Oulton Park, PCGB track day.

Early in October I managed to break away from the business and spend a day with some friends at Oulton Park on one of the PCGB organised track days. I had the good fortune to have a run out in a 968 CS, which is run by Tony Brown in the Porsche Club Championship.
Just taking a look at the points and standings in Novembers issue it is interesting to note that there are 3 968s in the top 5 cars, the other 2 cars being Carrera 3.2s, with Tony's 968 in the lead by 11 points. Again it shows that the 968 is much underrated and can compete favourably with cars of higher capacity and power. I am sure that if Porsche had decided to pursue the development of the 968 and spent a fraction of the development costs that they have lavished on the 911 the 968 would be as big an icon that the 911 is.
But alas this was not to be, instead it was replaced with the Boxster (project number 986). Although the Boxster is a good car and in a lot of people's opinions it holds the title as the best Roadster but it only has 2 seats and doesn't have what it takes to be a truly great car. I presume the lack of a solid roof and therefore rigidity has a lot to do with it.

The 968 Sport was a compromise between the 968 Coupe and the stripped out Club Sport, but all the models apart from the Turbos are powered by the same 3 litre, Variocam, 4 cylinder, giving a specified 240bhp. I feel that they should have given maybe the Sport and Club Sport a 3.2, how about a 3.5, but I suppose the engine size may already be at it's limits and then that is where the Turbo comes in. The problem is that the Turbo was only produced in small numbers in left hand drive and only in Club Sport guise.

Photoshoot
On Tuesday 14th October I gathered together 4 lovely 968s for a photo shoot for 911 and Porsche World, each of the models where represented, the Coupe, Cabriolet, Sport and Club Sport, shame we couldn't get a Turbo. The day went extremely well, it was a bit chilly but the rain held off and we had an excellent location with no doubt some stunning shots. You can view my amateur attempts on www.968uk.com. The article should be in the December issue.
Thanks to David for bringing his Cabriolet at very short notice and also to John who brought his Coupe all the way down from Scotland.

968 Forum
I have had a number of questions asked as to why there is no 968 category for the PCGB forum. I must explain that the main reason is that I have had my own 968 website since well before the PCGB website got off the ground there is 60 pages of info and there is also a 968 forum on there with over 50 registered members, which while doesn't set the world alight with traffic, it is a dedicated 968 forum for all 968 enthusiasts not just for PCGB members. And because it is my own baby no matter what decisions are made about the PCGB website and forum, 968uk.com will always be there.

That aside a volunteer has stepped forward to moderate a new 968 forum so that we can assess the popularity of it. So please do make some contribution to the forum and help to make it a success you never know when it might come in handy.
The volunteer is John Hunter and John has also volunteered to assist in producing articles for the 968 register. As most of you will know I took over the RS position early last year and have asked for contributions for the register section of the Porsche Post but alas I have received little to put forward so you have had to put up with my witterring on about my cars and experiences.
I know that John will inject a different point of view into the articles as well as new experiences, he also has a great enthusiasm for 968s and like me would like to see the profile of this underrated car raised to the standing it should be. Johns first article is below.

Christmas
When you read this it'll be just a month to the end of the year and just a few weeks from Christmas, so Happy Christmas to everybody, I hope the year has been good to you and your cars, it's been a great year for me in the business and personal life, as you may remember my son was born last Christmas Eve so his first birthday is this year and we are trying to move to a new house before Christmas. I've met some new friends over the course of the year and had some great experiences with the cars.
Again everybody, my best wishes.

Cheers,
Stuart.

PCGB 968 Forum

Earlier this year I bought a 968. As I live in Scotland where these are very thin on the ground, finding a good one at the right price was no easy matter. In fact I looked for nearly a year, and did a fair bit of travelling before I finally found what I wanted. Being a canny Scot, I also wanted to know just what I was getting into, so I did a lot of research into the 968, so that I knew all about their good and bad points, long before I got my wallet out.

And how did I do all this? Using the Internet of course. The web version of Autotrader magazine www.autotrader.co.uk was absolutely invaluable, and there are several web sites packed with information and debate about 968s. www.968uk.com is the best of the UK based stuff, and www.968.net is a terrific forum, if heavily skewed to the American users. The internet may not have been with us long, but like colour TV's and refrigerators, I now simply could not envisage living without it, even though I am past the first flush of youth.

Fast forward a few months of happy 968 ownership, and I decided it was finally time to join the Porsche Club, a good move so far, as I have enjoyed Region 1's get-togethers a lot. I confess I was a mite disappointed though when I ventured into the Club forums. Not only is this a very underused resource for a club of this size, but shock horror there was no 968 forum! When I enquired why, it transpired that a moderator had yet to be found, and ... come one, you should be way ahead of me by now if you've been paying attention … so I have volunteered.

What is it with 968 owners? Don't you guys have computers? Stuart Cookson-Smith, the Register Secretary, has been running an excellent forum for 968 owners for some while now on 968uk.com, but it struggles for traffic. Yet if you go to the forum at 968.net you will find a huge and vocal group of owners debating these cars, and thoroughly enjoying themselves into the bargain. The snag is, as I alluded to above, that this is very USA orientated. Sure the cars are the same, but it is frustrating when they discuss event, or products, or prices that just are not relevant here.

With a bit of fortunate timing, you should by now be reading a major piece in "911 and Porsche World" about the 968, (and if not, it will be in the next issue). I am amazed that these cars have had so little press, and that the 968 community in the UK is so untogether. If adding a forum for 968 owners to the PCGB website does even a little to improve matters, then I am happy to help.
By the time this goes to print the 968 forum should be up and running. So put this magazine down, right now, and type www.pcgb.co.uk into your PC (you know … beige coloured thing with a keyboard and screen)

I look forward to making your acquaintance, just look for my avatar.

John H