Page 42 of 78 FirstFirst ... 32404142434452 ... LastLast
Results 411 to 420 of 776

Thread: Talk me out of a Porsche Cayman

  1. #411
    Chasing the Horizon RJ's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Quote Originally Posted by OldRunner/CSAT Neighbor View Post
    Congrats on a double P car stable mi amigo, feel like sharing any details/pics of The Boss’s new ride?
    I'll see if I can get permission to take a picture.

    I do like it though. It's um like a 4,500 lb, tall version of a 911...kinda sorta. Weird I know but that's how it drives. The 2019 Type 9YA Cayenne is a pretty drastic change over the 958, as you probably know. The tech is finally up to date; Carplay, Google Earth, Connected services, etc. in a sort of 'glass cockpit' center stack with a 12.3" display - many fewer buttons, and much more like the Panamera now. There are two MultiFunction Displays, left AND right, so you have a lot of display flexibility. Still a central rev counter, of course. Performance feels a bit ah stronger than you might expect. The base model (which we have) is up to 340 HP, with single 3.0 turbo V-6 paired with a 8 speed tiptronic box - and it definitely moves along.

  2. #412
    Chasing the Horizon RJ's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2014

    Talk me out of a Porsche Cayman

    Misc. Log Update

    16 September 2019 22,459 Miles

    Just a quick three-month update on the 911 since purchasing the car in June.

    MPG is at 25.1 mpg in the 3,485 miles since I've picked up the car, mix of commuting and running around. I am still monitoring the Pirellis for wear, but based on the tread depth of the rears have decided they can wait a couple more months.

    The only service expense was a pair of OEM wiper blade refills from Sunset Porsche for $53.20 shipped. No Dealer visits. The nearest maintenance service coming up is a set of spark plugs recommended at 30K. I may combine that with an oil and filter change, which would be early. (OCI is either 12 months or 10K miles.)

    So, all that mundane stuff out of the way: The car is literally the best all around automotive experience I have ever had. Period. Dot. I should have bought one of these years, decades, ago. It is that good. The individual elements of a 911 don't begin to tell the story of how this car drives, handles and holds the road when it all comes together. I love it.



    Related Porsche Content: We went to the Petersen Automotive Museum while we were out in LA week before last. I frankly thought the experience was a bust, but there were some cool P-cars there.

    Interior of an early 550, I believe it was:



    I was going to buy this but didn’t like the color.

    Last edited by RJ; 09-16-2019 at 05:59 PM.

  3. #413
    Chasing the Horizon RJ's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2014

    Talk me out of a Porsche Cayman

    Misc. Log Update

    22 September 2019 23,487 Miles

    Porsche Experience Center – Atlanta – September 2019

    We drove up to Atlanta for a couple days this weekend to take in one of the “Porsche Experience Center” sessions. I did the 90 minutes “Mastering the Manual” in a car similar to mine, a 911 T, while Mrs. Rich did one of the “Demonstration Runs”. It was huge fun and we both enjoyed it immensely.

    What do you want to achieve?. I’ve had my license since 1976; and in all that time, I’ve never had an accident. Couple tickets when I was young and stupid, but generally I’ve driven all my life in Manual Transmission cars with rare exceptions. My skill level is very basic: I can start, stop, shift, but never, really, have I ever explored any racing experiences. Now recently having bought a fairly high-performance car, I wanted to learn more about it, and me. So in making this reservation, I had two goals: to get an objective assessment of my driving skill level, and to safely explore the limits of my car in a racing-like environment.

    Ze hotel next door. We of course stayed at 2 Porsche Drive, or the Kimpton Overland Hotel. (The PEC Atlanta is at 1 Porsche Drive). It is very Germanic. Und European. Coffee in ze room was an Nespresso, machine, not ziss week americanischer schtuff. We felt right at home, as I was born in Germany and Mrs. Rich went to high school there.

    The Porsche Experience Center Atlanta The PEC Atlanta is hard on Atlanta Airport, literally on I75 in Hapeville. It features a 1.6 mile handling course, with several inner features including a short handling course, hydraulic kickplate, and slalom run.

    Parking level - Me next to the new 2020 992 models - I still like mine.


    The in brief Promptly at 900AM I was met by my coach, who provided a comprehensive safety brief. I heard most of it but the butterflies were hovering. “My” car was a black 991.2 911 T, shod with well scrubbed Pirelli P0 tires. This was one of only two manual transmission vehicles in the PEC fleet. Equipped with a 7 speed manual transmission, except for the manual bucket seats, the 911 T is essentially identical to my car. I wore normal weekend attire; running shoes, shorts and polo. My coach had me sit much closer to pedals, so I had much more brake pedal force available. My hands were at 9 and 3, thumbs on the steering wheel ‘bumps.’ The car was set to Sport mode the whole time, with the satisfying snap crackle pop and auto rev matching enabled.

    The Warm Up We did 2-3 warm up laps on the outer circuit, while we chatted about tire heat, pressures and weight transfer under braking and throttle. My coach was probably sizing up my meagre driving ability and determining how, exactly, we were going to approach the exercises. My pace was ah sedate. I was mindful of the old phrase, “oh Lord, please don’t let me fuck up.”

    The Accursed Kick Plate My first challenge was a simple 20 mph car control exercise. The
    “Kick Plate” is a hydraulic plate which randomly moves left or right to induce a snap oversteer situation. In theory, one corrects IMMEDIATELY and all is well. Of course, that never happened. My best run I managed to “only” let the car do a 90 degree turn. Several loop de loops preceded this. My wife later indicated this was highly amusing to watch. It was not easy in the car, I can assure you. (You are supposed to max out at 25 mph. I never got past 20).

    Circles – Wet and Otherwise After leaving the kick plate, I tried the Wet Circle – which is exactly what it sounds like. Trying to do several “kick” and “catch” exercises proved hard. I did manage a few microseconds of “power sliding” around which I am sure impressed no one, but it was a fun few seconds feeling like I was “holding it” before I spun out. Very cool.

    Low Grip Handling Circuit” We dried off the tires with a lap of the outer ring, then entered the Low Grip Handling Circuit at the back of the complex. This was fun. The surface is very slick, so the end result is you can’t really do more than 25-30 mph. Much of the “steering” was actually done on the throttle; I was either hard on the braking to dig the nose in or the gas pedal was pegged to set up for the next turn. I think I now have a slight inkling of what “steering on the throttle” means. To be honest, I felt pretty good here; the surface of polished concrete made it feel like a large go-kart – which I have a fair amount of “fun” laps in.

    We then did a couple warm laps around outside circuit. Passed several cars.

    Slaloming My last task was to navigate the slalom. After an initial run, my speeds at end went from 24, to 27, to 34 mph. I got a “not bad Rich” at the end. I almost lost it at last turn of the last run, but I felt very much at the limit.

    Bringing It All Together. We finished our session with several hot laps. I felt a bit nervous, but started to put the pieces together after a lap or two. On lap 4 I hit the Apex before Pit Straight and reflexively went from 2 to 3 to 4 and approaching the right hander, realized I was going in a “bit hot”. I heard a fairly animated “RICHBRAKEBRAKEBRAKE!!!” and felt some squirming in the front end, but nailed it coming out of the corner in 2nd. I dialed it back a notch and on Lap 5 felt very positive and in control of the car, but it was still moving a lot in the twisties.

    Nailing it in second - I’m very focused here I can tell you lol



    We entered the pits after lap 5 to swap drivers. I have to say, 1015AM Rich would have scared the shit out of 915AM Rich. Overall I felt significantly more confident, and faster, much much faster yet still in control of the car. I felt great.

    Which lasted about 60 seconds.

    Rich – You look green!! My coach hopped in and I strapped into the passenger seat so he could ah “show me the racing line”. As we took off apparently one of the lead instructors in a GT2 RS approached from the rear. Well, of course, my coach, being a red-blooded racing driver, did what any racing driver would do. He said “hold on” and we were off. Two laps later, I weakly held my hand up for the Emergency Fresh Air signal. My coach grinned and we pulled into the pits.

    Holy Shit. What a freaking ride. I asked him and he said they were limited to 7/10ths during the demo lap. 7. 10ths. Yeah, right lol. It was hella fun but I stumbled up the steps and had to “take a moment” in the AC of the upper deck with a restorative Ginger Ale. I was ok about a half hour later enough to have a small bite and after cooling off, felt fine.

    Gift Shop, Museum Experience and Dinner at 356 Restaurant We made the obligatory visit to the gift shop for Porsche swag, but I skipped the $14,000 Porsche Models lol.

    They have a “Museum-like” experience filled with a few cars; it was an interesting walk-through.





    Dinner at the on-site "356 Restaurant" was very enjoyable. The aperitif was a nice glass of Walnut Creek Merlot as we overlooked the track for the final hot laps of the day. We both had the 12 oz 1855 Boneless Ribeye, accompanied by heirloom potatoes hash w baby spinach and béarnaise sauce, with a frosty Stein of refreshing German Hefeweizen.

    Expectations vs Reality The entire Facility and staff at the PEC are first rate - Staff are uniformly excellent; the Museum, shops, hotel, restaurant, amenities, ambience; it was just a fantastic experience. It was a vastly more intense driving experience than I was expecting. I got several take aways to enhance my daily driving. I will explore Driver Education events with my local chapter of Porsche Club of America with a confidence, having been exposed to track and car.

    The Final Verdict. I have new respect for my car’s handling and roadholding limits - they are very high. My skill level however remains near the bottom - but I could see some small Improvement in my car control ability.

    We are already Planning our next visit.

    ”Demonstration Run”
    https://youtu.be/4dW3aSspn6k
    Last edited by RJ; 09-22-2019 at 05:36 PM.

  4. #414
    Site Supporter
    Join Date
    Oct 2013
    Location
    Canton GA
    Great AAR. I have been there twice for business meetings - they rent out the conference center. Once was meeting with Porsche Consulting about how they are automating their manufacturing facilities. Other was an Industry 4.0 pitch. As part of the visit we got a 2 lap orientation. First time I got a hot lap as a passenger with one of their professional drivers in a new 911 of some form - yeah I was green too (probably should not have mentioned I drove a BMW 335). Second time, it was raining and I threw out a "got to go" excuse as no way I was riding with them on a wet track!

  5. #415
    I may have something to contribute to this thread around mid October.
    Likes pretty much everything in every caliber.

  6. #416
    Quote Originally Posted by GJM View Post
    I may have something to contribute to this thread around mid October.
    Come now George, ya can't just leave us twisting in the wind 'till mid-October amigo, taking delivery of a P car then perhaps?

  7. #417
    Hammertime
    Join Date
    Apr 2016
    Location
    Desert Southwest
    What a super cool experience.

  8. #418
    Chasing the Horizon RJ's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2014

    Talk me out of a Porsche Cayman

    Repair

    23 September 2019 23,487 Miles

    Front windshield repair, by Safelite Autoglass, $176.82.

    The only downer we had on the trip this past weekend was that we caught a small rock overtaking a truck entering Atlanta on I75. Just random act of God thing. Got a good "pop" and thankfully only ended up with a quarter-sized chip in the glass.

    Tough to see through the bug guts, but the chip is the circular area mid-line, center height, in the "trees" of the parking lot reflected.



    We used the online appointment system at safelite.com Sunday and scheduled a technician this afternoon. Thankfully she was able to utilize their clear resin and repair the chip so that it is almost undetectable. Super impressed with this material; it is apparently (judging by what she did with a small electric compressor/pump toolset) injected under vacuum pressure and then flows into the glass. As say, after the repair and buffing it's virtually as good as new.

    Looking at windshield replacement on 911's online on the fancy pants German car forums, I've seen actual costs between $1,800 to $2,400, all in. The glass on these cars have antennas, and also due to the lane change assist feature evidently require re-calibration at the dealer after replacement. I am very glad I don't currently see a need to go this route and gladly paid the less than $200 out the door not to have to deal with insurance and loss of use.

    EDIT TO ADD

    Speaking of bug guts, I bought a half liter of this super duper "Porsche Insect Remover" bug cutter at the Porsche Gift Shop. Stuff does work, but I'll have to check and see if the product (some kind of anionic surfactant - maybe citrusy) is available at like Chemical Guys or similar for less than I paid ($16 for a half liter - but in my defense I did need to get the damn metric butt-load of love-bugs deposited on my bumper and windshield after the 900 miles drive this weekend lol).

    Last edited by RJ; 09-23-2019 at 06:50 PM.

  9. #419
    Quote Originally Posted by RJ View Post
    Misc. Log Update


    We are already Planning our next visit.
    First hit of Crack is free . . .
    "Government is not reason, it is not eloquence, it is force; like fire, a troublesome servant and a fearful master"

  10. #420
    Site Supporter JM Campbell's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2011
    Location
    Texas
    Rich I’m @ 90% sure that bug cleaner is produced by 1einzet for Porsche. You should be able to find it under the 1Z label on amazon. Although it does look like the 3D product (iirc 3D was also selling to German manufacturers under house names as well)

    https://www.amazon.com/3D-Bug-Remove...dDbGljaz10cnVl


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    AKA: SkyLine1

User Tag List

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •