Collected my 997.1 GT3 today!

[Roro]

Got a bit bored of gold wheels, time for a change, went for pyro red the new GT3 RS wheel colour. It's an 'interesting" colour, it's a satin pearl effect which looks very different depending on lighting conditions

Also red looks faster than gold :grin:

 

[Roro]

Also fitted my new wheels studs, went for Racingline

 

[Roro]

I didn't get on with the new wheel studs so they're gone, replaced by normal bolts. The studs look/ed great, but they needed tightening too often for my liking. Plus I don't really buy into the extra convenience for regular wheel changes with studs vs no studs either. It's not exactly a lot of effort using the wheel hangers that come with the car when changing wheels

A final pic of the car before I got rid of the studs :grin:

 

[911UK]

looking good :thumb:

 

[Roro]

:thumbs:

Part of me wonders if i should go for red decals down the side, but ... been there done that

 

[911UK]

:thumbs:

Part of me wonders if i should go for red decals down the side, but ... been there done that

does need something.....

what's your 2023 track day schedule ?

 

[Roro]

:thumbs:

Part of me wonders if i should go for red decals down the side, but ... been there done that

does need something.....

what's your 2023 track day schedule ?

Just 2 PCGB days, Castle Combe in July, then Dony in August. I really want to do Anglesey, but not sure I'll find the time this year

 

[Right_Foot_Blues]

.

Hello RoRo and all -

This forum and your stories are a very good read - especially for a newbie of the 7.1 GT3 world. I am learning a lot and already formulating a plan of action as far as mods are concerned. Thank you for your insights.

If you guys remember, i previously stated that i hear a little knocking noise from the front...i took the car back to RPM and they changed an ARM and ball joint (not top mounts) and the noise is mostly gone..but to my ear, something else is still clanking somewhere up front (aside from a few rattles here and there), although RPM say they cannot hear anything.

Surprisingly, RPM also said that rubbing on full turn is "acceptable". I frankly dont agree - so going to GC for a full Geo to see if that sorts it out and also whether i have any other issues. This will also allow me to see the state of the car underneath. Given the age, im expecting spots...so will then dry ice it and wax whole undercarriage..then off to PPF. Ironically, i originally thought of doing this last - but now you have convinced me of doing it first.

Lastly, i removed the audio head unit...much much better without it..just me and the car.

Happy motoring.

 

[Roro]

:thumb:

Personally I don't think suspension knocks / clanking, or tyre rubbing are normal (at least not with standard 235/19/35 spec tyres). You've done the right thing by booking into CG, they'll give you a reliable and fair assessment of what the issues are. I do have a little rubbing on full lock but I'm running wider 245 tyres at the front as part of my setup. I don't recall rubbing at the front on standard tyres, but it's been a long time since I last had standard fitment tyres on the front. Good luck sorting the issues 8)

 

[Roro]

Short n sweet update

Gave the car a bit of routine loving over the last coupes of weeks. First off to CG for a chassis checkup up. Nothing to report really, Pete couldn't detect any issues on the test drive. So back to the workshop, only some very minor adjustments were required to get the geo back to how it left them a couple of years ago

Then off for a minor service, just oil and brake fluid. I think plugs might be due next year, will need to check. Nothing else to report really, car is tip top

At some point I should probably sort the paintwork. I've never been that careful washing the car (I can't think of anything I hate more about car ownership than keeping a car clean), so could do with getting swirls etc taken care of

 

[Roro]

I did my first trackday at Castle Combe this week – what a great little track! It's been on my hitlist for a long time but haven't gotten around to doing it til now. Fast, flowing, and quick, it reminded me a lot of Dony, but without the elevation changes. It's definitely more interesting than it looks in the YouTube videos I was watching in the run-up to the trackday. A couple of nice chicanes thrown in, the only issue is it's very bumpy, and it's easy to unsettle the car if you're not focused on your control inputs. Also, there's very little runoff in some areas. It would definitely be a good test for any of you with fancy new suspension systems. 8)

The downsides on the day were that there was no professional photographer (not that I'm aware of, anyway), so no circuit pics. Also, the day was run in sessions. It was my first experience of a sessioned trackday, and I have to say I have mixed feelings about the format. On the one hand, there's no doubt that it feels like a privilege to be driving on a race circuit with only 5 or 6 other cars at a time. You can really get comfortable and focus on your driving without the constant mirror checking and moving over to let faster cars pass. And likewise, you just don't tend to get held up by slower traffic as there just isn't much of it

The big drawback though, is that you get a lot less seat time than with open pit lane trackdays. I went on all my available sessions, and each lasted 15 minutes. So, all in all, I had 4 x 15 minutes = 1 hour behind the wheel. Which isn't really a lot, but I did have to leave early at 3 pm. There was a lot of hanging around in the meantime between sessions

However, I would say the quality of the time I had on track was much higher due to the track being empty most of the time. If I had stayed the whole day, then I probably would've gotten in another 3 or 4 sessions (apparently they combine remaining drivers into fewer groups as the day goes on and as people like me drop out)

I had tuition on the day too, which was well worth the money (as it often is). I don't think my lines were too bad considering I had never driven the track before (the colour-coded cones are very well laid out). But I wasn't putting power down early enough to settle the rear and drive out to the edge of the track on exit. As the instructor said, it's a track you really can hustle a 911 around. You need to grab the car by the scruff of the neck, a bit like Dony I think (except for those annoying hairpins on the Dony GP layout)

Also it was nice doing a Porsche-only trackday. The standard of driving was high, and there were no flags

The car passed the sound test without issues too. You only need to rev to 4500 at Castle Combe, at which I registered 103 dB, well under the 105 limit on the day, however the normal limit is 100 which is no good. Shame, as it's a great track and I'd like to go back but opportunities will be limited

What struck me most was how much the GT landscape has changed over the years. There were no 996 GT3/RS models at all, and I was the sole 997 GT representative. No others, at all, no gen 2's or RS's. There was a good showing of 991 GT3/RS models and 992 GT3s and GT4s, though. There were a couple of 997 Carreras and a 996 Carrera. Also cars are a lot more brightly coloured these days too. Lots of blues, yellows, oranges. I'm a bit bored of all these new fangled bright colours now though, give me a black or white GT3 any day :grin:

With respect to the car, it still handles great and goes where I point it. It has done for a while now, but I tend to forget how good it is as I now do so few trackdays! I'm now in the habit of pushing all 3 buttons before going out on track: PASM, Sport, and TC. It just occurred to me that I should have left the PASM button alone at least once to see what the track was like in the soft setting :dont know: ... save that for next time... Would probably have been a bit too floaty on this circuit. At least the PASM button is usable now though. I never used to touch it before installing the DSC

All in all, a great day. Had a lot of fun, Castle Combe is definitely a firm favourite now

 

[1marc]

Great read Roro. Pleased you enjoyed the day. I've never driven at Castle Combe actually... it's on the list. 👍

I'm not sure I'd like that format, rather than an open pit lane, but will reserve judgment until I've done one myself.

Lucky on the noise front too. Surprised it was only a static test and not a fly by too.

Keep representing the 997 crew, these cars are meant to be driven in anger and enjoyed as intended.

 

[NXI20]

I've done CC many, many times with at least 3 other organisers over the last 15 years & none have ever run sessions - in fact, I make it a rule not to attend sessioned days. The normal noise limit at Combe is 100db on those days & it means you get about 12-15 cars out on track. My car isn't exactly quiet but with a couple of noise tricks I've never not got on or been black flagged. You may need to queue for a few minutes as they operate a 1 off, 1 on policy when the track quota is reached but it works well with 25-30 cars. All those organisers also charged considerably less than PCGB do. I get that a 105 day is a rarity at Combe & there will be a premium but is it really required & is it worth the imposition of sessions? I would say it isn't.

It's also extremely disingenuous of the Porsche Club to neglect to mention it's sessioned until you turn up on the day by which time it's a bit late to back out! As you say, that means you will get at most 90 minutes track time spread over the entire day. If you're unlucky & someone manages to bin it on cold tyres on their out lap, you'll have lost your precious session completely by the time they clear the circuit & recover the car - this happened to me when I was there.

PCGB fill the day with 30-40 cars all paying, iirc, £350 when Sonoj & I did it a couple of years ago so a decent little earner for the club but the customer is getting very poor value in terms of track time. So much time is wasted with out laps & in laps plus warming tyres that you never really get a decent run. I've been at Combe many times where I've arrived with a full tank & had to go for fuel before lunch. No chance of that with PCGB, I don't think I used more than a few gallons all day. 15 minute sessions are ridiculously short & even 20 minutes would help but ultimately, sessions are just a bad idea for anyone but total novices who are likely to be overwhelmed by longer sessions.

Combe is a great little circuit but you need to put in the seat time to understand all the nuances. Unfortunately, that's not really going to happen with PCGB :frustrated:

ETA: I just pulled up a random datalog from 2018 & saw I'd done 56 laps starting at 10:30 & finishing at 15:00

How many days would that take with PCGB?!?

 

[Roro]

@Marc - you have to do it! Great circuit, I'll definitely be adding it to my list of regular circuits (well as regular as can be with only a couple trackdays per year for me :roll: :grin: ). It was definitely a bit disappointing not to see any 996/7 GT3s out there on the day

@NXI - The thing that frustrated me most was normally with OPL I go out first thing and do a couple of laps to get the tyres up to temp, come in and bleed down, then head straight out again. Which of course you can't do on sessions. You're stuck out for the whole 15 mins on the 'wrong' pressures and have to make do. Then you come in, bleed the tyres and then by the time you get to go out again they're cold and down on pressure and need a couple of laps to warm up again

Also yes I did too feel the wool has been pulled over my eyes as I only found out about it being sessions when the email arrived telling me about the timings for the day, which did piss me off a bit

However I did love the fact that there were virtually no cars out on track when I was, which was great when trying to learn the track.... Also the YouTube Darwin Award GTi etc drivers were absent which was nice too :bandit:

So yeah, I didn't like some things but did like others. I need to do a 'normal' trackday there to compare, 12-15 cars out on track at a time on a regular trackday doesn't sound like a lot at all

 

[Senoj]

I've only been once to Coombe and really enjoyed the layout. Had a local chap, historic touring car driver I think, sit in and give some pointers which was really helpful. A short shift into old paddock bend got me on the power way sooner and he said it's a bit unconventional how you're going around quarry but it seems quick so don't bother changing it :floor:

PCGB's 'surprise surprise ' sessions format was a low point and unnecessary given the amount and type of cars there. Track time was stupidly low as a result. As was the long sleeve nazi at track entrance...

Their days ( dates, tracks etc) can be good but the attitude of those there is still very clique y and you get the feeling they only do it to kick their heels between 'proper" race meets.... You're in the leisure industry folks, be nice is what I'd say at the team briefing prior..