Cafe' Machiatto "Full Throttle"

Can't imagine the countless lives and property saved by ABS and traction control.  If I had one of these cars with 250+hp I would want ABS on all the time and traction control that could be turned off for that occasional burn out.  The 8 pieces of titanium in my chest holding together my 8 ribs with 14 fractures and my collar bone which will soon have its 3rd operation are a constant reminder to me about the magic of ABS.  If my Ducati had had ABS I would not be setting off airport metal detectors.  My 2 Cents.

Marty or Bob, will your cars have power brakes?  With the speeds your car can get to in a very short time, I would think that power brakes would be nice.

It looks like they have 911 vented disks. 

I don't think they will have power breaks, unless they specified a change in Master cylinder with a booster in their build sheet. or they get beer or wine breaks with the car. Ray

My car has neither power brakes, nor ABS.  I know I will have to be careful driving it, especially after watching all those 'Russian Car Crash' videos on YouTube

 

Seriously, I don't intend to misuse the power I will have.  The car does have 911 disc brakes all around, and with the weight should steer easily. I'll be using that accelerator pedal pretty softly for the first while, until I get used to how the car responds.

 

I have driven cars for a few years now, and most of them were without ABS, traction control, power brakes, etc.  I learned how to drive in a beat up Bugeye Sprite with weak brakes at best, and pretty bald tires.  It was great fun in winter.

 

Phil, I certainly can appreciate your perspective on this.

One more thought on that theme:

 

It's the driver that speeds, not the car.

 

There is no question that experience is the real teacher in life, living with the pain of going through what you went through Phil gives you a much more weighty opinion. 

I quit riding a motorcycle when I scared myself on a 750 triple 1971 Suzuki, and a friend planted his bike in a truck camper at 60 mph, and managed to fly and roll over the top of the truck and only got a scratch the size of a quarter where the sun does not usually shine. How he lived is absolutely miraculous as the bike could not be seperated from the truck camper.  The women cut him off, as she got on the highway. Scary stuff at times. Ray

I should have mentioned with all that and even having done a 180 degree full rotation in a convertible I still do not have a roll bar.  . Ray

The function of ABS and TC is to keep the rubber glued to the pavement at all times.  I'm the first guy to to spin his wheels and drift sideways.  The best thing about my spyders was their ability to predictably oversteer and just let the steering wheel ease the back end around.  But most of the time when I was letting loose I was at the track or on what I believed to be a deserted road.  My suby spyder was at most 165 hp and had handling characteristics much more forgiving than a weight rear bias 356.  My point is that you don't want or need ABS or TC until in that split second you need it NOW to save yourself from going into a ditch.  No matter how good of drivers we are a splash of oil, a pile of leaves, a patch of gravel or a deer can send any of us into a ditch.  ABS and TC can think and respond instantly.  Just sayin, when you've got 250-300 hp in a car with rear weight bias things can go wrong in a instant.  I wish I had to worry about my car's power like Bob and Marty.  My car is likely too slow to get me in much trouble.  Bob and Marty's cars are approaching supercar status based on their incredible power to weight ratios.  Just sayin, pain sucks, be careful.

Your right Phil, rear engined cars are not forgiving and the more HP you have back there the more you riding the edge of the adhesion limit and you can lose it even on a slippery highway.  Come to think of it, didn't Tom have such an experience? I think he has 350hp in his car... Scary stuff. 

Gee, are you guys trying to scare me? 

 

Seriously, I am well aware of what I have created here, and I am going to be very, very cautious until I learn the characteristics of the car.  My last driver was a 2005 Mustang with 300 h.p., and I never over drove it.  Yes, it had ABS, TC, etc. but it still had a lot of go power.  I never once got in trouble with it.

 

I know the issues with a RWD vehicle, and I intend to be very respectful of what it can do - very respectful.

 

Besides, most drives will be with my wife, and that guarantees I won't be doing anything stupid.  I'm a very defensive driver to begin with, but I'll be more so with this car.

 

 

I'm not. I wish I was was. I'm a bad mixture of cocky and inattentive once I get comfortable with something. I can get in trouble in a big hurry.

 

Be careful. That car will be a monster. 

Like Bob, many of my drives are with my wife and I drive at maybe 5/10ths and when I am by myself I may take it up a tick but I am too much of a wussy to keep it on.  Plus, our roads are mostly straight and we don't have the undulating curves to tempt.  It's good to have that little guy in the back of your head telling you to back it down.

You guys will be fine - don't listen to these Nervous Nellies.  

 

The amount of torque you will both have (about equal, as far as I've seen of the specs) isn't all that bad and you'll learn how to live with it in a day or so of driving.  I bet you'll both find that it is very predictable and very manageable.  Play with applying power in the turns to see how it reacts and you'll be fine.

 

And this whole thing of rear wheel driving and power-induced tail heaviness is something to be admired - you'll both quickly learn that it is a positive benefit, not something to be feared, as implied.  Get your cars and go out for some nice drives with your wives and take your time getting used to it.  You're gonna love both of those cars.

 

 

You want something potentially scarey??  Try 680hp at the wheels in a 4WD car like my son used to drive to work every day.  2-stage turbo so the power came on almost instantaneously AND the front wheels were pulling, too, so it went where-ever it was pointed, no matter what.  Lane rode in it once.  He was a little gray when he got out....

 

 

Gray hell!  I was nearly bald!!!!! 

Finishing touches. New throttle pedal.  New speaker grills.

Marty, that new pedal looks cool, where did you get it?  I did not know there was one available for a subie dbwire pedal...Ray 

Looks nice, Marty!

 

When's the shipping date?

 

I'm heading out next Wednesday to pick mine up. 

Ray, the pedal was sourced from Rennline.   They even had an option for an extension to heal and toe. My car is suppose to ship on around 9/18 or 9/19.

Marty, your car looks really great. Can't wait to see it in person, and maybe get a ride?

Don't get all worried about the performance potential. The problem with all these driver aids, is that they aren't for the drivers. They are for lemmings that can barely get from A to B.

I drive at the limit on the track, and sometimes a bit over. I drive close to it occasionally, on the street, in non-populated areas, with no traffic. So the risk is all mine. Take the time to learn your new power slowly, incrementally. Learn your handling limits. I highly recommend you learn some threshold braking in your car. So that way, in an emergency, you won't panic. You'll just calmly apply the brakes at the limit and slow quickly. No panic stops, muscle memory is strong, with proper training.

And my brake upgrade was well worth the money spent. Sucked me down from 110 to 60, repeatedly, with no drama.

When I'm cornering at 7/10 or 8/10 on the track I can often correct an oversteer slide.  I can't do it at 10/10.  In the last 10 years of tracking I've spun three times (and run out of brakes once).  When things happen at 10/10 speeds they happen VERY fast.  Too fast for my slow brain.

Tracking is a great way to really get to know your car's limits.....and yours

"I highly recommend you learn some threshold braking in your car. So that way, in an emergency, you won't panic. You'll just calmly apply the brakes at the limit and slow quickly. No panic stops, muscle memory is strong, with proper training."

 

Danny, thanks for this reminder.  I too will need to learn threshold braking.  I guess the majority of us here should - how to stop safely and smoothly without ABS.

 

I am going to find a fairly deserted spot and practise it.  I know I am too likely to just hit the brakes, lock the wheels, and pray like h*ll that I stop in time, and that ain't good.

Learn the old 356 "trick" of sawing the steering wheel.  It will get you through a high speed corner before the back end comes around (usually).  If the back should come loose, you'll get to feel it better with this technique and by keeping some throttle in, allow you to steer through the event.

I do not care how long you have been driving...everyone can really benefit from attending a driving school. You will be utterly surprised of exactly how bad a driver you are. I took my first driving school in Phoenix at Bonderants(sp) Driving school. I thought I was a good driver...boy oh boy was I wrong I had picked up some really bad habits over my years behind the wheel that were pointed out to me on the track.

 

I eventually took two more race driving schools and several SCCA schools and eventually earned a full SCCA Competition License thru the Northern Pacific.

Division. I no longer race or open track because I know my limitations as I age, my reaction times are slower and I can be unintentionally dangerous not only to myself but other competitors on the track. Best to hangup the ol' helmet... even though I miss the thrill of racing or even open tracking.

 

So my advice to anyone with a lightweight high powered car no matter how good a driver you think you are you could really benefit from a driving school or two...that way you'll more than likely be able to keep the 'rubber on the road' where it belongs...LOL

 

PS. Our Cobra is a 425hp powered engine(396 at the rear wheels) in a light weight car, 1850lbs without a full tank(32gal) or me driving...fully loaded with full tank and driver is 2250lbs. It has no ABS or TC, it has a near race perfect balance of 51/49. This is a car meant to be driven, you can not drive it like a new car you have to really pay attention and keep both hands on the wheel or you are very likely to end up in another lane...and you have to be fully aware of the HP, a leadfoot can spin you 180* or more quicker than you can react...been there, done that

 

 

 

I agree G.R., but it's a really fun way to go through a round-about.

 

When you have to do an emergency braking maneuver you'll do what everyone does....slam on the brakes.  What practicing threshold braking does is give you the ware-withal to realize what you're doing and ease off on the brakes to unlock the wheels.  People with no training are likely to just keep the brakes locked.

 

If you think practicing threshold braking will stop you from slamming on your brakes is a split second emergency situation you're kidding yourself.

Frank and I did that in our first lap at Lime Rock (the lap you guys didn't see 'cuz I took off before Frank got his camera going).  We headed out at the top of the back hill and made the drop a little fast off the hill, got through the first turn just a tad wide and were smokin down the front straight when we suddenly noticed everyone in front had STOPPED!

 

Got on those puny little Ghia brakes for all they were worth (yeah, there was room on the right to slip by, but that would have looked decidedly un-cool...) and brought her to a full stop a half speedster length from the coupe in front of us.  No squealing, no locked wheels, just stop.  I was certainly happy.  I think Frank was, too.  

 

After that, he had the camera going so we drove a little saner.  

 

I have the opportunity to go to a "Sixth Gear Track Day" tomorrow at Thompson (CT) Speedway.  They always start off with a classroom period, followed by track time, and another class-and-track after lunch .  I also have the chance to drive some sort of Ferrari Scaglio-something-or-other, but may opt for one of the track's spec Miatas.  I've driven that Ferarri before and never feel comfortable in it.  It always gives me visions of $$$$$$$$ whenever I sit in it And that makes me nervous.

 

Besides, I'm getting a little old for whipping around a track at speed.  I'm now just as happy cruising the back roads to a decent bistro for lunch.

WhooHoo! My car is in the USA!!!.  It's a zillion miles away but it's a start.  Now we need the shipper to pick it up and get it delivered to me.

YOUZA...LARGE...EXCESSIVE....AMIGO  1

Zoom, zoom, zoom...

 

How about Schnell, schneller, am schnellsten

I want to get Antique plates at DMV or at least Extended Antique plates.  What do you think about this one?

 

'Bout what?

1. Is it real?
2. I'll smoke your Mustang if you tempt me, LOL

Common Jack are you getting slow on the uptake;-)

Steering through a turn using judicious application of the right foot is in some ways what these cars are all about.  My first car was a '56 A Coupe, Normal; second was a '61 S90 B coupe.  Point being: I learned to drive with rear mounted air cooled machinery, and as was mentioned, muscle memory is a powerful thing.  Once you get it locked in, it works. Practice is key. If you have to think about what to do, it's too late.  Just ask Alan.

 

As to the lic. plate, why be coy about it? Just be up-front and say it like it is: 2FAST4U

2FAST4U---I like that one and Marty can back it up!!

A favourite plate I saw on a Corvette once when I was driving my Mustang:

 

I8ASTANG.

 

Needless to say, that was enough...

For all those people you beat who are driving the car of their dreams you could have: DRMKILR = Dream Killer

 

Or you can state your affliction:

356MDNS = 356 Madness

 

Tell people what it is:

FAUX356 = Self explanatory

 

Tell them what you want:

NED4SPD = Need 4 Speed

 

Tell them why you're in front of them:

U2SLOW = You too slow

USOSLOW = You so slow

UB2SLOW = You be too slow

UR2SLOW = You're too slow

 

Make them wonder what you have left:

IBIN1ST = I be in first

 

Or get a license plate frame that reads, "I'm the Porsche" on the top row and , "Warned You About" on the bottom row and the plate should read"

YORMAMA = So the whole thing together spells out, "I'm the Porsche Your Mama Warned You About".

 

 

 

Don't tempt stupid, Marty.

Just be yourself. Be SAFE.

Marty, you know I've been running antique plates in IL. You're also aware how badly I'm outside the law for the "usage allowances" for these plates (not that it actually matters to anybody). Whats an Extended Antique plate?

 

I'll be home from Europe tomorrow. Shoot me a text Monday, if you would be so kind.

I like mine, which I saw here on the Forum, so it is not original to me, but sorta says it all without all this in-your-face BS:

 

3564EVR