Made someone's day

To the shock and amazement of many, I allowed my 20 year old to take the C2 solo last night. His Jeep was in the garage on jack stands as I struggled to replace his drum brakes, gee it was so easy 40 years ago. And, he said he needed to be somewhere so.............. he still looks lit up like a Christmas tree today. Of course the wife just had to ask if she needed to find me a re-hab. No, let the boy have fun, their just cars. He was only gone for an hour or so and came back with a ton of stories about people seeing him in the car, and his friends telling him how their cars can stomp Porsches. As long as there are no more stories about him and the police....... Wife snapped this shot on the fly, guess she wanted more documentation of my increasing state of insanity.

Awesome! That's what these cars were made for: driving and putting smiles on our faces. -Eric

cool...can't wait to teach my two how to drive the porsche...only 8 years left...

The best part of ownership is letting someone else have the thrill. I do it every chance I get. Smart kids (like yours) are buckled in and crapping their pants the whole time.

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+1 Love to see this. I would have loved had a chance to drive a 996 when I was 20.

I would love to be driven around in a 911 and experience what the passengers experience. But the problem is.. pretty much none of of my friends know to drive a manual geared car. So I don't trust them with the car, which means I never get to feel the ride as much as I feel the drive.. I too agree that what we're actually doing by owning and driving these cars is noble public service.. putting huuuuuuuge smiles on people's faces :P

That is very cool! My two sons never ask to drive my car because they already know the answer. If you saw their cars, you wouldn't either! Same goes for their Mom.

On behalf of your son, and all sons out there, thank you!! I know when I was that age, there was nothing like being able to cruise around for a bit in one of my father's cars. He deny me his Porsche on prom night...I'm still bummed about that one!

I bought a manual in hopes my daughter would learn to shift No luck yet

Great story. My son turns 16 in about a week and he has "hinted" a few times about driving one of the Porsche's. I hope he continues the passion that I have had for as long as I can remember.

When my daughter was 4, I took her to a local area Concours. One of the cars present was the worlds oldest known Pontiac in existence, a 1926 two door coach. My daughter was running around with my point and shoot Canon taking pictures of every car she encountered. When she approached the '26 Pontiac the owner asked if she wanted to sit in it so I could take a picture of her. I thanked him but declined for fear of something going wrong. The owner smiled and said they brought it out so that people could enjoy it, not just stare at it from afar. My daughter was elated to get behind the wheel and pretend to drive. One of the next cars we came across was a vintage 911 racer. It was brightly colored and attracted a lot of attention from the kids. The owner also asked if she wanted to climb into the driver's seat so I could take a picture of her behind the wheel. When I hesitated he said, "This is the age when you get them interested in cars. Let them look, touch and enjoy them now and they'll be hooked for life." He was so right. While my kids' interests in cars is different they have both built lifelong positive memories around these experiences. -Eric

Eric, What a wonderful story!!! I have a 3 year old and I can't wait to be able to share my love for cars with her!! Thanks for sharing

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Spot on - I tell my kids to choose their experiences carefully because the memories last long after the experience. What feels good for a minute can feel bad for a lifetime, and what feels uncomfortable or bad for minute can feel good for a lifetime. When my Mother was in an assisted living facility I would take her to her Doctor appointments, and to Perkins every Sunday. One day I decided to take her in the C4S, when her metal cane was hitting the side skirt I couldn't help but to cringe but I never said anything. The next time I picked her up I used the Olds like I usually did. She was soooooo disappointed, "what, no Porsche today"? So I took to using the C4S to transport her and I clearly remember the twinkle in her eye when she told the Doctor " I came here in a Porsche today, my son drives me in a Porsche". She has deteriorated a great deal and is now confined to a wheel chair in a skilled nursing home. I am no longer permitted to take her off premises. I can't tell you how grateful I am for the memory of that twinkle in her eye and I am so glad I was able to put her little slice of joy above my concern about a scratch or two, which by the way never happened. Thanks for helping me remember this one Eric.

I am 23 and just purchased my 996 a week ago. Love the car and swap my friends for their cars all the time.

nice story family and friends is why we love the cars that bring us so much simple pleasure - like this

Excellent - and a bit brave! Both my wife and my daughter have always driven 'our' Porsches. My daughter now lives out of state and when she comes to visit she just sort of assumes she can drive the 911. And she is right. My son could care less. Cars are an annoying, necessary tool. No different from a refrigerator or a shovel, not that he has ever encountered a shovel...

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Thank you for sharing your story. It made my eyes leak a little water wetter....

Nice story. My boys have driven both 911s I've owned, an Audi A4 and a TT225 and that experience has contributed to their interest in cars. At some point as a parent, you have to trust your kids and in return, they'll understand that relationship better.

i took my daughter to the day care on the first day in my 996 can't wait to see her drive it. it only takes 16 years.

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John, great picture and story about your mother! I had a very similar experience with my great aunt who was in her 90s and living in an assisted living facility. At the time, my daily driver was a TT cab. My mother typically brought her to the doctor but I offered to do so on occasion. I remember the look on my great aunt's face when we walked out of her building and she saw the bright red car at the curb. She was always so full of spunk but I'll never forget when she smiled and said, "Ooh, wow..." I had the seat raised as high as it would go to ease her access to the seat. Ultimately, because she was so small she had no problem getting in and out of the car. When I first showed my C4S to my grandfather (who shares my love for cars) he said, "Hot dang!" I'd love to take him for a ride in the 911 but he is 92 and has bad knees. It's actually difficult for him to get into most cars and while he has shrunk a bit over the years (he's now 6'2"), unlike my great aunt, his height wouldn't help him get into the 911. -Eric

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That 16 years will go faster than one can imagine, make the most of it. As a typical child I didn't listen to my Father when he chastised me for working too much and not knowing my kids. He used to say that his lesson learned was that we can't go back and be in the lives of our children, we can never get time back, but we can always find a way to make the money we need. And oh yeah, I hope you are driving that 996 so that it will still be road worthy for your daughter. My first Porsche was when I was 20, a 1968 911L, my cousin owns it now and still drives it. I have three boys - the common ribbing I get is "when are you going to buy another Porsche, a convertible with an automatic". My oldest boy, bless his heart, just can't catch on to driving a manual. They are very open about their reasoning, when I kick, there has to be 3 Porsches so that they are all treated equally. The fact that I am currently unemployed seems to escape them.

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But Eric, you have a Cab! Picture the smile on his face cruising with the top down. Surely can shoe horn him in there with some help. Maybe you can recline the seat the way the kids do these days, could never figure out how they can actually drive a car when they are just about completely horizontal in the drivers seat.

haha that's exactly how I looked when I bought my 996 when I was 21..now I'm 22 and still have that big grin on my face every time I drive it.

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Oh, he'll fit just fine once he's in. It's getting in that's the problem. It takes patience for him to get into my parents' X3. He's had bad knees for years and even as a kid I remember watching him awkwardly back into a car's seat (butt first while holding onto the door or the A-pillar) and then move his legs in one by one. If I can convince my Dad to help maybe he'll give it a shot! lol -Eric

I've had mine for about 3 yrs now. I usually walk the dogs and then afterwards, hop in for a spirited drive to cool down. The other day, the wife was out of town and the dogs had been alone all day. I felt sorry for them so I put a pad down over the folded rear seats and took them along with me. They loved it. Yeah, I have to wipe down the leather more often, but seeing them taking in the fresh air is priceless.

Bought my 996 Carrera last December when I was 22, I'm 23 now and being a 90's kid, its weird to own your childhood dream car, the 996 was new when I was just starting to recognize cars and enjoy them.