Porsche's Strut Tower Failures - GT4, 981, 991 (Discussion & Analysis)

In the video we look at the infamous strut tower failures on Porsche GT4 and other models.
I gather most of my data and information from this tread: rennlist.com/forums/gt4-spyde...
I use photos posted by user Joe Weinstein (RIP) about his GT4 strut tower failure.
#porsche #porschegt4 #gt4 #porsche981 #driverstherapy

[@DriversTherapy]

The PASM comment might not be correct. It is an assumption and just brainstorming storming.

[@HLinHD]

I can’t imagine PCCB helps at all. The forces are the weight of the chassis pressing down on the shocks. With no suspension travel, everything unsprung may as well be a concrete slab pushing back up on the chassis.

[@DriversTherapy]

I can see what you are saying.

[@mr.hernandezdrives]

crazy that this is a porshe topic, never could of imagine it. of course it is because alot of owners track their gt4's, they all sport stickier rubber and run aggressive geometry.. still it sounds insane that out of all manufacturers, porshe is building components that will fail with added stress.. stay blessed David, you rock man, stay awesome

[@DriversTherapy]

It is a big topic when talking about these cars, but it looks like it is just 1% which is a good thing. Thank you, Alex for watching the videos and hope all is well with you and your family. I bet you are enjoying this time of the year with your top off. :D

[@themafree1105]

first of all sorry for my english. Thank you very much for this video on this problem which stresses me a lot. In France the quality of the roads has deteriorated a lot and the anti-car policy has not improved things. it's quite stressful to drive the GT4. in europe i saw 981 gt4s in rallies, they were driven quite hard. when we know that their basic structure is identical to the road model, it would be interesting to know what work has been done on the set up. thank you again for this video. Good road

[@DriversTherapy]

Hi! You English is great! My voice sounded off a little in the video because we are in allergy season. I think it can be a small batch of cast aluminum flaws or just the perfect storm. The main thing I know is that lowering a GT4 can cause it. But on a good note, it is only 1% and you have to hit something hard so do not worry. Enjoy your car!!! Thank you for watching. :)

[@warrenlucier5796]

My comments are from a personal perspective. I'm thinking that the 981 GT4 came with 18" wheels of which the largest and powerful enough brakes can be installed, and if you want to lower it an inch, shorter springs of a single (pound) rating or progressive dual spring rating could be utilized. For the camber adjustment, if you can't get there from the tower, you do it with the lower coffin arm to get the target adjustment. The latest iteration of the GT4 has 20" wheels and can just go to 18" to lower the car 1" and apply the prescriptive measures I mentioned for the 981 gen application. Porsche went from high strength steel in the 987 & 997 cars to aluminum to keep the curb weight down in the new designs, but most of the strut tower problem is due to the incidents you've mentioned. At some point nothing will handle the abuse from running through holes and hitting curbs; not even a tank. I own a 2010 2nd gen 987 Cayman S and the Cayman R changed the struts, springs and rear anti-sway bar to lower the car. One needs to select and install the correct items for track use. Hope this helps those with these cars to avoid the problem.

[@DriversTherapy]

Thank you for sharing your insight and knowledge on the topic. It definitely helps to understand what’s going on for sure. The Cayman R is so cool by the way!

[@TopVineVideos]

Interesting. I guess thats just one thing Porsche forgot to beef up to handle the insane power increases.

[@DriversTherapy]

I know, so many questions but truly not a definitive answer.

[@darryljansen7364]

When induced stress meets engineered obsolescence.. German carmakers engineer to a specific tolerance and a point of failure vs Japanese manufacturers who over-engineer stress areas to ensure longevity..Porsche cannot admit liability where their product is used beyond manufacturers spec.

[@DriversTherapy]

It really is something that was overlooked. I am personally going to try hard to never put myself in the environment that can cause that issue. After all the research I and others did, the fact no one knows what the real condition of that cast aluminum is the biggest mystery still.