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PSM light on dashboard


zcacogp

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This should be an easy one but .... 

Does the PSM light on the dashboard flash when the PSM cuts in? What about the small orange LED on the PSM button? 

The reason I ask is that I do quite enjoy making my Cayman move around on the road but was under the impression that there was some kind of light that showed when the PSM cut in. I have Sport Chrono on my car and generally drive with it turned on which I understand backs off the PSM but doesn't turn it off entirely. I've not seen any indication that the PSM has activated but is this because there is no such a notification or just that I haven't yet done anything to cause it to step in?

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Yep, it draws your attention just at the moment it has to step in to sort you out. Exactly the sort of distraction you need at moments like that!

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47 minutes ago, zcacogp said:

So no flash from the light = PSM not cutting in then. 

OR notification system is faulty in someway. I have had mine step out - in the wet with old, hard tyres fitted - and from my experience you would notice if PSM was activating without the need for any warning light.

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^^this^^ when it catches you you can feel it. 
 

If you press the button on the console and the light comes on that means you have turned the system OFF.  Normal operation is for it to be on all the time.  It varies it’s “catching” if you have sports chronos 

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Chaps, 

Thanks. Interesting comments. I've come from a 944 with a balanced transaxle layout and a load of mid-range oomph which I became very used to punting around sideways. That had no stability control at all so the whole PSM thing is new to me. I find the 987 a totally different prospect; far less torque, far lower polar moment of inertia and I am aware that if it goes then it will probably spin like a top, so I've been gentle. However I'm getting more confident with it and learning to give it more beans when necessary. 

I've been surprised by the lack of light on the dashboard, hence this thread. And I've not noticed any system cutting in to bring things back in line. It could be that driving with Sport Chrono on backs off the PSM to the point that it's yet to cut in. Maybe I just need to find a big, empty, wet roundabout and do some experimenting. 

Thanks for your help. 

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If it really steps in you will notice out (it kind of feels like your car has been possessed by a racing driver poltergeist). For small "transgressions" it can be barely perceptible (you can just feel a kind of kick/buck - hard to explain). There is some talk that even in the background it is working as a kind of poor man's electronic LSD but I'd be really surprised about that (and it doesn't mirror my experience on track).

I have only had a proper poltergeist experience once on a wet track where it managed to prevent what would have been quite a big spin and instead helped pull off a fairly long and well held powerslide. I was certain it was going to spin (I spun my old Boxster without PSM a few times on track) and had already kind of resigned myself to it. It felt like the car had passed the point of no return but somewhat amazingly the PSM managed to get it back under control.

 

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Lenny, 

Thanks. That furthers my thoughts that it's never stepped in. I'll find somewhere big and open and slippery and put it to the test! 

Another Q: does the light flicker only when the PSM cuts in or does it also flicker when the ABS is activated? 

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If you hold the PSM button down until it flashes then it's in its most "off" mode. 

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2 hours ago, zcacogp said:

Lenny, 

Thanks. That furthers my thoughts that it's never stepped in. I'll find somewhere big and open and slippery and put it to the test! 

Another Q: does the light flicker only when the PSM cuts in or does it also flicker when the ABS is activated? 

I haven’t noticed the PSM indicator when abs cuts in but have only had it happen on very loose surfaces at low speed.  

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