Should I track my low mileage 997.1 4s
Discussion
Hi people
So I bought myself a aerokit 2007 997.1 3.8l with 33k kms on the clock. My first decent car.
Part of me wants to track it to actually use the performance (in Aus where cops are everywhere and everyone drives below the speed limit) but part of me wants to keep the car in good condition as it seems like low kms is quite rare.
Plus I know the engines have a few issues. I dont want to blow the engine although I can always rebuild...
Thoughts?
So I bought myself a aerokit 2007 997.1 3.8l with 33k kms on the clock. My first decent car.
Part of me wants to track it to actually use the performance (in Aus where cops are everywhere and everyone drives below the speed limit) but part of me wants to keep the car in good condition as it seems like low kms is quite rare.
Plus I know the engines have a few issues. I dont want to blow the engine although I can always rebuild...
Thoughts?
Nobody but you can answer that question I feel.
I also have a 997.1 4S and have not taken it on track and am not planning to (but I tracked my old 964).
Could the 997 handle it? Yes, of course it can, its part of the development process they all go through. But... it could end up costing you. If nothing else brakes and tyres will wear much quicker. In worst case scenarios engine and gearbox. Clearly depends on how often you end up going. If you become hooked then you'll probably want a more suitable (lighter, simpler) car eventually.
cayman-black said:
4S... No.
Sorry, I respectfully call "internet BS" on that!Guy won't notice difference at this stage. Plus, isn't the 4S "quicker" than the 2S given its better traction? (Memory bit fuzzy, but I definitely recall something along those lines, which went against the logical grain).
Definitely take her on track. I remember a Porsche instructor taking me around track in one back in 2007 in a manual C4S cabriolet. I'm not kidding he murdered everything inc GT3 on track and he had to stop I felt sick he was going so fast. We were approaching corners at a pace I thought we would go straight through the corner but the car went round every corner.
Jezza1983 said:
Hi people
So I bought myself a aerokit 2007 997.1 3.8l with 33k kms on the clock. My first decent car.
Part of me wants to track it to actually use the performance (in Aus where cops are everywhere and everyone drives below the speed limit) but part of me wants to keep the car in good condition as it seems like low kms is quite rare.
Plus I know the engines have a few issues. I dont want to blow the engine although I can always rebuild...
Thoughts?
Given you're in Australia, definitely take it - you don't need to drive it hard on track to still find it far more fun and liberating than the public roads. And it's not as if the mileage will rocket from a few track days; the distance you'll cover on track isn't actually that much. So I bought myself a aerokit 2007 997.1 3.8l with 33k kms on the clock. My first decent car.
Part of me wants to track it to actually use the performance (in Aus where cops are everywhere and everyone drives below the speed limit) but part of me wants to keep the car in good condition as it seems like low kms is quite rare.
Plus I know the engines have a few issues. I dont want to blow the engine although I can always rebuild...
Thoughts?
Take it on track, good fun. You will feel it's weight after you have spent a little while on track though, starts to feel like a bit of a barge, so can get frustrating. As others have said, if your not sympathetic, you will accelerate consumable wear rate, particularity if you go out with traction/stability management on.
Enjoy!
Enjoy!
RiccardoG said:
Nobody but you can answer that question I feel.
I also have a 997.1 4S and have not taken it on track and am not planning to (but I tracked my old 964).
Could the 997 handle it? Yes, of course it can, its part of the development process they all go through. But... it could end up costing you. If nothing else brakes and tyres will wear much quicker. In worst case scenarios engine and gearbox. Clearly depends on how often you end up going. If you become hooked then you'll probably want a more suitable (lighter, simpler) car eventually.
Was going to buy another set of wheels and track tyres as road tyres wont last and end up costing more. I guess brakes just need track focused pads and should be right?I also have a 997.1 4S and have not taken it on track and am not planning to (but I tracked my old 964).
Could the 997 handle it? Yes, of course it can, its part of the development process they all go through. But... it could end up costing you. If nothing else brakes and tyres will wear much quicker. In worst case scenarios engine and gearbox. Clearly depends on how often you end up going. If you become hooked then you'll probably want a more suitable (lighter, simpler) car eventually.
Track days are great fun, quite addictive and personally I've always found the people who go to track days to be a good bunch to spend a day with. The 997 C4S is very capable car on track, they have a tendency towards understeer on turn in with standard set up, but like all 911s they were made with an expectation that they might be used on track and, as someone else said, they can really be pushed on hard in the right hands with no adverse effect on the car; we often used the C4S as instructor cars, leading convoys on track all day long.
Potential expenses should be considered, tyres and brakes will wear much faster on track than on the road, it is very easy to go through a set of tyres on a track day, especially as you start to gain experience & confidence and begin to push harder. Track day insurance is available to cover accident damage, but there is of course an excess on most policies to consider and if you miss shift (say 5th to 2nd instead of 5th to 4th when braking) and buzz the engine you could be in for a considerable bill, although i've seen it done a few times and surprisingly the engines survive the over revs more often than they go bang.
As someone posted above this is really a decision that only you can make, but if you do decide to track the car, get some track focussed high temperature brake fluid in the car so you don't boil it and get a tyre pressure gauge to make sure you've got the right tyre pressures on track (2.1-2.2 Bar hot)
Potential expenses should be considered, tyres and brakes will wear much faster on track than on the road, it is very easy to go through a set of tyres on a track day, especially as you start to gain experience & confidence and begin to push harder. Track day insurance is available to cover accident damage, but there is of course an excess on most policies to consider and if you miss shift (say 5th to 2nd instead of 5th to 4th when braking) and buzz the engine you could be in for a considerable bill, although i've seen it done a few times and surprisingly the engines survive the over revs more often than they go bang.
As someone posted above this is really a decision that only you can make, but if you do decide to track the car, get some track focussed high temperature brake fluid in the car so you don't boil it and get a tyre pressure gauge to make sure you've got the right tyre pressures on track (2.1-2.2 Bar hot)
braddo said:
you don't need to drive it hard on track to still find it far more fun and liberating than the public roads
Definitely this! Track days are not racing and so if you just want to drive fast in a safe environment it'll be fantastic. Tire wear probably will increase but otherwise just be sensible, keep an eye on things and enjoy yourself. I don't tend to worry about setting blistering lap times and instead just focus on my technique - my primary objective is always to drive home in the car I arrived in and fingers crossed, it has so far served me well.As for the 4s vs 2s argument, I think it is probably irrelevant at the "just having fun" level (and probably at most levels until you get to Driving God/Racecar Driver level). The car will be far more capable than most of us are and probably more capable than 90% of the other cars out there.
Do it. You still only have to drive it on track to the pace and level you’re comfortable with.
Don’t beat it up, one day or a couple a year, and normal pads, tyres etc at the likely level your going to drive at should be fine.
I’d get some instruction, see what it, and you are capable of, rather than buggering about with track day ‘improvements’.
Don’t beat it up, one day or a couple a year, and normal pads, tyres etc at the likely level your going to drive at should be fine.
I’d get some instruction, see what it, and you are capable of, rather than buggering about with track day ‘improvements’.
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