Steve Brookes
Moderator
Warning! This is an unashamed testament about how good our cars are[8D]
Every time I drive this car I just love it more and more. It is without doubt the most rewarding car to drive that I have ever owned. I thought it was good on the road but now I'm back from taking it on the track at Bedford Autodrome (at the annual 911UK bash) I think it is amazing[
].
Due to a bit of rain the track was in the words of TopGear, mildly moist and at the start I was slightly more nervous of taking it out than I would have been normally. Although not a trackday Virgin I was full of apprehension about how the 964 would handle compared to the more neutral handling of my boxster which I had driven on track previously. I needn't have worried because although it was different, it was so much better. The grip it showed was astonishing. After a few medium paced laps and some laps with a good instructor I became completely confident with the car. It's greatet beauty was how it came out of a corner. All I had to do as I cleared the apex was point it in the right direction, wind off the lock and punch my foot to the floor. No squirming, no sliding, just mountains of grip. The hardest thing to do was to remember to change gear because it hit the rev limiter so quickly in the lower gears (I did this twice[]).
At speed the car is just so nimble and was a delight to flick through the chicane at the end of the back straight. The brakes were just as astonishing as the grip of the chassis. They hauled the car to a stop and almost pressed my passengers into the windscreen. And the braking was accompanied by the wonderful, characterstic noise of the big air cooling fan winding down like a jet engine going into reverse thrust! When I got to the braking pointing exactly right (not too often) so that I was just off the brakes at the turn-in point, the nose of the car would go exactly where I wanted it to.
Although I was passed many times by more modern and more powerful 911s during the day, I can honestly say that I have no desire to go bigger and better. The 964 without any of the modern driving aids is a joy to drive on the track because it's totally down to you to get it right. It offers so much satisfaction. I can't wait to do it again and if any other new owners are thinking of doing it - get out there![]
However, the one drawback of taking my car on the track is that now I have this horrible urge to rip out the beautiful leather interior and go down the minimalist, track focussed route[8D]
Every time I drive this car I just love it more and more. It is without doubt the most rewarding car to drive that I have ever owned. I thought it was good on the road but now I'm back from taking it on the track at Bedford Autodrome (at the annual 911UK bash) I think it is amazing[
].Due to a bit of rain the track was in the words of TopGear, mildly moist and at the start I was slightly more nervous of taking it out than I would have been normally. Although not a trackday Virgin I was full of apprehension about how the 964 would handle compared to the more neutral handling of my boxster which I had driven on track previously. I needn't have worried because although it was different, it was so much better. The grip it showed was astonishing. After a few medium paced laps and some laps with a good instructor I became completely confident with the car. It's greatet beauty was how it came out of a corner. All I had to do as I cleared the apex was point it in the right direction, wind off the lock and punch my foot to the floor. No squirming, no sliding, just mountains of grip. The hardest thing to do was to remember to change gear because it hit the rev limiter so quickly in the lower gears (I did this twice[
]).At speed the car is just so nimble and was a delight to flick through the chicane at the end of the back straight. The brakes were just as astonishing as the grip of the chassis. They hauled the car to a stop and almost pressed my passengers into the windscreen. And the braking was accompanied by the wonderful, characterstic noise of the big air cooling fan winding down like a jet engine going into reverse thrust! When I got to the braking pointing exactly right (not too often) so that I was just off the brakes at the turn-in point, the nose of the car would go exactly where I wanted it to.
Although I was passed many times by more modern and more powerful 911s during the day, I can honestly say that I have no desire to go bigger and better. The 964 without any of the modern driving aids is a joy to drive on the track because it's totally down to you to get it right. It offers so much satisfaction. I can't wait to do it again and if any other new owners are thinking of doing it - get out there![
]However, the one drawback of taking my car on the track is that now I have this horrible urge to rip out the beautiful leather interior and go down the minimalist, track focussed route[8D]
