What causes the "ping" when closing a 911 door?

[TCracingCA]

If I don't carefully tuck the seatbelt away out of the way of the door jamb and door closing, I can most definitely replicate a ping every time I slam it closed! I bet I could do it everytime if I tried hard enough! Also practice makes perfect!

[Nick Triesch]

If the Porsche engineers paid so much attention to natural frequency on older 911's then why did they do such a terrible job on on placing the trunk and engine lid struts? And the air cleaner? And making the A/C work even a little bit? And we had to wait for the G50 all the way to 1987!! I would rather have that stuff than a door ping. Those crazy Germans!!

[christiandk]

Originally Posted by Nick Triesch

If the Porsche engineers paid so much attention to natural frequency on older 911's then why did they do such a terrible job on on placing the trunk and engine lid struts? And the air cleaner? And making the A/C work even a little bit? And we had to wait for the G50 all the way to 1987!! I would rather have that stuff than a door ping. Those crazy Germans!!

Actually the G5 is not a Porsche gearbox.

[triplenet]

I saved this description from years ago about the door sound:

Quote from British magazine Total 911 Dec ‘05 issue “The last eleven” about 3.2 Carreras.


“One of the most enjoyable components of any 911 is the operation of the doors. There is no other car manufacturer that has even come close to the sturdy operation of the 911 doors; this in itself is an early indication of the quality of the product. Closing the doors provides a sense of security rarely seen in sports cars of that era and really does closet the business of driving a 911 away from the routine sufferances of the outside world. A felling of well-being, a state of complete seclusion, a place where business of commanding a 911 can be performed with complete trust.

So, turn the key and wait for all hell to break loose. The whirring of the starter motor is quickly replaced with a sharp snarl of life from behind your head, an all encompassing orchestration of mechanical clamour and clatter so familiar to the flat-six air cooled 911 engine. A second or two passes before the Bosch electronics do their bit at settling the engine and all seems too settled, too smooth and too civilised for such a beast. There’s a whine, a whirring discernable only as a background sound to the rattling tappets and cam-followers and there is the exhaust, a sound so exclusive that DeHaviland might have redesigned its radial engines to achieve such a perfect timbre, an art and scale of sound in perfect harmony with everything expected from such a car."

[Dodge Man]

The doors on my 73 still ping when closed. It is a sweet no rust sound after 40+ years of life. PING ON!!!!

[daepp]

So did we ever get a definitive answer on where that sound comes from?

The reason I ask is because my 72 targa has never sounded quite right. Yesterday, a plastic piece of the latch (that's sandwiched between two pieces of steel and mounted to the door jam) broke. I have ordered a new one from our host, but I was hoping to read that this was part of the magic of the door. In reading through this thread, I did not get a definitive answer. Maybe I just missed it.

[RFP]

Originally Posted by daepp

So did we ever get a definitive answer on where that sound comes from?
[ snip ] Maybe I just missed it.

Nope, you didn't miss it. I think we all just shrugged and walked away smiling!

Rob

[gptom]

When I finally got my 72 back on the road, I picked up my grandson. When he closed the door, he looked at me & didn't say a thing. then he opened the door twice more and shook his head. even a 20 yo can learn something

[jlex]

A VW Beetle's door has a really solid sound & feel that you wouldn't expect. Just have to make sure the window is opened a crack to equalize the air pressure so you can experience that solid metal feel. If you don't get that solid feel from the doors in a VW bug then you're driving a rustbucket that's caving in on itself!

[daepp]

I hope this helps. From out host:

[Mick_D]

Mine aren't smooth or even easy to latch correctly. There's a deep indent somewhere halfway through the door's movement that stops it dead and then the door won't close entirely unless I slam it .
then again, the seals aren't installed permanently yet...

[RSTarga]

Originally Posted by Mick_D

Mine aren't smooth or even easy to latch correctly. There's a deep indent somewhere halfway through the door's movement that stops it dead and then the door won't close entirely unless I slam it .
then again, the seals aren't installed permanently yet...

Try greasing your door retaining latch.

[Canada Kev]

Originally Posted by RFP

I just checked the "pings" from my '87... the driver's side is A# and the passenger side is F#... howzzat for absolutely useless information?

Cool, I was just out in the garage and opened and closed both doors. Even though I can't tell the frequency unassisted, my passenger door is slightly lower pitch than the driver.

[hcoles]

Originally Posted by bike2ride95

I always tell my passengers NOT to even dare slam my door or I will kicked
them out!! No joke!! ...and that infamous comment, "Porsche didn't build cars
for you to have Hulk Hogan's arms to close my door"
Its almost the same as watching someone backed in to you

I've had a few conversations with people on this (a pet peeve). I try to shut the door with the least amount of force possible to make a complete latch. Many times I don't get it latched all the way and leave it in the 1/2 latched state figuring it is better on the seal. How a person closes a car door can give you some indication of how they relate to mechanical things. For the average person you can give them some leeway, for a mechanical engineer not. If you take an interviewee, for an ME position, to lunch, notice how they close the door. Another pet peeve is people who can't keep their foot steady on the throttle - there is probably a thread here somewhere previously mentioning that.

[Mick_D]

I will grease everything when I have the time

Originally Posted by RSTarga

Try greasing your door retaining latch.

[jlynch1960]

It's actually the sound of a well made door closing on a poorly designed seal that was engineered to allow the greatest volume of water to pass through the smallest amount of space. Ping. Blub, blub, blub...

[Rawknees'Turbo]

If the 911 doors and tub are so strong as to have been apparently made with a good dash of ground up unicorns' horns and make closing sounds that have a Viagra-like effect on some members ( pun intended!), then why are there a few people posting (both past and present) that they cry like lil' girls if passengers use more than an acceptable amount of force during the closing procedure?!?!

[littleoldman]

So much effort went into the ping of a door but nothing into the sound of the radio.

I know...who needs a radio in a Porsche. Not me - I removed them bc they sucked. But when I am sitting in the prkig lot waiting for my daughter at school- it would be nice to have a radio. But alas, they suck even when not competing with the engine.

[shaunmbenson]

My car is under a cover til spring and this thread is making me smile and frown at the same time. I call such moments the chords of life - - when multiple notes are played together and blend to form the simultaneous joy and pain we call life.
Ping indeed

[RSBob]

It is the song of the Porsche angels.