Cold track pads should scrub off any pad material on the rotors. I swapped pads on my M3 between a dustless street pad and PF01s and never had any problems.

 

Great video BTW Tom. I had a blast. Clean and fast lap

 

Hey there SM_ATL, I have been following your posts (even when you had the GT3 and traded it back for another 911) and its been very inspirational for me. I would really like to get your take on the new 991 GT3? Are you planning on making the switch to that? Based on current reviews, it appears to have daily drivability and amazing track/street performance. On paper, it appears to be the car that fits your qualifications, haha. I would love to have one at some point in my life, but finances won't allow me to do it. However, I'll keep working hard and someday I will have one

 

The 991 GT3 is EXTREMELY tempting for the reasons you mention. My 997.1 GT3 was too raw for driving more than 15,000 miles a year but the new GT3 may indeed be a (relatively) smooth daily driver AND a fantastic track car.

For now, I have decided not to decide. This is definitely a car I want to drive before making any commitment, and even then, probably wait until the second model year. I bought my first 991S the day it was launched. It did not break down, but there has been several recall campaigns (including one where the car had to go to the body shop for a few days), the PCM software wasn't perfectly polished (still isn't IMHO), the cabin started to rattle a bit too quickly, etc. I could definitely notice that everything had been fixed on the 2013 991S.
With the modified GT3 engine revving up to 9,000rpm, the rear wheel steering, new softwares etc., I'd rather wait for others to debug the new model

Thanks for your kind words and -almost- everything is possible when you work hard. And if there is one thing for which I certainly should not be an inspiration, it is for taking multiple depreciation hits in such a short time

 

Serge - no problem thus far on swapping the pads. Did the same on my M3 and was typically ok. I usually swap a week before a track day and baby the newly installed pads a bit for bedding in ... seems to work just fine.

Good to know about the Ferodo F1000 ... they really don't seem to be any good, even for the street. Will order HP2000's for the street then. Vividracing?

On the rollbar - yes, I'm leaving that in for now. After my 3-year old threw up all over the car when in the backseat , I'm not tempted to make the backseat functional for a while... The BBI bar does rattle a bit when going over bumps, was wondering why that is (?). I guess you could take it out in a few hours, but is was a real pain to get it in there in the first place, so I'm not too keen on messing with it.

Tom

 

Serge - great tip on the R3 HANS. I've also been hesitant to go to a track seat, bar etc but I would feel better with more safety on track -- *hit happens after all. Someone rolled earlier this year at Watkins Glen.
Speaking of which, I'm here at my favorite track for a 2 day PCA event. Re the RS29's and bedding, there is no problem swapping back and forth. I've done it a few times now. The pad change itself is also quite easy but without a lift its a difficult for one person to both holder the caliper and spread the pads at the same time, so you might need to enlist a friend or son to help.
Discovered a new tip this weekend too: I swapped lefts and rights on the 888's to even the wear out (even though they are directional, I was advised that this is no problem except in the rain). The car handled as good as before, but gone surprise is that there is no loud humming when the tread direction is reversed!

 

Thanks for your feedback on the brake pads Tom. I buy my HP2000 pads from Vividracing. Make sure you mention HP2000, otherwise you may get F1000 again (but I already provided feedback about the Ferodo's to Vivid).

True about the rollbar: it rattles and acts as a 'sound amplifier'. If i remember well, the back of the rollbar attaches directly to the tops of the strut towers. That's why you hear the suspension sounds a lot more.
My cabin is amazingly quiet since I have removed the rollbar!

 

Thanks a lot for the 888's tip. I have seen that a bunch of other guys on the forum are doing the same thing. That should allow me to run my 888's for one more week end

 

My former Cayman R -that I traded in when I started this 991 C2S thread- is for sale (again) with only 18,000 miles on it: http://www.jimellisporsche.com/preow...54903/info.php

All the upgrades are still on it and it is CPO'd. The dealer is asking way too much IMHO, and anyone interested should be able to negotiate it a few k$ down without too much trouble.

Here's a link to the Cayman R build thread (brings back memories ): http://www.planet-9.com/987-cayman-b...r-project.html

Next post will be back to the 991. FVD valved x-pipe is being installed right now...

 

FVD valved X-pipe

Brought the car to the shop today to get the BBK and Fabspeed headers reinstalled. Freed Performance installed the FVD valved X-pipe at the same time. Here are a couple of pictures.

Car with the Fabspeed sprotscat headers:[url=http://www.flickr.com/photos/60293300@N06/9406335818/]

FVD Brombacher X-pipe (I had run it for a few hours a month ago, hence the brownish/blue color):


X-pipe ready to be installed (heat shield around the vacuum lines and exhaust wrap for additional thermal protection of the vacuum lines):


Exhaust and headers in place, just have to connect the vacuum lines and install the BIG FVD exhaust tips:


We used the stock solenoid controlling the vacuum valves of the PSE I had on the car, but connected it to a new switch installed on the left of the driver seat. Even when the PSE button is off, the exhaust would go into loud mode when you step on it or when the engine runs at more than 3,000+ rpm's. I waned to avoid this and have full control. Now the car is basically super-quiet in standard mode and super-LOUD when I turn the switch on

I'll be recording video's and sound clips this week end (I already have the 'before' video's and sound measurements, still have to do the 'after').

Here's a very short clip of the car leaving the shop with its new exhaust (without pushing it too much).

 

Feeling bad... even though I should not

Bad stuff on my morning commute today. I was driving below the speed limit on the middle lane of the freeway. A minivan that had not seen me (I probably was in his blind spot) tried to move over on my lane without even using his blinker. When he realized I was next to him, he overreacted and started to lose control of the vehicle. I checked in my rear view mirror and could not see him, so I though the had gained control of his vehicle and was back in lane. At the next red light, a guy driving behind me told me that the minivan had in fact ended up hitting a light pole. I called 911 immediately to make sure they had to get there, gave my identity and explained what happened.

I was not speeding, was driving in my lane and do not believe I have an ounce of responsibility in what happened, but it still makes me feel bad. To add to this, I was amazed to see that the guy driving behind me (an older folk driving a pick up truck) was irate and telling me it was my fault, that I had cut the minivan off, etc. He had it completely wrong and this is clearly judging a book by its cover and assuming that because you drive a loud red sports car, you are the bad guy.

I feel good about msyself, I just hope that the old dude is not going to come forward and tell BS to the cops... Also hopes the guy in the minivan is doing fine. I'll try to get news about him.

Not a good way to start the day.

 

Sorry, Serge, miserable experience. I hope you don't get caught in the middle of a he said, he said, debate. But unfortunately those of us driving these cars are a target. Sounds like you did all you could in that scenario.

 

Sorry to hear Serge. Glad to hear you are OK and hope the other guy is. It sure does not seem any of it was your fault at all. The other guy did not signal or look at the blind spot or had his mirrors poorly adjusted it seems. This happens to me all the time, where drivers move into lanes without looking.

 

Wonder why this old guy in pickup didn't stop or call 911 to help the minivan rather than chasing you down. You might want to contact local police department just to get your documented side of the story as a "witness" to accident on record.

 

You are perfectly right David. The worst part is that the guy in the pick up (no matter whether he is young or old BTW, he was just more of the 'moralizing pr!ck' type of guy) was at least 500 yards behind me and could not even clearly see what was going on.
On of the reasons I called 911 was also to make sure they got my side of the story, they had my ID and that in case of any issue they could not argue this was a hit and run.

I'll probably catch up again with the local police station just to make sure all the bases are covered and check on the other guy.
One valid point may be that our cars sit pretty low on the road and that a minivan or a truck that does not have mirrors perfectly positioned are more likely to miss us??

Anyway, this kind of incident leaves a sour taste in your mouth, not because of the stupid comment of some other guy but because someone, even if he caused the incident, crashed his car and could be hurt. These are times when you can not avoid questioning your petrolhead passion