NP993

Dell, maybe it's time for a GT3 RS?

996FLT6

Dell,I can tell u my GTI is way more fun then my GT3 because i can push it 11/10ths vs 7/10ths on the GT3(if u think pushing more then 7/10ths on the GT3 think again-it's not set up like that -it's street car 1st). Let me tell you my GTI is within 2 seconds per lap on ne track and it's only pushing 130 at the crank at the crank. I honestly tell u if a given race i can consistently pull 1"58 laps on sp in my GTI but my GT3 1"56 to 2"10. Maintenancewisw I have not changed my rotors once thru the time of spec off which is 3+ years. My dirve axle blew off after 6 yrs and my tranny died after 7 yrs and what it costs like less then $750 total plus labor. So Dell if it's going to get u into another cadillac-go for it. Honestly I would for racing go for a honda. Mike

multi21

Well stated.

The following is a biography of Dell:

you couldn't stop thinking about getting a GT3 for months. Then you went on a search for months to find the right one. When you found the "right one" you (jokingly) slept in the garage with it. When you walked by the garage door leading to the house, you opened the door to take a peek at the car sitting in your garage and thinking, "I can't believe it's in MY garage" (not joking).

You said you were going to drive on street tires for years. Then you went to R-compounds, then to slicks -- all in less than a year. Now you want to get rid of it????

I believe the unknown of having a child is influencing you more than you know. You'll be fine, most of us have been there, done that. Unless your going to club racing, keep the car. Don't sell it until a good year has gone by after the birth of your child. I sold my Ninja motorcycle when my 1st was on the way. I thought about it for a long time and about 5-6 years later I went to a local dealership and test rode another. It didn't feel the same. I was afraid of what would happen if I were to lay it down and the responsibilities that go along with fatherhood. If you still enjoy the car, keep it, just upgrade the safety items.

Be thankful your in good health and able to enjoy the car for what it was built for. What if you were not able to drive the car, physically? How would you view your GT3 then? What do you think is going to happen during the winter months as you look at your car in the garage and wish you could drive it?

Finally from a financial standpoint, the car is a relative bargain as compared to cars with similar performance limits. Someone else took the depreciation hit for you. The consumables are something we all have to deal with regardless of the type of vehicle we drive, but it won't cost $15,000 grand for a tuneup like an F-car. The engine is robust and the car well balanced. It's a challenge to drive well and should improve you as a driver, even at 8/10s as you give up a second here or there.

Enjoy the car in good health. We're lucky to have such options. We'll only go down this road once, Dell. Make it count.

LVDell

Damn you Pete! Why in the world do you have to make so much sense??? If you aren't a sports psychologist, then you should be. Just let me know what my co-pay is

Anyway, a few things I have learned from this thread.
1. I lusted after this car since the day it came to our shores in summer of 2003. I searched for one for well over a year. I owned one finally on my birthday last year. If that isn't every boys dream (one of them) come true I don't know what is................I'M NOT SHATTERING THAT DREAM.

2. The impending birth of a child (for the Dad as well) really messes with your emotions. I thought it was just the women in our lives carrying our children that are affected. I couldn't be more wrong. Maybe it's unknown responsibility of fatherhood that I am under the influence of. Well, some of my greatest friends that I also share in this hobby have children and they seem to be just fine. I need to learn from their experience. I didn't realize that I can still be very careful and safe at the track while having a fantastic time. The difference b/t 7/10th and 10/10th is just the cost to repair a screwup yet the thrill is still the same. I'M NOT GIVING UP THIS ADDICTION!

3. Ryan said "track insurance". I have looked into that almost a year now. I keep coming back to the fact that the options out there (really only 1 or 2) are not secure options. Yes they have paid out claims but they are not bound by the laws of the USA and thus if put in a position where an influx of claims rolls in they could very easily fold up, take their $$$ and leave the sandbox without any penalty. That's the beauty of having an offshore insurance company. That mixed in with the wonderful debate that we were witness to (recent track ins thread) from two people offering the insurance (former employee of the company that sells it and the employer). Apparently they both sell it and it just didn't leave me with a good feeling after that. Maybe next year this segment of the track world will have a more secure option available to us. I can't understand why no company is the USA (read US corporation not foreign corporation sold here through brokers). I would be all over that and feel much more "protected". Until then I will continue to back off in those places on the track I know can bite me if I screw the pooch.

4. I have absolutely no desire to go racing. Actual I think it would be fun but the desire just isn't there. That could be a serious money pit. Money isn't the issue but rather it is the rabbit hole that you fall down in that sport. Sure I'd start out in a cheaper ride but before too long I would want to be racing a cup. That is the point my wife just might actually hire a divorce lawyer.

5. There is absolutely no way I can be satisfied now that I have drank the nectar of Porsche gods in the highest form (GT line car). I would always think about that power, the agility, the rawness, the sounds, the etc, etc, etc, ...................... Basically I would regret the decision to part ways with her adn would want here back (cough cough, mooty).

6. Lastly, I need to be thankful that I am actually fortunate enough to be able to be able to own a car of this stature and actually exercise it in a way it was intended to be. Not many people in this world can say that. Most people would love to even have the option to have this internal debate I am having.



Thanks for all the input and help understanding that I am not the only one that has gone through this. Looks like my child will be growing up in the paddock of VIR

Besides, y'all wouldn't let me sell the car anyway. Well, maybe, so you could fight over all the goodies I would part off the car before the sale.

Time for me to go spend some quality time with her. Going to go give her a bath and then ride her good

m3bs

Aw, Rats. I thought I was going to get a shot at a great deal on a GT3 already set up for the track.

Enjoy.

VaSteve

Why'd you buy it at all?



We're all honored to know that a guy of your stature has a car of such stature! I hope that your new child never has know the indignity of riding in anything but a Porsche.

LVDell

Thanks Steve! I will make sure that the only non-Porsche mode of transit he is subjected to is the pimp-mobile. My wife has already been looking into the various seats for the CAB

CME

IMHO unless you are going to take the 996 GT3 to the track - why buy it or keep it. There are far better cars for the street and only a handful better on the track. I also worry about the consequences of tracking a $110+k car (I got mine new) but I am not racing and am not looking to squeeze out every last second out of the car. That being said you never know what can happen on a race track.

If the potential shock of balling up an expensive car is keeping you from having fun get any old BMW M3 and go and have a good time. I have had 4 E30 M3's and they were the best introduction to track time ever. I still miss my silver one which unfortunately met its end at Turn 9 at Bridgehampton in 1995.

Chet

Phokaioglaukos

1. Shortly after I ordered my 996 GT3 my 11 year old daughter mentioned to a classmate what we bought. His response was "I hope you're taking it to the track." That is, indeed, where these cars belong.

2. Great Lakes is a real insurance carrier selling insurance in the US. I have not made a claim, although I know of one that might be made, but I did check that Great West has a very good AM Best rating and the policy is reasonable. The "insurance" being sold last year is not really insurance, although some who bought it have made claims that were paid.

TD in DC

Forgive me father (and you too Dell) for I have sinned, but I couldn't help giggling a bit when this picture came to mind after reading this . . .

Just for a friday morning laugh . .

P.S. my post about my car was serious. I bet it would do you a lot of good and address a lot of the issues you raised in your post.

LVDell

Thanks Chris. Your daughter's classmate is a smart one!

Do you have a website for "Great Lakes"? The "insurance" that is not really insurance, what exactly do you mean by that? I assume we are talking about that Snellings-Waters (spelling?) company???


BTW TODD,,,,,that is f'in hilarious!

Phokaioglaukos

Great Lakes is a real insurance company and they sell through Snelling Waters (and maybe Chris Maume at another agency too? I bought through Snelling Waters). There was a program that PCA advertised last year and earlier that was sold by a Canadian agency for an Australian insurance company. I call that not real insurance--the Australian company did NOT have an AM Best rating and the Canadian group was not licensed as an insurance broker anywhere in the US, I understand.

}{arlequin

when i first met td he couldn't figure out (or missed the point) why no one thought much of the fact that he passed me in my 140hp car while he was in his 996. for that weekend, i think it was an accomplishment for him

fast forward 2 years, and we're running nose-to-tail w/ 10hp differential and just waiting for each other's mistakes.

currently, if it wasn't for the hp being in my favor, we would still be running on each other's bumpers.

the point is, droving around in a 996 or 99-anything, you don't even know what you don't know. but it looks fast. then, if you want to be the quickest of all the slowest people on the track, you get a gt3 just to make sure no one else passes you. but are you being the quickest in actuality or are you thinking what td thought back then in his 996? even using 70% of a gt3 will make you look fast among normal 996/997's

if you want less worries about on-track incidents and develop skill, go for a cheap low hp car. you'll be amazed how far you will push it when you don't care ab the car

multi21

I know your type Dell. Paralisis by analysis. With someone like yourself, you have to appeal to the heart as well as the head.

I'll take your RS Wing as payment -- you pay for shipping.

LVDell

While I agree with that to some extent that is not the case with all the guys that drove a GT3 so it is an unfair statement to make to generalize those drovers that as hp increases, skill understanding decreases. I don't care about being the fastest "looking" on the track but rather I enjoy going fast. Is that so bad? I can't get that in a low hp car. Sure, my favorite parts of the track are the technical sections where you actually have to have skill to make it all come together. But there is something to be said about starting to see God when you are pushing well over 150mph on a straightaway.

I don't monitor track times and just recently (after tracking for almost 4 years) purchased my first timing device. Actually it is a data acquisition system. I could care less about the times but rather I keep trying new ways to take different sectors and then crunch the data (yet nowhere close to Todd....that boy crunches data like nobody else) to see exactly what I am doing right and more importantly what I am doing wrong.

Don't get me wrong, I still push the crap out of the car (several guys here on the board can attest to that) but I just know where to back off. Maybe I'll look into the track policy so I can take the worry of the $$$ from an incident out of the picture and get back to what we all love doing.....droving at the highest level our skills will allow.

A psychologist and a comedian! A man of many talents