MichaelL

jcf7 wrote in about a potential RMS leak that he was concerned about. After two reasonable responses, some forum members that are apparently impressed with their own erudition started interjecting a half-assed physics lesson that is irrelevant to the question asked and probably of no interest to anyone but themselves. Ill-considered digressions headed into the left field bleachers are a disservice to the member seeking advice and an annoyance to the rest of us.

A useful answer to this question would be to suggest a search under the "RMS" topic on the 997, 996 and boxster forums. This issue has come up numerous times in the past.

boolala

Am I to infer from this that you remain unimpressed?

MMD

Keep in mind the oil leak is only a drop or two from what's left in the seal/journal and escapes while the car is parked. When the engine is running the RMS is dripping more often. Just bring it in when you feel like it and get the seal replaced. Maybe "demand" that the service guy ONLY work on your car from start to finish. This way mistakes can be eliminated.

Carbon_Ted

LOL ... too funny, Rob;.......need a little balance- where's that quote about "20-year-old women on coke drinking scotch..."[sic] when ya need it?

I won't even mention the possible scenario whereby a drop of oil could also be blown further aft along the car's undercarriage (while driving at speed) from said drop's original point of egress, subsequently depositing itself directly beneath an innocent mechanical component unrelated to the leak. 9.8 metres/sec2 is all I remember.

allegretto

Even parked a drop could creep horizontally on hoses or structure before its ultimate vertical trajectory. Even in a vacuum. Even on Uranus. But it's kinda cold there (the planet I mean) so you probably wouldn't notice as many drops on the garage floor.

Besides, a car wont travel very far in a vacuum, at least by engine power.

Now, I wonder what would happen to the drop of oil as we approached a Black Hole at C - .000005 mm/sec?

Help me guys I think I found the answer but it keeps coming out in hectares/quart^2 so I think I have an Algebraic error somewhere...

OCBen

Whoaaaa there, Michael. Get a hold of yourself.

jcf7 asked if the tiny little leak of oil he saw meant that it was going to ruin his weekend by not being able to enjoy his car if he has to immediately drop it off on Friday because of it.

Our buddy riad, in the thread's very first reply two minutes later, allayed his concerns by laying out a worst case scenario in assuming an RMS leak, which so long as it's just a tiny leak (as jcf7 has described it, and who are we to doubt him?) no harm will be done by him enjoying his car over the weekend and taking it in on Monday for a service check. ... His expressed question about whether or not this meant a ruined weekend was answered resoundly in the first post. ... CASE CLOSED.

The rest of the responses that you alluded to were made after the lights were turned off. ... I went off on that tangent after an hour and 37 minutes had lapsed without jcf7 chiming back - perhaps he was satisfied with riad's quick logical reply and decided to plan for a fun weekend with his car after all. It wasn't like he was asking more questions and we were frustrating him by ignoring him and going off on tangents!

Besides, it was a full-*** physics lesson, not a half-***. Hope you took notes. A closed-book pop quiz will be given soon. Be prepared.

DJ23

Tough one there Carlos. Your next P car acquisition has to go better than this. I hope all goes well with the RMS issue and that your back on the road soon.

Jay

OCBen

allegretto

Now you're starting to sound like your avitar too.

boolala

Hey allegretto let's hope you don't start sounding like your avatar

(Just kidding--all in good fun)

USCHANDPOD

Sorry about your accidental drive into the pole. This is precisely why I purchased the park assist. I don't mean to give you a hard time. I just think that for people like myself who are first time owners the park assist is helpful and ultimately pays for itself by preventing accidents. Hopefully someone building a new p-car finds this helpful.

Loved the physics talk.

snarf

A further point of clarification taking us even further OT - Bombardier is one of those words the meaning of which changes as one drifts across the Atlantic. In the UK a bombardier is a non-commissioned officer in the artillery whereas in the US a bombardier is a crew member in an aircraft who aims and releases bombs. Both of course have an interest in trajectory.

I used to keep a list of common words and expressions with different meanings. These are mostly innocuous but just occasionally they could lead to disastrous results. On a visit to China Lake some years ago I wanted to inspect the inside of the nozzle of solid propellant rocket motor that had been prepared for a static firing and asked for a torch. I will never forget the look on the face of the test engineer - I'm really glad they didn't hand me one. What I wanted of course was a flashlight!

Riad

"I like my women the way I like my scotch. 20 years old and mix up in coke."

jcf7

Thank you all. I've decided to compromise: I am going to Paris tonight for 2 days, returning on Saturday night, heading straight to the body shop where I’ll pick up the 997, all shiny and (almost) new. I’ll drive it on Sunday (let’s hope the weather is great) and drop it off at the dealer Sunday night.

Again, thank you all for your advice on the oil problem………and the physics lesson.

Regards

jcf7

You're not kidding about park assist. I had it in the Jag and it's wonderful. I would've ordered it on the p-car, but I bought it off the showroom.