Sigh. Me and my 996 parted ways this week. Conditions: wet highway, uphill, right turn, 45-55mph? I'd describe it as the back kicking out and it went straight for a rocky hillside toward the right. Nothing audible except eerie silence. I tried to correct - like you, I'm used to my 996 getting squirrely, but typically from starts and hard right turns- nothing. As I was still headed toward rocky hillside, I then tried hard right, whether I could spin it fullly and keep it away from bank. It didn't. I hit right rear first - not really bad, may have got more dirt than rock. Front continued on around (in original direction) and the dang thing then rolled over. Didn't even break either side glass or windshield - no damage to front at all. Tow truck flipped it on the driver side (needless insult to injury) to make it a full roll.

I got out with no problem.

My question here: could something have broken? Wheels appear straight - so I don't think an axle. Could right side brake have seized up? I didn't have present of mind to really look it over closely, shocked as I was. Or did I just blow it? I've owned it for 10 years, from 36k to 106k miles, it was my daily driver since 2010, so it was well maintained. Also, I've never felt it behave like that and have driven in lots of weather. Were "summer" tires a culprit? I just don't think so. New Pzeros in June, $1100 of work just last week.

Second question: insurance has been fine. Will get $16.xk from it ("excellent" condition) and buyback salvage ($650 !). I have 3 offers on it up to $7k. What should I reasonably expect. I know there's at least $14k of parts including engine, excluding hood, quarter panels, etc.

Thanks for reading.

 

In process and afterwards of getting feet back on ground:

 

Sorry to hear/see that. Glad you were not hurt

On the bright side, it's another example of how well designed and built these care are. A full rollover and your walked away unhurt

 

First, glad you are ok.

Sorry, but no brake seized up or axle broke or anything like that happened.

I dare say your brain seized.

Sorry, but a single car accident in the wet is almost certainly the driver's fault and not a mechanical failure.

So, you just blew it.

But at least you were not hurt so move on.

BTW, for the benefit of the CA Porsche owners I don't know where you were but here in CA we just a got a bunch (well, half a bunch) of rain and the roads become very slick as the rain combines the oil and dust and what have you. In some cases you can see suds which means one is driving on really soapy slick pavement.

This first rain after a prolonged dry spell always catches some drivers unawares, and sports car drivers are particularly at risk since they become so accustomed to their cars' grip in the dry.

As for your second question, personally I would not want the car back and part it out. Who wants to clutter up his driveway/garage with a wrecked car that slowly gets picked over by strangers and slowly dissolves into a pile of disassembled greasy/oily parts?

I would however add that if you can get $16K for the car and then buy it back with a salvage title for $650 and then turn around and sell it for $7K that I would do.

However, I have to really question the wide differences in prices. When I was given the buyback price of my wrecked Cayman S (totaled when another driver t-boned my car) the insurance company quoted me the same price as Oklahoma Foreign, around $17K.

I took the car as part of the settlement -- the other driver's insurance wasn't enough to cover the settlement fully -- and put the car for sale at an auction facility that among other things held a salvage car sale every week. (This was/is a big auction facility moving in some years 90K vehicles.)

I sold the car at this salvage auction for over $3K more than I was allowed for by the insurance company and Oklahoma Foreign.

If (big if) you can get the car for $650 and flip it for $7K do so, but I would advise you to not turn into a Porsche salvage business with just one car in stock...

 

Is that an intersection in the background and was that where you were coming from making a right turn moving toward the cars location?

If so, on a wide street like that I'm surprised 45mph was enough to leave you that far from the intersection with enough momentum to roll. Must have been some slick surface at work, oil or something?

 

Glad you are OK. What was the temp? Summer tires become really unpredictable in cold(er) conditions

 

Macster, I think you're right. Please tell me more about the limit that was put on you on selling? I haven't been told about that (yet).

Aggravation, no, I was headed toward that intersection. I wasn't making a right turn, there was a right-handed curve in the road.

Temp was not bad 50s. Should have been OK.

 

Just curious...did you drive it home? Or is it still drivable?

 

Sucks.. 16k seems a little low.

 

Sorry to hear this man. In essence, you did this in 996 with more consequences.

 

^ Was that the Synchronized Spin Out competition? They are both very lucky in more ways than one!

 

Glad to hear you walked away without injuries. Also glad to see how strong these cars are built.

 

John: Not sure if you'rejoking, but no that picture above is it putting on the tow truck. There was gasoline all over the place - that's the first thing I noticed when we stopped moving. Because of that I didn't try to start it. I really didn't know the damage. It was on its back for ? 30 minutes? Brake fluid was pooring out the front passenger side (which i think is weird, reservoir on driver side, right?). It wouldn'tsurprise me at all that it would restart. Radio/wipers/windows etc work fine. And You can probably see, no real damage to the motor area.

RRTEC - I dunno, kbb was lower and NADA was right at that for EC 106,800 miles. I'm OK with i$16k

Kalashnikov - I guess so. I need to accept it. But it didn't just kick out from the rear. It was already pointing itself toward the right and going strong toward it.

Thanks.

 

Re the video again, notice that as it starts kicking out from the rear/left, the momentum carrying it into the right-hand turn carries it to the left. We were going straight toward the right, even after lifting and correction steering. That's what's weird to me.

 

Glad you walked away from it. The photos are quite dramatic but they also show how strong the chassis is.

Did the tires have good tread on them and were they inflated to the proper pressure? Also, did you remember the rear tires hitting anything on the road, even a small bump? Could be bump steering upsetting the rear exacerbated by the low traction in the wet.