Park question
10-06-2011 | 08:45 PM
#16
Racer
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 482
Likes: 36
From: Seattle, WA
When parked on street, neutral, e-brake only. Just in case someone bumps you higher chance of gear damage. Only add 2nd. gear if chance of getting bumped is zero.
When parked at home in garage for extended time, minimal e-brake (enough to hold) for minimal stress.
After hot session, leave in gear only.
When parked at home in garage for extended time, minimal e-brake (enough to hold) for minimal stress.
After hot session, leave in gear only.
10-07-2011 | 03:05 PM
#18
Nordschleife Master
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 8,312
Likes: 400
From: Southwest
If someone crashes at speed (>30MPH) on a parked (on gear) car yeah, I can see that, but that is probably the least of one's worries. I do not think that a parking bump will cause any damage.
10-07-2011 | 04:47 PM
#19
Rennlist Member
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 122
Likes: 3
From: Phoenix, AZ, USA
Well, my brakes are always pretty hot after street driving too, so I always park the car in gear and NO hand brake. I never park close to anyone else, let along where my car can be bumped, so that's not an issue. The same when I have the car in the garage: in gear and no hand brake.
10-07-2011 | 06:26 PM
#20
Pro
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 590
Likes: 8
From: Seattle
This thread is thick with wives tales ...
Absolutely correct. There is no chance of a broken gear or any drivetrain damage from anything less than a car-destroying collision. If the car is parked in gear during a collision, either the tires will skid, the engine will rotate, or the clutch will slip. The gears and transmission internals will never be the weak link.
There is no reason to avoid using the parking brake unless you want to increase your chances of having the car roll away. Even when the brakes are hot, because the parking brake acts on a separate drum on all Porsche 911s, it does not apply the service brakes to the hottest portion of the rotor, so there will be no warpage or damage to the rotor or pad and no additional heat transfer to the caliper and brake fluid. Still, there's probably no reason to use the parking brake when the brakes are very hot and the car is on level ground (as with a hot pit lane), so to the extent that leaving if off may help the entire brake rotor/drum cool a bit faster, it's probably best not to use it as long as you're mindful of the situation. Other types of cars that utilize the service brake pads in parking brake actuation may have more reason to avoid the use of the parking brake when the brakes are very hot. But not the Porsche 911 series.
And if you're going to park it in gear for added security, which is a good idea, you should always leave it in the lowest gear -- first or reverse -- for maximum effective retardation. It makes no sense to use any other gear. Doing so just diminishes the benefit. Using a higher gear is not "being kind" to your gearbox -- it's just cancels out the benefit of leaving the car in gear.
Oh, and finally, if you're parking the car during street use -- anytime -- you should always use the parking brake. It does not cause any detrimental "stress" to do so, even when it's applied for an extended period of time. In addition to being the law in several states, it's a good idea and it has no downsides (other than it takes one more action to execute). Leaving it in gear is not sufficient on a steep hill, and un-braked cars have been known to roll away in gear with the engine rotating, or worse yet, after they have popped out of gear or the owner "thought" he left it in gear. For most situations, it's best to have the redundancy of both applying the parking brake and leaving it in the lowest gear.
Parking 101 is now dismissed.
There is no reason to avoid using the parking brake unless you want to increase your chances of having the car roll away. Even when the brakes are hot, because the parking brake acts on a separate drum on all Porsche 911s, it does not apply the service brakes to the hottest portion of the rotor, so there will be no warpage or damage to the rotor or pad and no additional heat transfer to the caliper and brake fluid. Still, there's probably no reason to use the parking brake when the brakes are very hot and the car is on level ground (as with a hot pit lane), so to the extent that leaving if off may help the entire brake rotor/drum cool a bit faster, it's probably best not to use it as long as you're mindful of the situation. Other types of cars that utilize the service brake pads in parking brake actuation may have more reason to avoid the use of the parking brake when the brakes are very hot. But not the Porsche 911 series.
And if you're going to park it in gear for added security, which is a good idea, you should always leave it in the lowest gear -- first or reverse -- for maximum effective retardation. It makes no sense to use any other gear. Doing so just diminishes the benefit. Using a higher gear is not "being kind" to your gearbox -- it's just cancels out the benefit of leaving the car in gear.
Oh, and finally, if you're parking the car during street use -- anytime -- you should always use the parking brake. It does not cause any detrimental "stress" to do so, even when it's applied for an extended period of time. In addition to being the law in several states, it's a good idea and it has no downsides (other than it takes one more action to execute). Leaving it in gear is not sufficient on a steep hill, and un-braked cars have been known to roll away in gear with the engine rotating, or worse yet, after they have popped out of gear or the owner "thought" he left it in gear. For most situations, it's best to have the redundancy of both applying the parking brake and leaving it in the lowest gear.
Parking 101 is now dismissed.
10-11-2011 | 07:13 PM
#21
AutoX
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 12
Likes: 0
From: Chicago, IL
This thread is thick with wives tales ...
Absolutely correct. There is no chance of a broken gear or any drivetrain damage from anything less than a car-destroying collision. If the car is parked in gear during a collision, either the tires will skid, the engine will rotate, or the clutch will slip. The gears and transmission internals will never be the weak link.
There is no reason to avoid using the parking brake unless you want to increase your chances of having the car roll away. Even when the brakes are hot, because the parking brake acts on a separate drum on all Porsche 911s, it does not apply the service brakes to the hottest portion of the rotor, so there will be no warpage or damage to the rotor or pad and no additional heat transfer to the caliper and brake fluid. Still, there's probably no reason to use the parking brake when the brakes are very hot and the car is on level ground (as with a hot pit lane), so to the extent that leaving if off may help the entire brake rotor/drum cool a bit faster, it's probably best not to use it as long as you're mindful of the situation. Other types of cars that utilize the service brake pads in parking brake actuation may have more reason to avoid the use of the parking brake when the brakes are very hot. But not the Porsche 911 series.
And if you're going to park it in gear for added security, which is a good idea, you should always leave it in the lowest gear -- first or reverse -- for maximum effective retardation. It makes no sense to use any other gear. Doing so just diminishes the benefit. Using a higher gear is not "being kind" to your gearbox -- it's just cancels out the benefit of leaving the car in gear.
Oh, and finally, if you're parking the car during street use -- anytime -- you should always use the parking brake. It does not cause any detrimental "stress" to do so, even when it's applied for an extended period of time. In addition to being the law in several states, it's a good idea and it has no downsides (other than it takes one more action to execute). Leaving it in gear is not sufficient on a steep hill, and un-braked cars have been known to roll away in gear with the engine rotating, or worse yet, after they have popped out of gear or the owner "thought" he left it in gear. For most situations, it's best to have the redundancy of both applying the parking brake and leaving it in the lowest gear.
Parking 101 is now dismissed.
Absolutely correct. There is no chance of a broken gear or any drivetrain damage from anything less than a car-destroying collision. If the car is parked in gear during a collision, either the tires will skid, the engine will rotate, or the clutch will slip. The gears and transmission internals will never be the weak link.
There is no reason to avoid using the parking brake unless you want to increase your chances of having the car roll away. Even when the brakes are hot, because the parking brake acts on a separate drum on all Porsche 911s, it does not apply the service brakes to the hottest portion of the rotor, so there will be no warpage or damage to the rotor or pad and no additional heat transfer to the caliper and brake fluid. Still, there's probably no reason to use the parking brake when the brakes are very hot and the car is on level ground (as with a hot pit lane), so to the extent that leaving if off may help the entire brake rotor/drum cool a bit faster, it's probably best not to use it as long as you're mindful of the situation. Other types of cars that utilize the service brake pads in parking brake actuation may have more reason to avoid the use of the parking brake when the brakes are very hot. But not the Porsche 911 series.
And if you're going to park it in gear for added security, which is a good idea, you should always leave it in the lowest gear -- first or reverse -- for maximum effective retardation. It makes no sense to use any other gear. Doing so just diminishes the benefit. Using a higher gear is not "being kind" to your gearbox -- it's just cancels out the benefit of leaving the car in gear.
Oh, and finally, if you're parking the car during street use -- anytime -- you should always use the parking brake. It does not cause any detrimental "stress" to do so, even when it's applied for an extended period of time. In addition to being the law in several states, it's a good idea and it has no downsides (other than it takes one more action to execute). Leaving it in gear is not sufficient on a steep hill, and un-braked cars have been known to roll away in gear with the engine rotating, or worse yet, after they have popped out of gear or the owner "thought" he left it in gear. For most situations, it's best to have the redundancy of both applying the parking brake and leaving it in the lowest gear.
Parking 101 is now dismissed.
-m
