Discussion
v8ksn said:
A proper labour of love there and I dread to think of the final bill!
Well done on building the car you want
I would recommend putting on some paint protection film on those gorgeous carbon wings and bonnet though.
Thanks, yeah really happy with it. PPF is already in the works. Just letting the paint settle. I'm going back to work soon so the car will be stored for a few months anyway. Well done on building the car you want
I would recommend putting on some paint protection film on those gorgeous carbon wings and bonnet though.
https://youtu.be/7vjsH3ixY2w
[size=18]What sunroof?[/size]
I only just got my car back from Tech 9 in June this year and I was going away again. This time I’d be gone for 5 months so any mods for the car would have to wait a long time.
In September even though I was still at sea I started collecting the parts and arranging dates for the car to go in for the next phase, which would be the sunroof delete and fitting of the polycarbonate windows. I had thought about fitting a carbon roof panel but had decided not to as I’ve been unimpressed by the quality of parts supplied by third parties. Pretty much everything I’ve ordered has been disappointing. However I decided to take a chance on a carbon roof panel made in Germany from DP Motorsports. I contacted them about a carbon roof in white (so it can be painted) and they came back and said they had a finished carbon roof that the weave had been slightly out and they would sell it to me at the same price as the white roof. We agreed on the price and it was shipped directly to Road & race, as by this time I had already contacted John Bradshaw El Jefe of Road & Race to arrange a date. The date would be 7th November.
Carbon roof panel
John told me it would require two days labour; it’s a big job, as I would later see when I visited the car once the work got underway. In the meantime I was still onboard the yacht in Monaco so was busy ordering parts. I needed a new headlining, roof panel (check), roof console and the roof rails and parts. I ordered the rest of the parts from Alistair at Wilmslow Porsche and also had them delivered directly to Road & Race. As they are the official repairer for Porsche Wilmslow they have regular shuttles back and forth delivering parts so this was done free of charge by Porsche.
I also ordered sill plates in carbon with RS logo on for the door shuts. I had wanted these for a long time after seeing them on Teile.com website but ended up ordering them from Wilmslow. I fitted these myself on the weekend before the car went in for the roof. What a nightmare getting the old ones off. I spent hours in my garage trying to use various different tools, heat guns etc. In the end I went with fishing wire underneath and just pulled it along. The second one came off easily but the first one I had done before I came up with that great idea so it came off very slowly and with a massive struggle. Removing the residue of the double-sided tape holding them on was another story. I used white spirits and elbow grease to get that off, but it took hours.
New sill protectors
Parts list as follows:
997.559.722.01 GASKET
997.559.721.01 GASKET
997.559.402.91 G2L ROOF EDGE STRIP
997.559.401.91 G2L ROOF EDGE STRIP
997.555.091.02 A14 ROOFLINING
996.559.405.01 ADAPTER
996.559.403.01 CLIP
996.555.557.11 A03 COVER INTERIOR
997.551.223.80 GT2 RS CARBON SILL TRIM
996.503.501.00 GRV ROOF PANEL, NON SUNROOF
I also needed the polycarbonate windows however from Porsche they were almost £3,000 so I decided to go with a company that makes them for racing cars Plastic 4 Performance in Manchester who were able to make up almost exactly the same windows for just over £500 for the three! Again these were shipped directly to Road & Race. They added a layer on top to prevent them from being scratched so easily; this is something they do for road versions of the windows.
Once home in the UK the car went in the following Monday. When I delivered the car all of the parts were waiting and I had a look at the carbon roof panel, although it was still in the box but it seemed fine. A few days later however John called me to say they had looked at the roof panel and there were problems. He said the panel was twice as thick (3mm) as an OEM panel and it was going to make fitting it properly very difficult. Also the resin they had used had bubbles in it and it would be problematic to paint. They said the glass would not sit properly and the rails on the roof would also be out of position. So I made the decision to use an OEM panel instead. John ordered it directly from Wilmslow. So another third party carbon part was no good!
Thankfully that was the last issue I had and the rest of the conversion went without a hitch. The other thing that didn’t really happen this time was I didn’t need to order a load of parts that I had forgotten. Only one part I had missed because I didn’t know about it was some soundproofing that attaches to the inside of the roof panel and sit under the head lining. Again Road & Race took care of ordering it. As I didn’t order it I don’t have the part number.
When I saw my car a week in to the project I was horrified. It looked like it was ready for the scrapheap. In fact it looked like a skip! It was covered in plastic but on top it was covered with old heavy rags to stop damage when welding. But it made it look a mess. I’ve only felt that was a few times during this build. The first was after I’d stripped out the interior to fit the RS rear carpets. The second time was when the car was at Tech9 and I saw it in the garage with the front end tipped off and then this time.
The car had been stripped right down. The upper interior fittings were out such as A post, B post trim, sunroof mechanism, headliner seats etc. The existing roof panel was drilled at the points where it was welded on at the factory, once they drilled all the points it just lifted off the car. I was impressed at how they were able to drill these points but not go through into the frame underneath that would receive the new roof panel, giving them a clean area to weld to. Once the panel was removed they immediately started fitting the new one. Bonding it first and then using a welder I’d never seen before to weld it by connecting on each side of the weld – very impressive.
Drilled roof panel
New roof panel
Welding
The car then went in for paint. I also noticed a scratch the size of a 5p piece on the driver side rear quarter after I’d collected the car after the last work was finished. When it had happened I have no idea but it was annoying enough but it needed to be dealt with. So I had the paint this at the same time. This means that almost every part of my car has now been painted. The only part of the car that has the original paint is the passenger side rear quarter. The quality of the paint is first class and the car looks new now – I’m very happy with the quality of the job.
Shiny
A few days later and I went back to see the car reassembled. First job was the front and rear windscreen going back in. One thing I had noticed was on the new rear plastic screen the PORSCHE logo was missing. I had contacted Porsche to see if I could order one but I was told they only offer it on the new screen. I can imagine how expensive it would have been anyway (the Porsche badge sticker on the bonnet was £50!) So I contacted a company mentioned to me on 911uk and they made 2 of them for me for £3.50! I fitted this the day the windows were due to go back in and it looks just like the real thing so I’m very happy about that. The devil is in the details! It was now starting to look like a car again and as parts went on I felt happier by the hour.
Most critical job of the day!
Prepping for windows
The roof rail strips were next to go on. At £500 for the set including the gaskets & clips they were one of those items you see and just wonder why they need to be so expensive as they are not much in terms of actual quantity. However like I keep saying it’s all about details.
Once the interior started going back in I was pretty much happy again. The car was looking great although the plastic windows still had protective covers on them. I’d need to wait a few more days before I saw the car without any of this stuff on it. But it was well worth the wait; the car was looking fantastic. Although I have to admit if you didn’t know what jobs had been done I think you would be hard pressed to see any difference. I showed my sister and she couldn’t see any difference and when I pointed at the sunroof she said, “Did it used to have a sunroof?” Mind you this is the same person who when she saw me in my new Boxster reversing off the drive didn’t actually notice it was a different car to my 911!
Reassembly
Roof lining going in
New roof and windows all done
Links
http://www.road-and-race.com
http://http://www.porschewilmslow.co.uk/
[size=18]What sunroof?[/size]
I only just got my car back from Tech 9 in June this year and I was going away again. This time I’d be gone for 5 months so any mods for the car would have to wait a long time.
In September even though I was still at sea I started collecting the parts and arranging dates for the car to go in for the next phase, which would be the sunroof delete and fitting of the polycarbonate windows. I had thought about fitting a carbon roof panel but had decided not to as I’ve been unimpressed by the quality of parts supplied by third parties. Pretty much everything I’ve ordered has been disappointing. However I decided to take a chance on a carbon roof panel made in Germany from DP Motorsports. I contacted them about a carbon roof in white (so it can be painted) and they came back and said they had a finished carbon roof that the weave had been slightly out and they would sell it to me at the same price as the white roof. We agreed on the price and it was shipped directly to Road & race, as by this time I had already contacted John Bradshaw El Jefe of Road & Race to arrange a date. The date would be 7th November.
Carbon roof panel
John told me it would require two days labour; it’s a big job, as I would later see when I visited the car once the work got underway. In the meantime I was still onboard the yacht in Monaco so was busy ordering parts. I needed a new headlining, roof panel (check), roof console and the roof rails and parts. I ordered the rest of the parts from Alistair at Wilmslow Porsche and also had them delivered directly to Road & Race. As they are the official repairer for Porsche Wilmslow they have regular shuttles back and forth delivering parts so this was done free of charge by Porsche.
I also ordered sill plates in carbon with RS logo on for the door shuts. I had wanted these for a long time after seeing them on Teile.com website but ended up ordering them from Wilmslow. I fitted these myself on the weekend before the car went in for the roof. What a nightmare getting the old ones off. I spent hours in my garage trying to use various different tools, heat guns etc. In the end I went with fishing wire underneath and just pulled it along. The second one came off easily but the first one I had done before I came up with that great idea so it came off very slowly and with a massive struggle. Removing the residue of the double-sided tape holding them on was another story. I used white spirits and elbow grease to get that off, but it took hours.
New sill protectors
Parts list as follows:
997.559.722.01 GASKET
997.559.721.01 GASKET
997.559.402.91 G2L ROOF EDGE STRIP
997.559.401.91 G2L ROOF EDGE STRIP
997.555.091.02 A14 ROOFLINING
996.559.405.01 ADAPTER
996.559.403.01 CLIP
996.555.557.11 A03 COVER INTERIOR
997.551.223.80 GT2 RS CARBON SILL TRIM
996.503.501.00 GRV ROOF PANEL, NON SUNROOF
I also needed the polycarbonate windows however from Porsche they were almost £3,000 so I decided to go with a company that makes them for racing cars Plastic 4 Performance in Manchester who were able to make up almost exactly the same windows for just over £500 for the three! Again these were shipped directly to Road & Race. They added a layer on top to prevent them from being scratched so easily; this is something they do for road versions of the windows.
Once home in the UK the car went in the following Monday. When I delivered the car all of the parts were waiting and I had a look at the carbon roof panel, although it was still in the box but it seemed fine. A few days later however John called me to say they had looked at the roof panel and there were problems. He said the panel was twice as thick (3mm) as an OEM panel and it was going to make fitting it properly very difficult. Also the resin they had used had bubbles in it and it would be problematic to paint. They said the glass would not sit properly and the rails on the roof would also be out of position. So I made the decision to use an OEM panel instead. John ordered it directly from Wilmslow. So another third party carbon part was no good!
Thankfully that was the last issue I had and the rest of the conversion went without a hitch. The other thing that didn’t really happen this time was I didn’t need to order a load of parts that I had forgotten. Only one part I had missed because I didn’t know about it was some soundproofing that attaches to the inside of the roof panel and sit under the head lining. Again Road & Race took care of ordering it. As I didn’t order it I don’t have the part number.
When I saw my car a week in to the project I was horrified. It looked like it was ready for the scrapheap. In fact it looked like a skip! It was covered in plastic but on top it was covered with old heavy rags to stop damage when welding. But it made it look a mess. I’ve only felt that was a few times during this build. The first was after I’d stripped out the interior to fit the RS rear carpets. The second time was when the car was at Tech9 and I saw it in the garage with the front end tipped off and then this time.
The car had been stripped right down. The upper interior fittings were out such as A post, B post trim, sunroof mechanism, headliner seats etc. The existing roof panel was drilled at the points where it was welded on at the factory, once they drilled all the points it just lifted off the car. I was impressed at how they were able to drill these points but not go through into the frame underneath that would receive the new roof panel, giving them a clean area to weld to. Once the panel was removed they immediately started fitting the new one. Bonding it first and then using a welder I’d never seen before to weld it by connecting on each side of the weld – very impressive.
Drilled roof panel
New roof panel
Welding
The car then went in for paint. I also noticed a scratch the size of a 5p piece on the driver side rear quarter after I’d collected the car after the last work was finished. When it had happened I have no idea but it was annoying enough but it needed to be dealt with. So I had the paint this at the same time. This means that almost every part of my car has now been painted. The only part of the car that has the original paint is the passenger side rear quarter. The quality of the paint is first class and the car looks new now – I’m very happy with the quality of the job.
Shiny
A few days later and I went back to see the car reassembled. First job was the front and rear windscreen going back in. One thing I had noticed was on the new rear plastic screen the PORSCHE logo was missing. I had contacted Porsche to see if I could order one but I was told they only offer it on the new screen. I can imagine how expensive it would have been anyway (the Porsche badge sticker on the bonnet was £50!) So I contacted a company mentioned to me on 911uk and they made 2 of them for me for £3.50! I fitted this the day the windows were due to go back in and it looks just like the real thing so I’m very happy about that. The devil is in the details! It was now starting to look like a car again and as parts went on I felt happier by the hour.
Most critical job of the day!
Prepping for windows
The roof rail strips were next to go on. At £500 for the set including the gaskets & clips they were one of those items you see and just wonder why they need to be so expensive as they are not much in terms of actual quantity. However like I keep saying it’s all about details.
Once the interior started going back in I was pretty much happy again. The car was looking great although the plastic windows still had protective covers on them. I’d need to wait a few more days before I saw the car without any of this stuff on it. But it was well worth the wait; the car was looking fantastic. Although I have to admit if you didn’t know what jobs had been done I think you would be hard pressed to see any difference. I showed my sister and she couldn’t see any difference and when I pointed at the sunroof she said, “Did it used to have a sunroof?” Mind you this is the same person who when she saw me in my new Boxster reversing off the drive didn’t actually notice it was a different car to my 911!
Reassembly
Roof lining going in
New roof and windows all done
Links
http://www.road-and-race.com
http://http://www.porschewilmslow.co.uk/
Isysman said:
Digga said:
^Kind of this.
It's like all the cosmetic things you wonder about doing to a turbo, actually being done. This must be what it's like when OCD combines with available funds. I love it.
All of the above! Glad you like it.It's like all the cosmetic things you wonder about doing to a turbo, actually being done. This must be what it's like when OCD combines with available funds. I love it.
Digga said:
Isysman said:
Digga said:
^Kind of this.
It's like all the cosmetic things you wonder about doing to a turbo, actually being done. This must be what it's like when OCD combines with available funds. I love it.
All of the above! Glad you like it.It's like all the cosmetic things you wonder about doing to a turbo, actually being done. This must be what it's like when OCD combines with available funds. I love it.
I absolutely loved it, and (investment/value aside) it was a far better car than an actual GT2 (back seats meant I could use it to take the family, 4wd meant it was quicker than a GT2 95% of the time, and the fact it wasn't a GT2 meant I could use it and not worry about devaluing my investment).
OP - love what you've done, and thanks for sharing on the thread.
monthefish said:
I had a 996 turbo with GT2 looks.
I absolutely loved it, and (investment/value aside) it was a far better car than an actual GT2 (back seats meant I could use it to take the family, 4wd meant it was quicker than a GT2 95% of the time, and the fact it wasn't a GT2 meant I could use it and not worry about devaluing my investment).
Yep, and I had the real deal, I too absolutely loved it, and I thought it was a better car than the equivalent Turbo, more rare, more tactile, more engaging, more rewarding (and tricky) to drive quickly, no kids, so no need for rear seats, and the fact it was a GT2 made it something very special, very rewarding and an event to drive. I enjoyed every second I spent behind the wheel, and never once gave a thought to devaluing or putting miles on it. And not once did I post on here trying to "justify" my purchase to others ...I absolutely loved it, and (investment/value aside) it was a far better car than an actual GT2 (back seats meant I could use it to take the family, 4wd meant it was quicker than a GT2 95% of the time, and the fact it wasn't a GT2 meant I could use it and not worry about devaluing my investment).
Adam B said:
Last sentence not called for slippy
Actually Adam, I was being unusually polite, I felt the previous posters contribution was facile beyond belief. For the record I've no issue with reps AT ALL, on the contrary, with the price increases we've witnessed over the last couple of years, they make a huge amount of sense, but let's not kid ourselves a Turbo with a GT2 kit is any way superior to the real deal, least of all by going down the "4 seats means I can take the kids out in it", or "I didn't have to worry about putting miles on if for fear of devaluing it".
You know as well as I do that the watercooled GT car driving experience is something special, adding the bodykit and wheels alone, does not give you that experience.
And if we are going down the "I didn't have to worry about putting miles on if for fear of devaluing it" route, I paid £36k for this :
http://www.911sport.co.uk/showroom/porsche-996-gt2...
back in 2010, the miles don't seem to have hurt it's value/"investment potential" that much ...
Slippydiff said:
Adam B said:
Last sentence not called for slippy
Actually Adam, I was being unusually polite, I felt the previous posters contribution was facile beyond belief. For the record I've no issue with reps AT ALL, on the contrary, with the price increases we've witnessed over the last couple of years, they make a huge amount of sense, but let's not kid ourselves a Turbo with a GT2 kit is any way superior to the real deal, least of all by going down the "4 seats means I can take the kids out in it", or "I didn't have to worry about putting miles on if for fear of devaluing it".
At risk of derailing a good thread (which I really hope not to do), I feel I ought to reply.
The point of my post was in the spirit of the thread, and it is a shame that somebody is so sensitive that they felt the need to reply in such a way. All I was trying to convey was that just because something isn't bona fide/original from the factory, doesn't mean it isn't any good (which is something that some section of the Porsche community - particularly in the UK - seem to believe).
Whatever it is, it may well suit the owner perfectly.
I wasn't saying that my car was a better car than a GT2 - I was saying it was better for my circumstances and just listed the reasons why. I genuinely wasn't justifying my car buying to anyone - I couldn't care less what you lot think of my choices.
Slippydiff said:
You know as well as I do that the watercooled GT car driving experience is something special, adding the bodykit and wheels alone, does not give you that experience.
Of course it doesn't. My car was just a better looking turbo. Nothing more. If I'd wanted an actual GT2, I would have bought one.Edited by monthefish on Sunday 4th December 17:03
Personally the answer is very simple. If you want to retain absolute value in your Porsche then buy the real deal.
I've been down this road a few times and just sometimes you want to build a car because it has your personal stamp on it.
I truly identify with that philosophy but I will never do it again.
I've been down this road a few times and just sometimes you want to build a car because it has your personal stamp on it.
I truly identify with that philosophy but I will never do it again.
If you want the real deal GT2RS it's going to cost you £300,000+
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C761423
Not many people can afford that.
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C761423
Not many people can afford that.
Isysman said:
If you want the real deal GT2RS it's going to cost you £300,000+
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C761423
Not many people can afford that.
^This. And then look at the value of 'replica' (recreation, whatever the fk anyone fussy enough to argue wants to call it) 993 GT2s. Granted, there's a much smaller market, but it is still a 'thing' that other people can appreciate and might want to buy into. All that value nonsense aside, this is as much about the journey of creation as the creation itself, and of the owner's stamp being made. I do get it.http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C761423
Not many people can afford that.
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