer and I'll take it

See you on Nov 17th then.

Have a good evening,
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97 993 C4S

Flying Finn

That's the fun & great part