fahren affair

no.

actually, what impresses me about the 996, is how little impact the ac has on engine power. bob's comments are well taken, and in absolute terms, he's probably right. i haven't tested my theory (timed laps w/ and w/o ac), but i'll try it when the ambient temps are low and the effects of high heat on engine power are not so obvious.

macfly

FWIW at the PDE they run the cars (996 C2's) all day windows up AC on full blast, so the good news is that it doesn't seem to hurt the machine as a whole. I once tried it in 110º with my Z8 at Button Willow, and after 4 laps the electrical system cut out one bank of cylinders and put me in 'limp home mode' until the car cooled down. The Pcar is able to take maximum driving with AC on like water off a ducks back. It may make the car a tad slower, but it sure keeps the driver more than enough refreshed to make that up by not getting overheated and dehydrated in the SoCal toasties. Since we all know it's the driver that makes the car fast I'd suggest having the AC on in 100º heat does actually make the whole go faster, but it's just an idea, no proof!