1968 Porsche 911

[Der Alta]

Just took a drive in a co-workers fully resto'd 1968 Porsche 911.

I'm sure that a few might disagree, but I've gotta tell someone.

I have less respect for cars churned out today. It was simply elegant. Bare bones driving machine. Forget comfort, forget music, forget power anything, this car is about two things. You and the road. No power steering, brakes, windows. Even teh defroster was nothing more than a heat exchanger off the engine compartment. The rear view mirrors? useless. Seriously, the passenger side mirror is mounted in such a way that you can't see it from the drivers seat. 4 wheel disc brakes, w/ no power assist. Raw, unbridged driving experience. IT rode like it was on rails. Cornering, braking, accelerating, just a beautiful experience. Now to tell my wife what I want for christmas...

This little racer was turning 150 horses, and used every single one of them. Even at low RPM's it wanted to surge when you galnced at the pedal. After about 20 minutes of getting used to it, my friend said open her up. He knows my penchant for driving, and has firsthand knowledge of my ability. Which is a long, harrowing story in itself...

But the drive in the 911.
I had taken some back roads that I knew quite well (having driven them in my VW at close to 100mph down them), so that we could avoid traffic. Approaching this long gentle righthand, banked, turn I eased the throttle open, and it whisked up to 65 with no problem. The 911 acted so much better around this corner than my VW. I exited the corner at close to 75 feeling the road and every pebble that had sprinkled across it. seeing that the next 1.5 miles of meandering road was clear of traffic, I punched it. as the needle brushed 90mph, I moved into 5th gear and got back on the horses. the light left, right, left chicane was so easy, I felt like a knife through warm butter. The road told every detail of it's surface through the steering wheel. The 1.5 miles was used up before I knew it,. and had to get heavy on teh brakes to back it down from 98-99 mph to the speed limit of 40mph. The cruise back to the office never seemed that short.

It's going to suck climbing into my VW and noticing that I can tell nothing about the road.

Thanks for listening.
AO

 

[sn00pie]

There's nothing better than a man who can appreciate a good car! Unlike some other "my car is faster than yours you stupid mofo" people.

 

[sn00pie]

 

[vat_man]

Did you come off the throttle mid corner at all? They can get mighty spooky of you're undisciplined.

I drove an early 70's Porsche 911 7 or 8 years ago, and like you I remember just how alive the car felt, particularly the steering and throttle response.

One thing I do remember was (I drove the car in Melbourne, Australia) cornering at some speed over tram tracks was pretty scary, the old girl had a fair buck and twitch over them - I drove an mid 90's Carrera 4 over the same intersection a couple of months later that was completely unfazed.

 

[Duke]

Very nice, Alta! Well documented as always. There is a magic to old cars, indeed. I remember my first ride in my friend's Spitfire. We were zipping along some back roads, and came around a corner to be confronted by a concrete mixer dead ahead. He didn't bat an eyelash; just let the car drift wide and swooped around. It was a non-event for that little Triumph animal.

I've never had the pleasure of driving a 911, but I have driven a 914-6, which shares the same minimalism and spirit, even if it is not universally loved by Porsche people.

 

[Hooligan]

Sorry. Way too envious [and tired] to come up with something witty. Like wishing I was you or something....

Have you gotten a chance to compare the 1968 to a 996? I hear it's night and day differences, yet both are worth the time. Personally, I'd rather save the $40,000 and go with a early-80's 911. Ideally, I'd search for a 70's 2.7RS, but the "collector's item" may be hard to find.

 

[Gil]

AO, you have been bitten. The venom now runs thru your veins. You will now only tolerate lesser cars. For me it was a '72 Mercedes 280 Sedan. Up to that point it had been Big Block Fords and I didn't know what I was missing!!
My old man let me drive my Mom's Merc from San Francisco to the Monterey Peninsula. I loved driving thru Napa Valley at eighty mph, and my Pops saying "You don't have to slow down...but if you get a ticket, it's your responsibility. And you get to explain it to your mother". It was the best handling car I had ever driven up to that point.

 

[Der Alta]

It is a fantastic car, and was a fantastic drive. If only a short time.

Vat_man: I was minimally acclerating through the corner. the throttle response was incredible, no need to tramp the pedal, just a slight movement of the foot, and you could feel the subtle changes in speed.

It was my first ride in a 911. I've been in love with them for many years and forever wanted one. Now I know I want one.

The thought of riding/driving a 911 was something that I always put up on a pedestal. I can relate it to looking at a Monet from 20 feet away. Everybody tells you of the brush strokes, and nuances in the details, and you can see the beauty. But you're really nervous about getting close to it, afraid of finding out it's a paint by numbers watercolor. that was always my fear.

I had a similar experience in a Camaro. One of my Sergeants in the army had a 1990 camaro that he treated as his baby. Always bragging about power, speed and handling. Eventually I was given the chance to drive it. Slluggish throttle response, way too much slop in the steering, and I would have been better off leaning out the door to check the road.

Thankfully after riding in Rob's I was given the Right story.

Yes rufRGT: That is the one. Although Rob's has the original blue paintjob on it.

A very hard bite indeed.

TIll later,
AO

 

[misnblu]

Yup, the 911 is the car of my dreams as well.
As a boy, I was always intrigued in the design of the car and the legendary performance of it.
Nice thread. Your making me want to sell all three of my cars for one, stop it. I cant stand it. *leaves the room running away crying I cant have one*

[marquee]Misnblu[/marquee]

 

[risingson77]

[shorts out keyboard]

If you're not a writer for a car magazine, Der Alta...you should be. :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

You gotta love direct mechanical connections. The 911 probably also has about a three pound flywheel to provide the throttle response you were describing.

I wouldn't turn down a chance to drive any Porsche, but in a way I'm glad I haven't been able to. I'm sure the ol' Integra would just suck by comparison.

 

[Klostrophobic]

And then there were 11,000. Threads.

 

[risingson77]

Maine does not suck that much...

Unless you're in The County...

 

[1X83Z]

Der Alta: Have you driven a current 911? It's still one hell of a driver's car.

 

[Der Alta]

M5power:

I haven't had the chance to drive one of the new ones. Followed many of them on the road, and they look beautiful. As soon as I win "MegaMillions" I'll pick up one. Until then, I'll have to dream.

I finally was able to get the pics off of my laptop.

This is a pic of the one I drove. (edit: photo editor chopped it bad...)

 

[vat_man]

Originally posted by M5Power
Der Alta: Have you driven a current 911? It's still one hell of a driver's car.

I'd be interested to compare it to the '92 Carrera 4 I drove some years ago. I drove that back to back with an early 70's 911, and it seemed to me the 4wd had taken some of the feel out of the steering, particularly under power. Have you driven any of 4wd 911s?

 

[1X83Z]

Originally posted by vat_man


I'd be interested to compare it to the '92 Carrera 4 I drove some years ago. I drove that back to back with an early 70's 911, and it seemed to me the 4wd had taken some of the feel out of the steering, particularly under power. Have you driven any of 4wd 911s?

Nope - just the rear/rear. I could assume that the all-wheel drive takes some of the feeling out - I'd be interested to compare a rear-drive Lamborghini Diablo to the all-wheel drive ones for feel as I'm sure that the all-wheel drive takes a lot of the 'drivers'-car' feeling out of the steering.

 

[vat_man]

Oh - it still felt like a driver's car!!! Just not one that was going to make a genuine attempt on your life if you thought about coming off the throttle mid corner!