Autofarm Trackday build/ rebuild on my 996 Carrera 3.4
Discussion
mr pg said:
Have been following this with interest dom9, as I am considering something similar. In my case I'd hope to go for a conversion to an Autofarm 3.7 and suspension upgrade, plus some other bits if I can. I too would like 'something different', as I wouldn't want to go from my 964 to a standard 996, but can't afford a GT3.
As Mr Mugglestone said to me the other day; It looks like the 996 is turning out to be a great project car!There are so many parts available now and the basic cars have got so cheap, that it seems sensible to start with a 996 if you want a Porsche to upgrade!
To give this some perspective, had I gone for the 3.7 conversion (maybe next year) then my costs would have (very) roughly doubled... Maybe I spent a touch more, but it is certainly ballpark.
My suspension wasn't cheap, but I don't think you need to spend that much (there is a good deal on Porscheshop I noticed the other day)... I actually did (and still do) a lot of research to work out how I could do things as cheap as possible, but use quality components. I really wanted to upgrade the engine but the bank account said no.
So, what I did was scour the internet for the prices of Boxster S 3.2, M96 3.4 engine and M96 3.6 engines to see how cheaply I could pick up blocks and heads etc
I then looked at how much forged rods, pistons etc etc were and built this big spreadsheet of all sorts of head/ crank/ bore/ upgrade combinations and put prices to them.
Now, being that the Boxster S 3.2 engine is cheap (2nd hand), doesn't seem to have the 'D' chunk failure problem (thicker cylinders) of the M96 and would appear to be 'drop-in' to the 996 virtually, you may be able to pick one up and drop it straight in and just be running lower on power for a while.
However, if your M96 is yet to blow up, as mine is, I wondered if I picked up a 3.2S, whether I could also then rebuild it myself with forged internals, have it all balanced and maybe get some uprated cams, maintain the standard bore (avoid the cost of going to 3rd party liners and associated machining costs) and have a 3.2 litre engine, running the M96 3.4 management and injection, but remapped for a higher rev limit, compression and the fruiter cams and that would make for a slightly more powerful engine than standard but a real screamer or the track, which would be nice.
Anyway, the cost to do that, I worked out, was roughly £5k (I found a very cheap base engine)... that is before (as long as you haven't blown it up) selling on your 'good' 3.4, which is worth about, oh, I don't know; £5k? Cost to change = £0!
It is all just pie in the sky as I did not want to spend another £5k on engine bits for an engine that would likely take me months to build etc... this is just me thinking out loud really!
woogie said:
I cant see any diff on your car, I will post a pic tomorrow when I get home.
Watch out for speed bumps and you tax is out of date also
No, Mikey has had some other jobs on, so suspension setup will be sorted (raising ride height etc) and seats etc will go in next week...Watch out for speed bumps and you tax is out of date also
I can't get that tax disc out! It has been in there a while!!! I used to have two in there at one point...
New one is in my drawer at work...
Cheers Woogie! What did you think of the wheel colour/ caliper colour etc?
Simple answer is not a huge amount...
Both Mikey and I had nightmare weeks last couple of weeks, so progress has been slow.
However, I am picking it up on Friday, and it is booked in for its MOT on Wednesday, so it pretty much has to be finished in the next couple of days.
Mikey promised me some pics with the lights etc installed, and maybe the seats and gear stick etc later, so I will post those up when I get them so everyone can have a look!
It's been a wait, but it will be well worth it I reckon!
I just can't work out how to get up there to pick it up and transport all the 'old' parts back! Need to persuade my missus into a shopping trip to Bicester Village on Saturday or something and pick up the Clio, assuming I leave it there on Friday!
Both Mikey and I had nightmare weeks last couple of weeks, so progress has been slow.
However, I am picking it up on Friday, and it is booked in for its MOT on Wednesday, so it pretty much has to be finished in the next couple of days.
Mikey promised me some pics with the lights etc installed, and maybe the seats and gear stick etc later, so I will post those up when I get them so everyone can have a look!
It's been a wait, but it will be well worth it I reckon!
I just can't work out how to get up there to pick it up and transport all the 'old' parts back! Need to persuade my missus into a shopping trip to Bicester Village on Saturday or something and pick up the Clio, assuming I leave it there on Friday!
I can't wait!!!
I know I keep saying it, but... So close I can almost taste it!
How good does this look now? Shiny! It is also running the 'correct' ride height, so much lower than the standard car with its 4x4 stance, but not quite as crazy-low as before... and therefore not quite as cool I reckon!
Still, he has to negotiate speed bumps and multi-storey car parks on his way to the track... sadly!
However, I am liking the debadged rear end... What do you guys think?
I have a new Carrera badge to go back on there, but I am wondering whether we should just leave it off and keep people guessing, especially since I have the new badge for the front as well...
We have a problem with the rear strut brace, however... I don't think we will need it, so we are leaving it out, but it looks like it would either need to be spaced up (make spacers, mess around with carpet = time = money) or we would have to move the ECU. I didn't fancy either. The rear is pretty stiff as it is, so I am not too worried!
If anyone wants a carbon rear strut brace... Let me know!
Rear end part 1 - Notice the red lights (may need to be swapped for MOT due to indicator colour):
Rear end part 2 - No rear badge gives it the sinister/ stealth look I think, masking tape for geo:
The car will obviously need its new gear stick and seats in for the MOT, so hopefully I will have some cool photos to post up today/ tomorrow and I will get some on collection at the end of the week as well.
Mikey really has done a great job with this, despite him having a new born at home and lots of other projects, I am so pleased with how this is turning out (he says, before he has seen the bill - LOL)!!
I know I keep saying it, but... So close I can almost taste it!
How good does this look now? Shiny! It is also running the 'correct' ride height, so much lower than the standard car with its 4x4 stance, but not quite as crazy-low as before... and therefore not quite as cool I reckon!
Still, he has to negotiate speed bumps and multi-storey car parks on his way to the track... sadly!However, I am liking the debadged rear end... What do you guys think?
I have a new Carrera badge to go back on there, but I am wondering whether we should just leave it off and keep people guessing, especially since I have the new badge for the front as well...
We have a problem with the rear strut brace, however... I don't think we will need it, so we are leaving it out, but it looks like it would either need to be spaced up (make spacers, mess around with carpet = time = money) or we would have to move the ECU. I didn't fancy either. The rear is pretty stiff as it is, so I am not too worried!
If anyone wants a carbon rear strut brace... Let me know!
Rear end part 1 - Notice the red lights (may need to be swapped for MOT due to indicator colour):
Rear end part 2 - No rear badge gives it the sinister/ stealth look I think, masking tape for geo:
The car will obviously need its new gear stick and seats in for the MOT, so hopefully I will have some cool photos to post up today/ tomorrow and I will get some on collection at the end of the week as well.
Mikey really has done a great job with this, despite him having a new born at home and lots of other projects, I am so pleased with how this is turning out (he says, before he has seen the bill - LOL)!!
Another quick update as Mikey got me some more pictures...
Rear damper adjustment poking through the carpet - Very stealthy! I Like:
The gear stick is now installed and matches the seats nicely:
I do like the alcantara and red stitch look... It also fits in nicely with the rest of the trim:
Rear damper adjustment poking through the carpet - Very stealthy! I Like:
The gear stick is now installed and matches the seats nicely:
I do like the alcantara and red stitch look... It also fits in nicely with the rest of the trim:
MaddAussie said:
Dom
Thats looking sweet mate!
but your itching to get in the drivers seat.
MA
I can't wait... It has been a long time coming!Thats looking sweet mate!
but your itching to get in the drivers seat.
MA
Just need it to get through the MOT ok tomorrow (shouldn't be a problem) and we are away!
Dan7357 said:
Looking good..
The only thing I would change is the exhaust tips, as you've put the MK2 bumper on they sit under the car too much. MK2 tips would sort this out.
But again, looking very sweet.
My thoughts exactly... I may still have custom rear boxes made for track work (to make sure I stay within noise limits) hence why I am yet to change them. I may visit eBay if they annoy me too much though... We shall have to wait and see!The only thing I would change is the exhaust tips, as you've put the MK2 bumper on they sit under the car too much. MK2 tips would sort this out.
But again, looking very sweet.
On the list for next year are a carbon roof, rear wiper delete and perspex/ RS rear screen!
I want as much weight out of the car, starting at the top/ back and working down, as possible! LOL!
The tips will be dealt with... It just depends a bit on what we do with the silencers!
I think the Carrera badge will be going back on... But it can always come back off again at a later date!
Otherwise, as it stands, I think it is about the right compromise for weekend/ track/ modified Pork...
If I get into more carbon and more modifications, I really will need my head tested as it will creep above the cost of a GT3... To be honest, the lure of the prancing horse is strong!
I want as much weight out of the car, starting at the top/ back and working down, as possible! LOL!
The tips will be dealt with... It just depends a bit on what we do with the silencers!
I think the Carrera badge will be going back on... But it can always come back off again at a later date!
Otherwise, as it stands, I think it is about the right compromise for weekend/ track/ modified Pork...
If I get into more carbon and more modifications, I really will need my head tested as it will creep above the cost of a GT3... To be honest, the lure of the prancing horse is strong!
Car is MOT'd... Final few touches left to do before i pick it up tomorrow!
Front strut brace is now in:
Almost finished, looking pretty low but loving the wheels and calipers:
The new front lights and bumper.... Just awaiting its special badge etc:
I also got the bill... Gulp... Pretty much around where I thought, +10% if that, so I am happy!
Train up to Bicester tomorrow, drive home with a 'new' car! I hope I don't get any stone chips!
Front strut brace is now in:
Almost finished, looking pretty low but loving the wheels and calipers:
The new front lights and bumper.... Just awaiting its special badge etc:
I also got the bill... Gulp... Pretty much around where I thought, +10% if that, so I am happy!
Train up to Bicester tomorrow, drive home with a 'new' car! I hope I don't get any stone chips!
CraigW said:
what badge will it have? Looks great, loving those calipers!
Here is a piccy:
The Porsche 962 is my favourite racing car of all time! My tribute, if you like?
Just a little unique touch, I guess?!
Should compliment the calipers nicely I hope!
Edited by dom9 on Thursday 13th August 15:35
Edited by dom9 on Thursday 13th August 16:00
Got up to Autofarm at about 11:30am as I had to walk to East Putney to get the tube and then get across town to Marylebone and on a train to Bicester... I should have got someone to drop me, really! LOL!
Anyway, to cut a long story short - The trip was well worth it!
The car is now home, tucked up in our garage and is fantastic! A totally different car to the one that I left in Oxfordshire! It had a nice mix of the Autofarm test route and sitting in traffic on the M25 for 2hrs and behaved faultlessly throughout!
What's it like to drive? Awesome! The first thing I noticed was just how quiet it is (apart from a 'whine' we will come to later) and how compliant/ smooth the ride is. I was really expecting those dampers to be a lot stiffer (they are about halfway on their adjustment) but the ride is probably actually better than it was before. However, when you turn into a corner and load up the dampers (fully compress the helper springs) the car takes on a whole new personality and it just bites!
You keep turning the steering wheel, point the car where you want it and the front keeps turning. It takes you eaxctly where you want! There is just so much grip on offer that I really didn't want to exploit it on a public road, when I had only just taken delivery of the car. To be fair, I reckon the geo was well out before the new dampers went on, so the 'night and day' differences may have been less had I had new, standard dampers with the correct settings on there to start with.
I run about 1 degree of camber on the front, so you do tramline a little bit on heavily cambered roads but it is not too tiring. The car is also far more stable at speed, despite the camber on the front and there are now no vibrations etc!
The gear shift, despite what people say about 996's and SSK's, is absolutely fantastic, one of my favourite changes for sure! It is short, you do need to be precise (I was having trouble with 3rd until I got used to it, probably because I'm used to driving the Clio) but there is a satisfying and obvious 'click' when it goes into gear and I have no worries about getting the wrong gear (bear in mind I literally have a new gearbox, so older 'boxes may have more trouble). With the alcantara stick, it really does feel like you are changing in a race car, the car it most reminds me of is the single seat Elise race car (looked like an Exige, but before the Exige existed) we used to race in the Autobytel series in 2000. It really is good.
There are a couple of issues though. The R888's whine so much that we had to swap them back to road tyres to check it wasn't a gearbox pinion bearing problem. They are not that loud, but off the throttle it is noticeable. I will keep them as the grip they offer is just unbelievable. But if your car was predominantly a road car and if you had to drive your missus everywhere and you were of a nervous disposition about strange noises - Don't get them! I knew they were meant to be 'noisy' but I thought that would be a road 'roar', not a failed bearing style whine!
Lastly, the seats... OUCH!!! To be fair, they force the shoulders forward, which promotes a more aggressive driving style, which is fine and not entirely uncomfortable. They pinch my waist perfectly and support my mid rift perfectly. But, clearly I am built like a girl, as they absolutely kill my hips! There isn't enough padding between my right hip and the side of the seat and (to be fair, they were fine on the test run) they literally hurt after 30-40mins of sitting on the M25. I was almost crying after 2hrs! But, they will be fine for 15-20 min sessions on track then a break and they do hold me in position perfectly! If I don't lose some weight, I may need to look at other options as it may not make that great a weekend GT car, as Lou was not impressed with the seats! LOL!
All in all though, it absolutely IS the car I wanted! Probably better as it can be at full attack one minute and, bar the seats, be a competant, fairly quiet and comfortable cruiser the next minute! It hasn't been cheap in the slightest, but it is still cheaper than a GT3 and should be in excellent mechanical condition with its new 'box, brakes, suspension, air con etc etc etc!
I am one happy man!
Anyway, to cut a long story short - The trip was well worth it!
The car is now home, tucked up in our garage and is fantastic! A totally different car to the one that I left in Oxfordshire! It had a nice mix of the Autofarm test route and sitting in traffic on the M25 for 2hrs and behaved faultlessly throughout!
What's it like to drive? Awesome! The first thing I noticed was just how quiet it is (apart from a 'whine' we will come to later) and how compliant/ smooth the ride is. I was really expecting those dampers to be a lot stiffer (they are about halfway on their adjustment) but the ride is probably actually better than it was before. However, when you turn into a corner and load up the dampers (fully compress the helper springs) the car takes on a whole new personality and it just bites!
You keep turning the steering wheel, point the car where you want it and the front keeps turning. It takes you eaxctly where you want! There is just so much grip on offer that I really didn't want to exploit it on a public road, when I had only just taken delivery of the car. To be fair, I reckon the geo was well out before the new dampers went on, so the 'night and day' differences may have been less had I had new, standard dampers with the correct settings on there to start with.
I run about 1 degree of camber on the front, so you do tramline a little bit on heavily cambered roads but it is not too tiring. The car is also far more stable at speed, despite the camber on the front and there are now no vibrations etc!
The gear shift, despite what people say about 996's and SSK's, is absolutely fantastic, one of my favourite changes for sure! It is short, you do need to be precise (I was having trouble with 3rd until I got used to it, probably because I'm used to driving the Clio) but there is a satisfying and obvious 'click' when it goes into gear and I have no worries about getting the wrong gear (bear in mind I literally have a new gearbox, so older 'boxes may have more trouble). With the alcantara stick, it really does feel like you are changing in a race car, the car it most reminds me of is the single seat Elise race car (looked like an Exige, but before the Exige existed) we used to race in the Autobytel series in 2000. It really is good.
There are a couple of issues though. The R888's whine so much that we had to swap them back to road tyres to check it wasn't a gearbox pinion bearing problem. They are not that loud, but off the throttle it is noticeable. I will keep them as the grip they offer is just unbelievable. But if your car was predominantly a road car and if you had to drive your missus everywhere and you were of a nervous disposition about strange noises - Don't get them! I knew they were meant to be 'noisy' but I thought that would be a road 'roar', not a failed bearing style whine!
Lastly, the seats... OUCH!!! To be fair, they force the shoulders forward, which promotes a more aggressive driving style, which is fine and not entirely uncomfortable. They pinch my waist perfectly and support my mid rift perfectly. But, clearly I am built like a girl, as they absolutely kill my hips! There isn't enough padding between my right hip and the side of the seat and (to be fair, they were fine on the test run) they literally hurt after 30-40mins of sitting on the M25. I was almost crying after 2hrs! But, they will be fine for 15-20 min sessions on track then a break and they do hold me in position perfectly! If I don't lose some weight, I may need to look at other options as it may not make that great a weekend GT car, as Lou was not impressed with the seats! LOL!
All in all though, it absolutely IS the car I wanted! Probably better as it can be at full attack one minute and, bar the seats, be a competant, fairly quiet and comfortable cruiser the next minute! It hasn't been cheap in the slightest, but it is still cheaper than a GT3 and should be in excellent mechanical condition with its new 'box, brakes, suspension, air con etc etc etc!
I am one happy man!
Dan7357 said:
Hey Dom,
Sounding good !
I know what you mean about R888's, I remember having my first set put on and thinking the tyre fitter had left the nuts loose !!
I am so pleased for you, all the effort has paid off !
look forward to seeing it in the flesh one day.
Dan
Dan, it's great - I am really enjoying it! I just need to find a clear weekend and hit the track before we lose the good weather! I also need to invest in some car shampoo and the appropriate cleaning tools as I don't want it getting dirty - LOL!Sounding good !
I know what you mean about R888's, I remember having my first set put on and thinking the tyre fitter had left the nuts loose !!
I am so pleased for you, all the effort has paid off !
look forward to seeing it in the flesh one day.
Dan
Ultra Violent said:
I run 888's on my CS and RSR and have no issues with them noise wise at all. In fairness I go deaf in the RSR within 5mins but the CS is fine.
Maybe it depends on how quiet/ noisey your car is in the 1st place as you can't really hear the whine on the throttle in mine, it is just when coasting, on other cars, it may depend on other factors!? I have a feeling Stevo swapped to R888's on his TT and took his car to an OPC who diagnosed wheel bearing problems, only to find out it was the tyres!?To be honest, now I know what it is, I don't really notice it!
baptistsan said:
Brilliant stuff. Really pleased for you.
Quick q, where did you get the badge from?
TIA.
The badge I actually found on eBay after looking for some other 962 memorabilia I wanted. It was a while ago now (I have had some of these parts gathering dust most of the year) and when I looked for a picture the other day, there weren't any on there. However, the picture I got from German eBay. The auction had finished, but I think it was fairly recent, so keep an eye on both UK and DE eBay if you fancy one...Quick q, where did you get the badge from?
TIA.
Thanks for all the nice comments. I am very pleased with it! I must get some photos, but I need to head to Southampton today, so it will probably be tomorrow evening/ Tuesday now!
Been busy enjoying the car, so i thought i would update this thread!
So far so good, nothing has fallen off and no strange noises have appeared!
The seats have actually become more comfortable and Lou thinks she can tollerate them for long drives, which is a good thing. I wonder whether I was wearing a pair of jeans with a button digging into my hip last time?
Either way, I now feel I can get to the track with some feeling in my leg!
Much better at finding the gears now and I had a good run round Godalming when I went to visit my dad at the weekend. Rear perhaps feels a touch soft, but that is easily remedied with my handily located adjusters.
R888 whine can be a touch annoying, though I am learning to deal with it... The car feels wieldy though, which is nice. Some more pics below, one of which is the corner weighting where the car weighed 1347kg including the scales on the wheels and all fluids (half a tank of fuel). It also had the spare wheel and some bottles of polish etc in the front.
So, without the scales and without the spare and random junk, hopefully below the 1320kg mark, which is less than book weight (which may have been quoted option free or dry?). I have no CD changer (junked it) and other than the carbon seats and titanium dampers, should be fairly standard.
I am thinking that a carbon roof (delete sunroof), perspex rear screen and rear wiper delet, I should be comfortably in the 1200kg's, which is my goal. We shall see though. More simple and cheap mods may be the exhaust, if I change teh cat and rear boxes as expected, there is probably 20kg to be lost there, judging by the weight of all that stuff!
Anyway...
More nice photos to come as the car will be appearing in a magazine soon, photos to be taken this Friday!
Badge:
Corner weighting:
My favourite piccy:
I wasn't sure whether to smile or not and ended up with a double chin:
Another:
One for the road:
Enjoy!
So far so good, nothing has fallen off and no strange noises have appeared!
The seats have actually become more comfortable and Lou thinks she can tollerate them for long drives, which is a good thing. I wonder whether I was wearing a pair of jeans with a button digging into my hip last time?
Either way, I now feel I can get to the track with some feeling in my leg!
Much better at finding the gears now and I had a good run round Godalming when I went to visit my dad at the weekend. Rear perhaps feels a touch soft, but that is easily remedied with my handily located adjusters.
R888 whine can be a touch annoying, though I am learning to deal with it... The car feels wieldy though, which is nice. Some more pics below, one of which is the corner weighting where the car weighed 1347kg including the scales on the wheels and all fluids (half a tank of fuel). It also had the spare wheel and some bottles of polish etc in the front.
So, without the scales and without the spare and random junk, hopefully below the 1320kg mark, which is less than book weight (which may have been quoted option free or dry?). I have no CD changer (junked it) and other than the carbon seats and titanium dampers, should be fairly standard.
I am thinking that a carbon roof (delete sunroof), perspex rear screen and rear wiper delet, I should be comfortably in the 1200kg's, which is my goal. We shall see though. More simple and cheap mods may be the exhaust, if I change teh cat and rear boxes as expected, there is probably 20kg to be lost there, judging by the weight of all that stuff!
Anyway...
More nice photos to come as the car will be appearing in a magazine soon, photos to be taken this Friday!
Badge:
Corner weighting:
My favourite piccy:
I wasn't sure whether to smile or not and ended up with a double chin:
Another:
One for the road:
Enjoy!
Sorry guys, haven't updated this in a while.
Honestly, work is a nightmare at the moment and I have been away on my buddy's stag (Monza GP) so I haven't had tooooo much time to enjoy it.
However, Adam Towler (former road test Ed of Autocar, Editor of PH and freelance journo) came down to have a play with it, for an article that will be published in 911 & Porsche World, a few weeks ago.
We had a fairly good blast before the weather turned against us. I think he really liked it and didn't really have any criticism, saying he thought the package worked really well and he wouldn't change anything major.
He thought the car felt light, changed direction quickly and gripped - So I can't complain there.
If anything, and he agreed with me on this, if there are any easy gains to be made, then a few more ponies and even less weight would do it no harm, but as it is - it's great and I am very pleased.
It is also a bit on the scary side in the wet if you get overexcited on the throttle! I had an interesting 'moment' coming out of a junction whilst we were doing our tracking shots, but I caught it and I haven't laughed like that in a very long time! Brilliant fun!
The only other chance I have had to take it out was a quick blast down the A3 and then the back roads to and from my Dad's in Surrey. I don't know whether it is me or the seats but something has softened up and the seats are now bordering on comfortable! Lou will even tollerate them for a journey (which reminds me, I did actually go and pick her up from Kings Cross and drive back to Wandsworth - A proper central London journey with speed bumps and traffic, which it handled without fuss), which means we will hopefully be having more weekends away in it.
The only niggles I now have are the drivers side exhaust has been contacting the rear bumper and melted it slightly (so I could do with adjusting that) and it is a bit 'crashy' at the rear, which is likely just because the dampers are now solidly mounted.
The geo and damper settings (sitting in the middle of the bump/ rebound adjustment) still feel great for the road, though I could do with a trackday (will I ever have the time this year?) to have a play and see what effect some changes have.
It does feel quick though. I guess I have done a couple of hundred miles since I picked it up and it definitely feels quicker. Partially due to the weight loss and partially down to the ECU 'learning' the induction and exhaust manifolds, I suspect, as it did smell a bit 'rich' when I first got it back.
I still think there are some 'easy wins' on power and weight with a bespoke cat/ back box combination and then a remap - I am guessing another 10kg and 10hp, maybe there. Other than that, I think I am going to have to pull the trigger and remove the rear seats (still there for my little bro and sis), remove the spare wheel and assorted junk in the front and consider a carbon roof, though that would push me into 996 GT3 money I suspect.
I think all of that can wait until next year though.
Having said that, listening to the Porsche Supercup cars prior to the GP at the weekend did make me want to change the exhaust! Glorius!
If I get the roof done then the car will go back to Mikey at Autofarm, the exhaust is/ will be done by a bespoke guy I have been speaking with then it may be worth a trip to see Chris at Center Gravity before the trackday season next year just to make sure I have the best setup I can at the moment, though I have zero complaints with how Autofarm have set the car up for the road!!!
So, it is comfortable 'enough' for a trip to a circuit and I am yet to find its limits on the road (unless it is wet). It gets me up the multistorey car park ramps at home just fine, and gets over speed bumps without a scrape, even if there is a bit of a crash if you are lead-footed! I almost find it hard how to describe just how much fun it is when you string a series of corners together when you find that elusive bit of dry, clear road! You can really feel everything going on underneath you, yet it is never anything but confidence inspriring. The steering is direct and the car feels light and does everything you ask of it without question.
You can get the back to step out, but it is catchable, which makes it fun through some of the more open corners, but I haven't really exploited that yet! The brakes feels strong, but I have maybe spent too long in overservoed cars recently, so I do find them lacking some bite, but I think that is more that I need to re-learn them as they never fail to stop me when I put some effort in - Though they do squeak a little!
The Toyo's still make a fair amount of noise, whining away, but I don't notice it so much anymore and it certainly doesn't worry me. I think Adam had found it worse in other cars and hadn't even noticed initially in my car.
With work being up and down, I always have in the back of my mind that I may need to sell it at some point, if I was to go abroad again or the market dived. That is just the life of a contractor though, I am afraid to say! I just hope the weather improves so I get some good use out of it in the meantime! If all stays well on the work front, then I can see me keeping it a very long time. It is a really nice balance between road and track car IMHO.
Honestly, work is a nightmare at the moment and I have been away on my buddy's stag (Monza GP) so I haven't had tooooo much time to enjoy it.
However, Adam Towler (former road test Ed of Autocar, Editor of PH and freelance journo) came down to have a play with it, for an article that will be published in 911 & Porsche World, a few weeks ago.
We had a fairly good blast before the weather turned against us. I think he really liked it and didn't really have any criticism, saying he thought the package worked really well and he wouldn't change anything major.
He thought the car felt light, changed direction quickly and gripped - So I can't complain there.
If anything, and he agreed with me on this, if there are any easy gains to be made, then a few more ponies and even less weight would do it no harm, but as it is - it's great and I am very pleased.
It is also a bit on the scary side in the wet if you get overexcited on the throttle! I had an interesting 'moment' coming out of a junction whilst we were doing our tracking shots, but I caught it and I haven't laughed like that in a very long time! Brilliant fun!
The only other chance I have had to take it out was a quick blast down the A3 and then the back roads to and from my Dad's in Surrey. I don't know whether it is me or the seats but something has softened up and the seats are now bordering on comfortable! Lou will even tollerate them for a journey (which reminds me, I did actually go and pick her up from Kings Cross and drive back to Wandsworth - A proper central London journey with speed bumps and traffic, which it handled without fuss), which means we will hopefully be having more weekends away in it.
The only niggles I now have are the drivers side exhaust has been contacting the rear bumper and melted it slightly (so I could do with adjusting that) and it is a bit 'crashy' at the rear, which is likely just because the dampers are now solidly mounted.
The geo and damper settings (sitting in the middle of the bump/ rebound adjustment) still feel great for the road, though I could do with a trackday (will I ever have the time this year?) to have a play and see what effect some changes have.
It does feel quick though. I guess I have done a couple of hundred miles since I picked it up and it definitely feels quicker. Partially due to the weight loss and partially down to the ECU 'learning' the induction and exhaust manifolds, I suspect, as it did smell a bit 'rich' when I first got it back.
I still think there are some 'easy wins' on power and weight with a bespoke cat/ back box combination and then a remap - I am guessing another 10kg and 10hp, maybe there. Other than that, I think I am going to have to pull the trigger and remove the rear seats (still there for my little bro and sis), remove the spare wheel and assorted junk in the front and consider a carbon roof, though that would push me into 996 GT3 money I suspect.
I think all of that can wait until next year though.
Having said that, listening to the Porsche Supercup cars prior to the GP at the weekend did make me want to change the exhaust! Glorius!
If I get the roof done then the car will go back to Mikey at Autofarm, the exhaust is/ will be done by a bespoke guy I have been speaking with then it may be worth a trip to see Chris at Center Gravity before the trackday season next year just to make sure I have the best setup I can at the moment, though I have zero complaints with how Autofarm have set the car up for the road!!!
So, it is comfortable 'enough' for a trip to a circuit and I am yet to find its limits on the road (unless it is wet). It gets me up the multistorey car park ramps at home just fine, and gets over speed bumps without a scrape, even if there is a bit of a crash if you are lead-footed! I almost find it hard how to describe just how much fun it is when you string a series of corners together when you find that elusive bit of dry, clear road! You can really feel everything going on underneath you, yet it is never anything but confidence inspriring. The steering is direct and the car feels light and does everything you ask of it without question.
You can get the back to step out, but it is catchable, which makes it fun through some of the more open corners, but I haven't really exploited that yet! The brakes feels strong, but I have maybe spent too long in overservoed cars recently, so I do find them lacking some bite, but I think that is more that I need to re-learn them as they never fail to stop me when I put some effort in - Though they do squeak a little!
The Toyo's still make a fair amount of noise, whining away, but I don't notice it so much anymore and it certainly doesn't worry me. I think Adam had found it worse in other cars and hadn't even noticed initially in my car.
With work being up and down, I always have in the back of my mind that I may need to sell it at some point, if I was to go abroad again or the market dived. That is just the life of a contractor though, I am afraid to say! I just hope the weather improves so I get some good use out of it in the meantime! If all stays well on the work front, then I can see me keeping it a very long time. It is a really nice balance between road and track car IMHO.
Sorry Rob! Had I not been in hospital with kidney stones, the answer would have been yes!
Took Thursday off (but had left my laptops at work in a hurry to go to hospital) so this is the first chance I have had to log back in!
On the mend now, I hope! Think I am now into double figures for days spent in hopital this year
Took Thursday off (but had left my laptops at work in a hurry to go to hospital) so this is the first chance I have had to log back in!
On the mend now, I hope! Think I am now into double figures for days spent in hopital this year
woogie said:
Any update Dom ?
Honestly, not a huge amount to say other than it is running nicely!I probably average about an hour a week out in it, though I suspect that will start reducing now, with the weather turning.
The seat was squeaking to the point of sending me nuts, then I moved it forward and inch and it was fine. I suspect I was too far back on the sliders and it all seems fine and more solid now. Will keep an eye on that though.
No other grumbles really... I am not getting any thinner (sadly) though the seats don't seem to be cutting the blood off as badly as I thought they might (were, when I was stuck on the M25 after picking it up), which is a good thing.
It actually seems slightly less crashy at the rear, though a trip to CG for Chris to take a look and set it up may not be a bad thing (can't expect everyone to be a setup expert, so that is no disrespect to Autofarm) before the next trackday season.
My buddies 3.8 GT3 gets delivered in a couple of weeks, so hopefully we will have some dry (and hopefully not icy days) to get out and play.
There are still some bits on the list... Exhaust is next (how long have I been saying that?) and I am likely to go to custom cats and rear boxes to satisfy the noise police at trackdays and then I may take a look at the induction before having a remap. The credit card is now clear of the last round of mods!
In the short term, I really want a 3 spoke alcantara with red stitching steering wheel to match the gear stick and seats but they all seem to be very, very expensive when you need the airbag as well (mine is 4 spoke)...
All in all, it is great and really close now to exactly what I wanted... So close in fact that I am already dreaming up new projects... I was pleased with the article Adam Towler wrote in 911 & Porsche World (November) on it and he is right when he says I need to be careful with my next mods as I am on a slippery slope to spending 'too much money' (i.e. close to GT3 money) but it is my hobby and I will only care when we fall short for a new house - LOL.
Ideally getting some more weight out would be nice. Ditching the sunroof would be a dream, but perspex rear windows would be relatively cheap and easy and the exhaust would lose me a bit at the rear. An Autofarm 3.7 engine would be awesome but I can't see me going that path without the engine blwoing, but you never know!
Thank you!
I wanted to keep it understated and I love black... But I probably would have gone for a lairy colour if (when?) I did it again!
I just hope that the weather improves and winter isn't too cold, wet and icy! May be hoping for too much there though!
Just looking forward for going for a play with my buddy in his 3.8 GT3!
I wanted to keep it understated and I love black... But I probably would have gone for a lairy colour if (when?) I did it again!
I just hope that the weather improves and winter isn't too cold, wet and icy! May be hoping for too much there though!
Just looking forward for going for a play with my buddy in his 3.8 GT3!
Gassing Station | Porsche General | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff