Three Porsches, no waiting
 

Last night around 8 pm I decided to take my Boxster for a spin through Houston's main park in the inner city area.

Pulled up to a light and noticed a new Carrera Turbo in front of me... and a fairly new carrera in front of the Turbo.

Three Porsche drivers right behind one another at a red light. Now that's a recipe for showing off if I've ever seen one.

The Carrera in front did not know what was behind him, so the Turbo's driver and I were able to zip around him easily when the light turned green. He quickly followed and we all raced through the park together at roughly 80 mph top speed in a 35 mph zone.

We all ended up at the next light together, giving one another thumbs up for a 30 second thrill ride together... we were all smiling broadly, by the way.

Ain't nuthin' like driving a Porsche.

That sounds like a 30 second gift, to me. Would have loved to have seen the turbo at full throttle, must have been something else.

Vicarious living...ain't it great!

I kept right up with him, so he obviously wasn't gunning it!

sounds great... remember the 996 standard C4 can beat the worlds fastest road bike.. YAM R1.. I have the actual video.. but i would have loved that little race with 3 porsches.. great stuff!

alot of 996 drivers admire the boxster... as its a true 2 seater sports car!

I was coming home one day, and saw a 996 turbo behing me. I waved him to pass me because I wanted to hear the engine, so he ripped it by me. Those turbos get up very fast.

re: "the 996 standard C4 can beat the worlds fastest road bike"

I don't know what you use to cloud your senses - a snifter of brandy maybe. When you come up for air you might reconsider the specs on th R1.

R1: 180 HP - 380 lbs + 200 lb rider = 3.2 lbs per HP
http://www.yamaha-motor.com/products/unitspecs/2/mcy/5/6/0/yamaha_yzf-r1.aspx

C4S: 320HP - 3300 lbs + 200 lb rider = 10.9 lbs per HP
http://content2.us.porsche.com/prod/911/carrera_models.nsf/usaenglish/technical_specification911_carrera_4s_coupe

You can find scenarios and conditions where 10.9 lbs/HP beats 3.2 lbs/HP. You can even find video 'evidence'.
http://www.unknownzone.be/zones/cars/c4vsr1.wmv

Yep, the R1 lost that round.


But what about the unknowns - were the tires warm? Did the drivers know the circuit? Was this the only attempt (all that buildup for ONE LAP?) What would happen on a Nascar circuit?

And the knowns - what would happen in a straight line?


To paraphrase Richard Pryor, Who you going to believe - your mind or your lying eyes?

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Ad Sach

At speeds below 40mph on a bike one could not open it up all the way could they? Plus a bikes tires are so narrow, thats why you always see them burnout.

as sach

the standard carrera beat the worlds fastest road bike, end of story, theres always someone like you...
The specs on the R1 - ?? so what... who the hell drives in a line all the time, i am sick of people like you always saying the same excuse about warm tyres and lines ...

what i say is the BOG STANDARD CARRERA not a GT2 but a basic carrera..



i will re-download the video and post the video today then you can download it and see for yourself

On that day, under those conditions, with that driver, the C4 carrera beat the R1. It's NOT the end of the story because it was that day and those drivers.

Someone like me? Someone with a Boxster who would have loved to be in the mix and go head to head on the same course(even expecting to lose from a standing start)?

There are some subtleties to that lap in the video. Did you notice how the bike, apparently fearful of the C4 coming up too fast on it's tail in the twisties, departed from the line and gave the Carrera room to pass BEFORE HE WAS OVERTAKEN? In a RACE situation, a competitive driver will not yield until the overtaking driver has actually overtaken - as in placing the front of the vehicle alongside the other vehicle on the inside of the curve. Halfway alongside doesn't count when you are in direct competition with the overtaking car. Behind and overtaking fast certainly doesn't count. How much did that cost the bike - 1.5 seconds? You probably did notice since you are the one who mentioned the line.

I saw what is probably the same video - I linked to it in my post.

It has been 20 years since I rode a bike and watched 2 wheel racing, and I drive a Porsche so there is nothing 'personal' to me which vehicle is faster. My only point is that it is somewhat silly to claim the 996 standard C4 can beat the worlds fastest road bike. The standard I use for 'can beat' is consistently and under a specific range of conditions.

For example, I believe a Carrera C4 can consistently beat my Boxster S from point A to point B in stoplight to stoplight city street racing or open freeway racing . Not being part of the fastest and most furious crowd, I really don't want to test this out. I also believe that on a basic mountain road, the Boxster S has a slight edge.

My personal experience has been on mountain roads behind a 996TT and in front of a C2, and at Lime Rock PARK and Phoenix International Raceway among a field of mixed Porsches. It seems like the Boxster S has the edge on the C2 under those conditions and dominates the older 911, 914, 94x in standard trim, while getting toasted by the 996TT on the track. I don't have experience beside the C4.

So would I say the Carrera C4 'can beat' the Boxster S? On the streets and freeways YES, on the twisties probably NO - but inconclusive.

Would I say the Carrera C4 'can beat' the Yamaha R1? On the streets and freeways NO, on the twisties MAYBE, - but inconclusive.

- - -

Take my statements personally, don't take them personally it is your choice. Reply or don't reply, I don't much care. I have stated my best case here, and if you choose to belive the C4 'can beat' the R1 that is your choice. IMHO the evidence, even from the video I linked, leans the other way.

Ad Sach

no its NOT the same video... if it was the same video i would have said so..

OK Porsche 986 - you have a data point I don't have. Let me know if you find it.

Ok 1st The R1 is not the fastest bike, The fastest bike is the Hayabusa hands down.
2nd There is not a Porsche out there that will beat a Hayabusa this is a fact, I don't care what video you watched.
3rd I own a Hayabusa and would love to race any car when you compare bikes to cars its apples to oranges. The power to weight ratio plays a large role when racing.
Hayabusa
0-60 2.3sec
0-120 7.5 sec
1/4 mile under 10 sec
Automon

i am downloading the vids now from winmx and will post it here
i will let the audio of this clip speak for itsself...

dont get me wrong your bike is proberly a very nice one, but i really dont care for bikes... there just not my thing.. bikes are for one thing only speeding and after the crash i saw last year i was nearly sick .. . i say be careful when riding bikes... you will never get me on one... anyone who can afford a standard good family car can afford ANY road bike this is why they scream behind me on country roads for and overtake just 1 inch from my wing... it annoys me..

i am not comparing cars to bikes... there is nothing to compare bikes are fast thats it... theres nothing else to it unless they are choppers then they are awsome...


i will post the vid of the 996 and r1 as soon i download it..

maybe your right.. those days those conditions.. but its another example...

course the r1 can beat a carrera in a line, but when do we ever drive in a line.... we need twists and turns or its an unfair race..

i mean if motormons bike does that under 6 secs... lol what chance has a 996 got.. this is why we have turns..

just wondering could your bike beat an F16 when the viper raced it?

By F-16 are you talking about the jet? If so then I don't follow your argument at all. You start by saying there's no point in comparing a bike to a car, because they are so different, and you need twisties...but then you start talking about jets?

...so let me ask you...unless you plan on doing "twisties" at 350 knots pulling 9 G's, or unless you're talking about a straight line race pushing Mach 1.3, what in god's name are you talking about?

jesus man calm down ...

there is no argument... i simply watched a show on tv that raced an F16 jet against a viper and the viper just lost... i wanted to know if a bike may have a chance on beating the jet...

i also said theres no point in camparing a car to bike, which is correct... i only stated it would be great to see a bike go against a jet... i didnt compare a jet to a bike... try reading the post again..

you had no comment to make apart from negitave.. so be quite

I'm perfectly calm, my friend. I apologize that you took my comments the way you did, but I dare say this entire thread has deviated from the original intent.

Hear Hear, Subanez!

As the originator of this thread, I sure would enjoy hearing about how you Boxster owners met up with other Porsche drivers for a few minutes or seconds of extreme driving as I did.

Have you a similar story to tell?

Once raced a 996 C4S which started to push hard when its driver saw a Boxster in its mirrors...I could follow, but on this road which I know by heart, you are constantly steering (like in a slalom)...so the boxster is really enjoying these moments... :-)
Would be fun to hear his side of the story, maybe on another forum :-)

It's fun to race other Porsches :-)