On 3/1/2020 2:20 PM, ChrisB wrote:
It’s a very pretty Porsche, Jim! I’ve never driven one, but I think I’d prefer
one from the 70s if I had a choice.
I had a '71 911T, 2.2L. for several years, starting in maybe '74. It was both fun and surprisingly practical. I drove it
to work, the supermarket, and so on. It was perfectly happy in traffic. It had a very "grabby", instant clutch, to
which I adapted a finely honed left foot. When it needed replacement, Horst, my German mechanic, pointed out that
something had been installed backwards, and afterwards, the clutch was quite nice.
The small jump seats worked for my kids. Flop the backs down and six grocery bags fit nicely. Most of its performance
was attributable to light weight, not prodigious power or outstanding handling. Fortunately, I'd spent many hours
avoiding going to church and driving around back roads like a madman in my dad's '56 VW. That prepared me well for the
rear end eccentricities of these early Porsches.
The were not luxurious cars. I drove our German Division second in command to a dinner one night. He asked me why anyone
would drive such a noisy, uncomfortable car. He, or course, drove a Mercedes; I've been on the Autobahn @ 140 mph with
him driving.
The Porsches of those years were really very simple cars. SOHC flat six with mechanical tappets that required regular
adjustment. Horst would go on about how he had adjusted them to a 'loose' or 'tight' gap and ask me to listen to the
engine after he tuned it. I would nod and agree. :-)
Carburation was basically six 2" single barrels that were stuck together in threes and shared float chambers (Webers,
then copies.). Adjusting them absolutely required a Unisyn to get them balanced, and was mildly entertaining. At that,
though, no worse than the twin SUs common on fours in Europe at the time. Fortunately not required often. About the most
sophisticated thing about them was the dry sump oil system. It was both for ground clearance and to avoid oil pressure
on the pistons in hard turns. Like VWs, it was not only air cooled, but also oil cooled, with an oil radiator as part of
the return system. Slightly later models moved the oil cooler up front.
Build quality was wonderful. Where wiring went through bulkheads, there was a double sided female, multi contact plug
and the wiring on each side plugged into them. Never seen anything like it. Having later needed to fix burnt wires in a
harness that went through the firewall of an Audi 500CS Turbo Quattro, I really missed the Porsche design.
I imagine today's 911s are almost entirely different cars, other than being small and noisy, :-) I have no interest in
one today. The Maserati convertible and Mercedes AMG GT convertible are pretty attractive, though.
OTOH, I drive a 24 year old convertible that actually has a trunk. 3.4L, DOHC, 24 valve V6 in a chopped top American
coupe. Body flexes and handling is limited, but I sure like it. :-)
When it reaches 25 years, I'm thinking of having it "restored".
Last year, we rented a Camaro convertible to drive around Southern Utah.
<https://www.olyendomike.com/Utah-White-Pocket-AZ-2019/i-z2Sgw2H/A> The only way to see that country, IMO. And Chevy has
a MUCH smarter way of handling drop top and trunk space than the Europeans. You may note the back "seat" full of
luggage. With the top down, only one modest suitcase fits in the trunk. But with it up, it all fits. And we did have
rainy days.
Open Air Moose
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What if the Hokey Pokey *IS* what it's all about?
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