How to tell if PDK car has been tracked??
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What's important to me is has the car been maintained to specification and treated with respect. I know people who say, it doesn't hurt a modern engine to start it and immediately rev it to red line in or out of gear. Well, my 944 manual and other Porsche manuals state you drive it with care at low revolutions till it's warm. Someone like me, who always does that and is the only driver of the car? I think that matters. Not everyone out there is like us, we are the Mr. Monk's of Porsche owners and frankly I wouldn't have it any other way. However, others who are not like us can ruin a car on pristine roads and conditions, trust me I saw a lot of it. When I went to purchase my first bike, a Honda 500 four, the man was on the spokes with a toothbrush, sold....
The older 944 is much different than a 5 or 8 year old 918. Only a bonehead would start a cold car and rev it to redline. Newer or older. That said, Ferrari when they rebuild a race engine, redlines it immediately after rebuild. Supposedly to stress it and let it be known right away if it will have any issues
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I saw factory representatives at training schools start a cold DOHC 4 and go right to redline, brand new cars on another dealer's lot, I thought it was disrespectful to his lot stock and bad for the engine. As for Ferrari, when a company schedules engine out maintenance as part of a normal schedule you know it's all about performance, they aren't concerned with their customer's wallets.
+1 on the brake calipers getting faded as a sign of tracking. Especially easy to tell with red calipers as they turn somewhat brownish. Also, you can look for chunks of rubber on the underside of the car if you lift it. Small pieces in bedded into the nooks and crannies. A few pieces might happen from normal street driving, but the track will add a lot everywhere.
To my knowledge a PDK car cannot experience overrevs even when shifted with paddles.
To my knowledge a PDK car cannot experience overrevs even when shifted with paddles.
Thanks Greg. I used to race a spec Miata and a 944 and I know those marbles get welded to the underneath of the car. I'm banking on the dealer/repair shop in case of a mechanical failure to just fix the issue. I doubt that they would think "hey I better tell the warranty company that I think the car has been tracked". Counting on the warranty people not knowing. No one like warranty companies as a general rule anyway.
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They can show range one and two over revs Shawn, because those are the ones that get triggered just by getting near or slightly over red line however, it is not possible to money shift the PDK, even if driven in manual mode
It will shift up on its own, even in manual mode, to prevent it from going into the upper over rev levels, and it will not downshift manually if the RPM is not safe to do so
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Nope. Rev-limiter cuts in. Not even in Sport or Sport-Plus mode.
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Yep, I’ve had the car intervene several times in mine over the years if I get a little too aggressive and don’t shift soon enough. The car will just do it for me if I wait too long
My previous manual would cut fuel and bog the rpm down when reaching the rev limiter, however there’s nothing stopping you from shifting into second gear at 100 mph and leaving a trail of parts behind you!
My previous manual would cut fuel and bog the rpm down when reaching the rev limiter, however there’s nothing stopping you from shifting into second gear at 100 mph and leaving a trail of parts behind you!
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Tires worn on outside edges, wheels chipped up a little inside lug nut holes from frequent wheel changes, 200 tread-wear tires, my rear calipers are pinkish from getting so hot, the fronts no longer red but not as bad, cracking around holes on rotors, I really cant understand how you can own a car like this and never track it, I do not think its bad for the car if you service it with fluid changes, and basic maintenance, I have done over 20,000 track miles on a 987.2 PDK.
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Photos of you having the time of your life on the track!
Enjoy the car as it was designed to be driven!!!
I wouldn't be too concerned if the car has been tracked once per month as long as it was well maintained/serviced. As people mention the PDK car prevents over-rev. An engine driven regularly through the full rev range might be better than one that hasn't. Although certainly parts like brakes and suspension components will show wear and need replacing, but you can have these checked. Brakes can also show discolouration on the extreme end.
No. Even in manual mode, it'll prevent you from downshifting into a range that would over-rev, and will impose a rev-limiter to prevent you from over-revving on acceleration.
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