Porsche Road Trip Jul 21, 2009
Our car spent most of its life in California, but Andy had it trucked to his new home in Chicago late last year. We had to fetch the car, but it was a nice drive home to Florida.
On our first stop, we filled the 911 with gas and our bellies with White Castle. From Chicago, we headed east to regular contributor Carl Heideman's place in Holland, Mich.
After hanging with Carl, we headed south into Indiana, stopping at The Tire Rack and Hoosier Tires along the way.
As we traveled farther south--stopping for a few more White Castle meals--the Porsche continued to run flawlessly. That's right, no problems at all. We stopped in Atlanta to visit family and an Atlanta Region autocross, then headed on to GRM world headquarters with no drama at all.
People and Books Jul 30, 2009
We realize that these two topics--may not exactly go together, but call it our latest update.
The car made its public debut this past weekend at a Cars and Café event hosted by the Orlando Automobile Club. Their monthly events attract a wide range of cars, with a high concentration of late-model exotics--Lamborghinis, Porsches and Ferraris are common.
Ferrari of Tampa Bay had two neat exotics on display, an Alfa Romeo 8C as well as a new Ferrari California. We noticed several people checking out our Porsche, and supposedly some nice things were overheard.
We also received some light reading: a new Bentley service manual. Let's hope that we don't wind up reading it by the side of the road.
And on a relatively unrelated note, new tires have been ordered for the Porsche. We're going back to the original brand fitted on our car, Pirelli.
Sneaker Shopping Aug 28, 2009
Our car wore all-season tires when it came into our life, which are fine for those who might face winter conditions. Living in Florida, that's not a big concern for us so we did some shopping.
The process actually started during our visit to The Tire Rack, and we discussed our wishes with John Rastetter. We had some specific desires this time: really strong performance yet period-correct looks. Call us nerds, but we didn't feel that the latest hyper-exotic tread would look right next to that classic 45-year-old shape. We also wanted tires that would well on the rear-engine chassis.
John understood our needs, and we went back and forth with a few options. Our final selection should do it all: Pirelli's PZero System. The PZero System features two different tires, the PZero Asimmetrico (asymmetrical) and PZero Direzionale (directional). Their UTQG data looks sporty: 140 treadwear plus A treadwear and traction ratings.
Depending on the exact application, Pirelli specs one model for each end of the car or one model at all four corners. For our 911, they spec the 205/55ZR16 Direzionales up front and 225/50ZR16 Asimmetricos out back. These tires also carry Porsche's N-specification seal of approval, meaning they have been certified for use on the unorthodox chassis.
The Tire Rack stocks these tires. The fronts retail for $138 each while the rears go for $182 apiece. We'll have the tires mounted soon and let you know how they work.
Metal God Sep 2, 2009
Our editor recently went on a walkabout, and he left with the Porsche. The reason for the trip was to see Judas Priest in South Florida, but other stops included a minor league baseball game, a visit with Grandma, and a stop at Redline BMW Performance. We still need to compute the fuel economy, but the car only used a few ounces of oil during the 800-mile trip.
The drive also served as a good test of the air conditioner. It's hot down there, even in late August. The system did okay but seemed to lack cooling power when the car was stationary. Turns out that the front condenser fan isn't working. While the cooler months are almost here, increasing the a/c performance has been moved up our to-do list.
Porsche Post-Purchase Inspection Sep 4, 2009
Our good friend Randy DuVall used to own a Porsche repair shop, and Saturday morning he did a post-purchase inspection for us. Yes, we know, you're supposed to do a pre-purchase inspection, but the car came with good records and we trusted the seller since he's a friend.
Randy offered to help with the car's maintenance and has a very nice home shop. After seeing the photos, he wanted to experience the car firsthand.
During the test drive he called the car "impeccable," which was nice to hear. Our shopping list is fairly reasonable. As we figured, the front a/c condenser's blower motor is toast, so we'll replace it soon.
Our future to-do list includes the shifter bushings--an easy, inexpensive job that should ease the gear changing action--and the 911 Turbo tie rods. The Turbo tie rods won't make the car any faster, but they offer much better steering feel.
First, though, the car needs a bath. We also need to give the black rubber trim some much-needed love. Randy sent us home with a can of Wurth rubber and vinyl treatment.