Zoefhaus

A Friday-afternoon topic! (well, at least it is here in Europe )

1.
My 8-year old son looked at the derrière of the 997 a few days ago, and he said: "Dad, I know it is a Porsche, I know it is a 911, but why does it say "Camera" on the decklid?
I wasn't sure, had another look, and there it was:


2.
My previous car was a BMW E63, and with the trunk open I always thought it looked surprisingly similar to the rear of a 911:


What has been seen cannot be unseen*

Anyone else had some weird/funny/bizarre observations about their Porsche they care to share?*
*

NuttyProfessor

I like to watch people that have never seen an original VW beetle and/or Porsche 911 for the first time. It's hilarious to see their expression when the front hood is lifted and there is no engine. There is a funny scene in a recent movie (can't remember the title) where the guy is arguing with a young woman. He says, "It's a PORSCHE!!!" and she replies, "No, it's a Boxster!!!!" while pointing at the rear emblem.

gtvr6

When I got mine, my wife and daughter were standing behind it and asked to look at how big the "Trunk" was....I shrugged and said, okay. Popped the back open and they were so confused......it was classic...

Muscam1

karl1672

I was putting groceries bags in mine and a gentleman walked by looked and asked where the engine was. I said it was in there, but very, very small.

jamesinger

This only marginally qualifies but all my non-car friends have no idea what the difference is between a base Carrera and a GT3RS. One of my friends said he liked my car because it didn't have an "Home Depot wing" like some of the other ones he had seen. I kind of get what he is saying. I would guess he is referring to GT3RS/GT2RS cars. He works near Sierra Madre Collection on Colorado in Eagle Rock. My wife thinks they all look the same too and generally thinks only midlife crisis douches drive them...except me of course. lol. well... actually...

Zoefhaus

Or when you let somebody else drive your 911 (only on rare occasions of course ) and they can't find the key to start the damn thing.
And then you can explain the nice Le Mans story behind it.

MaximumA

It's always fun to open the frunk (froot?), and appear to be putting your shopping in the engine bay. The number of double-takes continues to astound me. Can there really be people out there who don't know where the engine is? Does this happen to (mid engined) Ferrari and Lamborghini drivers too? Or don't they have a 'frunk' at all?

GT3_ISH

The engine usually. The car gets a ton of looks, but its always a conversation about the engine. (I have the fabspeed x-pipe/muffler bypass pipes) One instance in particular sticks out in my memory right now...

I pull into Wing House and score a spot right up front, maybe an aggressive downshift coming in, with lots of cackles and backfires I guess. There is a small group of people at the front door.

Them: nice car
Me: Thank you
Them: whats that thing got in it, like a V10 or V12?
Me: Flat 6
Them: confused silence

Flat_Six_

Freakhead

My son also struggled for a bit with the 'Carrera' on the back when some we see have the '911'. Now that we have a Targa he is well versed in yet another manner of Porsche.
At a recent stop, someone stopped & looked, read the back and said "Targa. Is that an Italian car?"

Zoefhaus

I think the roots of the "Targa" designation are indeed Italian. Doesn't it refer to the Targa Florio grand prix?

Freakhead

I believe you are correct on the origin & was always what I had thought. I just think the Porsche body is so recognized most people recognize it fairly instantly as the German car she is; this is a first. Only owned the car for the better part of a month so will see if that question comes out again.

zirrah

The rear engined aspect seems to really throw people for a loop for sure. A minor annoyance is that everyone and their brother wants to race/show off. I just got my 911 Saturday and literally Sunday on the way to dinner, some dipwad kept trying to pull even with me and get my attention to race. He was in a base Dodge Charger. I mean seriously? I ignored him and then he brake checked me on the on-ramp for I-4. Jerk.

JustinCase

Around here, it's mostly large, super-charged pickup trucks with dual back wheels that try to get a race started. Apparently they have invested a lot of their manhood in their truck. I never take the bait, but if I have an opportunity, I simply, quietly *don't* slow down for the curves, mostly to amuse myself at how far back they have to drop, what with the high center of gravity.