Do you let your kids drive your 993?
03-04-2003, 08:51 PM
#31
Intermediate
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Albany, NY
Posts: 47
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I'm 17 and have had my license for about a year and a half now. My dad has a '02 M5 for his daily driver and a '96 C4S for his "fun car" (as if the M5 isn't enough fun for him). I have an Eagle Talon turbo AWD model (same as eclipse turbo) for myself, and was overwhelmed when my dad wanted the C4S (as I've been obsessed with cars since I was born). I then pushed for him to get the M5 when his lease on the 740 was up.
Anyway, my dad trusted me to drive both of those cars, and though I'd call myself a responsible kid, having the keys to a 400hp rwd monster and a 282hp go-kart will make any responsible kid go a little bit nuts. I learned how to drive stick on the C4S when I was 15, and my dad and I did a lot of "personal auto-cross" type stuff, experimenting with the car in a huge parking lot. I got a little bit of a feel for how the car handled thru that. I got my license in October, and by that summer, he was letting me drive the C4S and the M5 alone.
My dad is very enthusiastic about cars, but I think I'm a lot more enthusiastic about actually driving them. On my own, sometimes by mishap, I found that the Porsche sticks like glue, but when you lose control, it is very very hard to regain compared to the M5 which felt a lot more balanced and could be more easily controlled when the back came loose.
Moral of the story: I'm responsible, and had the keys and privaledge to drive these cars almost whenever I wanted to. I'm obviously not saying that everyone is like me, but I'm saying that by nature, any kid or relatively young person is going to be more than excited when driving a Porsche. They're more likely than not, going to push the car to its limits. As I was pushing the C4S in August, I hit some gravel in the middle of a left hand turn. Thankfully, I wasn't going rediculously fast (40mph) and it was a desolate road. I couldn't correct and I wound up doing some damage--spinning and taking out a fire hyrdant. I wasn't hurt and had enough time to break with the car completely sideways, to slow me down considerably. The damage wasn't horrible, but since I could never afford to pay for it, it was an awful situation to face my dad with. I've driven the M5 once since this incident.
I can't say whether I'd be as wreckless behind the wheel of either car now. I'd put my money on "definately not." They're both cars that beg you to put the pedal to the floor and throw them thru turns, BUT--lesson learned. Obviously, I'm a little afraid to get back in the driver's seat of the Porsche, but my dad really wants me to do the PCA Driver's Ed at Limerock this spring. I agreed because I really want to learn how to drive this car correctly and for me, I'd be in heaven driving on a track.
From my point of view (being 17), I'd say if your kid is repsonsible, it might be nice to let him or her drive the Porsche. BUT, at least show them how the car handles and let them ride shotgun for a scary situtation or two, to show them how serious it is. A PCA Driver's Ed probably would have been better for me BEFORE I started driving the car like I knew what I was doing.
Phil
Anyway, my dad trusted me to drive both of those cars, and though I'd call myself a responsible kid, having the keys to a 400hp rwd monster and a 282hp go-kart will make any responsible kid go a little bit nuts. I learned how to drive stick on the C4S when I was 15, and my dad and I did a lot of "personal auto-cross" type stuff, experimenting with the car in a huge parking lot. I got a little bit of a feel for how the car handled thru that. I got my license in October, and by that summer, he was letting me drive the C4S and the M5 alone.
My dad is very enthusiastic about cars, but I think I'm a lot more enthusiastic about actually driving them. On my own, sometimes by mishap, I found that the Porsche sticks like glue, but when you lose control, it is very very hard to regain compared to the M5 which felt a lot more balanced and could be more easily controlled when the back came loose.
Moral of the story: I'm responsible, and had the keys and privaledge to drive these cars almost whenever I wanted to. I'm obviously not saying that everyone is like me, but I'm saying that by nature, any kid or relatively young person is going to be more than excited when driving a Porsche. They're more likely than not, going to push the car to its limits. As I was pushing the C4S in August, I hit some gravel in the middle of a left hand turn. Thankfully, I wasn't going rediculously fast (40mph) and it was a desolate road. I couldn't correct and I wound up doing some damage--spinning and taking out a fire hyrdant. I wasn't hurt and had enough time to break with the car completely sideways, to slow me down considerably. The damage wasn't horrible, but since I could never afford to pay for it, it was an awful situation to face my dad with. I've driven the M5 once since this incident.
I can't say whether I'd be as wreckless behind the wheel of either car now. I'd put my money on "definately not." They're both cars that beg you to put the pedal to the floor and throw them thru turns, BUT--lesson learned. Obviously, I'm a little afraid to get back in the driver's seat of the Porsche, but my dad really wants me to do the PCA Driver's Ed at Limerock this spring. I agreed because I really want to learn how to drive this car correctly and for me, I'd be in heaven driving on a track.
From my point of view (being 17), I'd say if your kid is repsonsible, it might be nice to let him or her drive the Porsche. BUT, at least show them how the car handles and let them ride shotgun for a scary situtation or two, to show them how serious it is. A PCA Driver's Ed probably would have been better for me BEFORE I started driving the car like I knew what I was doing.
Phil
03-05-2003, 12:15 AM
#34
FWIW, I let my wife's kid drive the Audi. Went out one morning to go to work and it was gone...STOLEN...what made things worse is that the place that fixed it made me aware that whoever took it used a key.
