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My bone stock 996 has seen 1,000 miles of track days in the last 18 months. It has run absolutely flawlessly and I do not worry about re-sale value plummeting because of it. By the way, I know one air cooled guy who's a regular right here on Pelican, and who happens to be a good friend of mine, who refuses to take his car to the track even though he's a hard charger on the street. Why? Because he's afraid of breaking something. There are plenty of people on this board who feel the same way as him, so the idea that someone wouldn't want to take his expensive car out on track is not limited to the 996 and newer crowd.
As for looks, to each his own. My favorite look happens to be the 76-89 Turbo, but to varying degrees, I like them all - even the 996's and 997's. The 914's and 924/944's don't really do it for me, but I still smile and take a look when I see one of them.
The flash thing. Hmm. That started in Europe and I remember seeing other Porsche drivers flash my dad in his Porsche when we lived there in the 60's and early 70's, but that usually only happened on the roads as we were passing each other. It was originally meant as a way of getting the other Porsche driver's attention and an acknowledgment of his nice car. There are other ways to do this and they are all valid. A wave and a smile is valid. If I flash someone and they don't flash back, I don't really care. It's an old tradition and I don't fault someone for not being aware of it. Many times these same people will wave or smile as we pass each other - good enough for me. In this day and age, flashing means so many things that a flash may simply confuse someone if they aren't privy to the old tradition. That doesn't make them any less of a Porsche fan than those of us who drive old school 911's.
I'll say it again, I find it amusingly ironic that the air cooled snobs on this forum are galled that the drivers of water cooled cars don't acknowledge them, when in fact, those same air cooled drivers admit that they will not acknowledge the water cooled cars and their drivers. When I meet guys like you, I just have to quietly chuckle at your self-righteous exclusiveness - and remember, I myself am the proud owner of an air cooled 911.
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