What happens when it rains???

[pnzr911]

So what happens when it rains? This is what a friend asked me as he was looking at the rear decklid and its screen. Hmm I thought gee what would happen if I drove my 911sc in the rain? I have only had it 3 weeks or so and I have yet to drive in the rain. So guys what does happen when you drive your 911 in the rain? Does the engine stall?

Just curious???

[Rot 911]

Nope, all the electrical connections are waterproof and the air intake is set up in a manner that prevents water from being sucked into the intake.

[SteveT]

My Car runs fine when it rains........I actually left it out for a week in the rain - rained every day. It Started right up when I got back. Problem with mine is the windows fog up because as the water off the heat exchanger evaporates....it fills the cockpiit with fog. Kind of sucks for about 30 minutes til the engine heats up nice. I think at that point the heat excahangers are too hot to be bothered, unless you Drive through a big puddle - Avoid those. Steve '81SC

[Targa77]

I got caught in the rain one day on I40 with my 911 and it wasn't a good thing. My car is low to the ground so any puddle I hit was like surfing. That's why if I even think it's going to rain, I drive my Blazer 4x4 instead.

[Targa77]

I forgot to answer your question about how she ran when it rains. She ran great all the way through the storm. I have since then placed dialectic grease on all electrical contacts in the engine compartment and fuse panel just to be on the safe side.

[wckrause]

You should see what happens when there is 4" of snow on a turbo tail!

[Glasgow 911SC]

Of late (very heavy rain for a number of weeks) my car has sufferd what feels like a slight mis-fire accelerating from idle untill above 2000 RPM. This only seems to happen after rain although it never used to be a problem. Don't know what else it could be (have checked all plugs are still connected).

[pbs911]

I have a Carrera tail with the air conditioning condensor mounted. I have never had a mechanical problem when driving in the rain. The engine did develope a miss after washing it once, but even that quickly resolved itself. The main problem is mastering how those damn climate control knobs are supposed to line up to operate the defogging controls.

[MarkY]

Originally posted by pnzr911
So what happens when it rains? This is what a friend asked me as he was looking at the rear decklid and its screen. Hmm I thought gee what would happen if I drove my 911sc in the rain? I have only had it 3 weeks or so and I have yet to drive in the rain. So guys what does happen when you drive your 911 in the rain? Does the engine stall?

Just curious???

It never rains in Germany, hence the Porsche engineers did not plan on a 911 ever being driven in the rain. For this reason, if you drive your 911 in the rain for more than about 5 minutes, it will stall. If you leave it in the rain a little longer, all the paint will wash off the car. Leave it in the rain any longer and all welds and fasteners will break loose and you will be left with nothing but a pile of metal and bolts.

[Bill Douglas]

Well put Mark.

In the real world, my car had got covered in a lot of sand and salt water so I gave it a good wash, but there was a lot of sand and salt of the engine. So I thought "what the hell" and hosed down the engine and engine bay with the hose on full blast. I didn't stick the hose in the end of the aircleaner but everything else got washed down for a few minutes. After that I fired it up, no problems.

Bill '79SC south pacific region of the SCWDP.

[pnzr911]

So 911s are even waterproof!!! Excellent!! Or is that Excellence?? Thanks for the input if it ever rains again (we are -8 inches) here in San Diego I will not be afraid to drive it!!

[wckrause]

So 911s are even waterproof!!!

Well, except for Targa's

[Doug E]

Don't know - mine is a garage queen and not a daily driver so I take either the Honda or Ford in the wet weather.

In 7+ months of ownership I was actually caught for the first time out in the rain this past weekend but luckily I was only 5 minutes from home.

[Doug Zielke]

The Blue Bomber sez:

"Rain? What's that?"

[Bill Douglas]

Doug, hasn't your www.pcapotomac.org site got quiet. They allways were a fairly "sober sides" sort of a bunch on the BBS. Mind you, isnt Dick Flemming a weath of knowledge? The goup outings look fun and that Lisa Miller looks such a honey!!!!!

[stuttgart]

He** they were made in Germany where it rain's all the time .. so I don't think you'l have much of a prablem

[howie944]

Just to address the "missing after it rains, while raining, or just after a wash". Check to make sure the "air seals" (the silver dollar size rubber disks on the plug connectors. Sometimes after years of being in there they develop a "set" and get hard and brittle. Will allow water to get into the plug wells and cause shorting until engine gets hot enough to evaporate water. I had a similar problem until I replaced them. Once replaced....no problem! Can drive in heavy rain and wash engine compartment with no missing.

[Ilan]

Heck, after riding motorcycles on the interstate with lots of rain and even hail, a ride in my Targa in the rain is not even a concern, especially with the targa top on Worse part about driving or riding in the rain is the need for a thorough car / bike wash afterwards.

[Glasgow 911SC]

Howie,
Thanks for the tip! I'm going to check that out. Hopefully that will be problem solved!

[Doug E]

Bill -

Yes, I have noticed a decrease in the use of our talk site. Must be that all the cars are coming out of hibernation and the owners are busy getting them ready for spring.

There is a lot on our regions calendar for this year and my wife and I look forward to participating in as many events as possible.