Planet 9

Under the title of Something's Fishy:

You only shift once in a 0-60 sprint. How did the Boxster magically lose a whole second in 0-60 just by using PDK for one shift? SC doesn't answer it, as we've had SC as an option all along. I guess it's 90% due to 'launch mode' and nothing else. No wonder that fifth gear guy didn't find the PDK faster on a track- you don't use launch mode on a track.

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996 GT3 lower control arms at all corners
997 GT3 front sway bar
Quaife TBD
DMC harness bar/G-force harness
Hawk HP Plus pads

The 6-speed Caymans have very tall gearing in first and second gears, which hampers 0-60 performance. I'm guessing, but don't know for sure, that the 6-speed Boxsters have the same or similar gearing. Even the 911's have shorter gearing in first and second, which tells you something about how Porsche wants to position the Cayman relative to the 911. However, the PDK uses shorter gearing in first and second and therefore should give faster 0-60 times.

Ideally you want to be at or near redline at 60 mph to get the most out of the engine for a 0-60 run. Another way of saying it is that you want the shortest gearing, and therefore the maximum torque multiplication to the rear wheels to maximize acceleration, short of redlining the engine. However, in the 6-speed Cayman, you are well short of redline at 60 mph in second gear. In fact I think redline in second is somewhere around 73-74 mph in the 3.4L first generation engines.

For longer acceleration runs at higher speeds, say 60-120 mph or higher, where you run through more gears, the PDK advantage diminishes because eventually it's pure horsepower that wins out.

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John
'07 997 GT3

Previous cars:
'07 Cayman S
'89 944 Turbo
'86 944

My guess is Launch Control and Limited Slip (1-Wheel drive is not good for drag racing).

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1973 Carrera RS 2.7 Carbon Fiber Tribute (240hp and 1,890 pounds)

Perhaps a little context for those of us that haven't seen the show?