Autofarm Trackday build/ rebuild on my 996 Carrera 3.4
Discussion
I have been asked by a few people to detail the rebuild my 996 is currently going through up at Autofarm (www.autofarm.co.uk) under the watchful eye of Mikey Wastie, who manages the 'Projects' department.
This also happens to be my 996th post on PH, so it is rather fitting that I start this thread at that milestone.
To give you some background; I bought my black '98 Porsche 996 Carrera 3.4, manual back in March 2008 from the PH classifieds. It was in pretty good condition and didn't have too many miles on it (72k). There were no signs of engine trouble and it had recent bills totalling a fair sum of money. It was in the spec I wanted (black with black leather) and had the LSD, which was important to me as I always knew I would track it at some point.
After collection, a gearbox fault appeared and that was changed under warranty, so I had a nice, new gearbox! I ran it as a daily driver for about 9 months before starting to collect a load of track parts at the start of this year. I now drive my Renaultsport 172 everyday and the Pork has become a strict trackday/ weekend car.
So, a (probably not complete) list of the parts I have bought:
- Intrax titanium adjustable dampers (all round)
- Short shift kit
- Equal length exhaust manifolds
- Carbon and black alcantara (with red stitch) bucket seats
- GT3 black, alcantara (with red stitch) gear lever
- New, clear front lights
- New, all red rear lights
- New M030 ARBs & bushes
- Carbon strut braces front & rear
- Induction kit
- New front & rear bumpers (for cosmetics)
- Toyo R888 tyres on refurbished rims (www.wheelrefurbishing.com) in Honda Civic Type R grey
- Steel braided brake lines
- Assorted other bits and pieces
Other services performed by Mikey at Autofarm
- Full front and rear brake rebuild including new seals etc
- All brake calipers painted yellow
- Fitting of all parts & Geo
- Air con radiator change
- Sorting out some niggles/ rattles
So, the car is due back from Autofarm at some point next week. It has been there a while now as Mikey is very thorough and the car also had to go to and from the paint shop as both ends of the car needed spraying. He has also been very patient with me w.r.t. getting parts sent to him. We are still waiting on the seat mounts/ sliders and the alcantara gear stick, but both should be there today/ tomorrow, so it is just a case of bolting it all together!
To say I am excitied is an understatement!
It has cost a fair amount of money and I could have probably bought a 996 GT3 at Christmas, when the bottom fell out of the market, for what it has cost me over the past 16 months (including buying the car). But, 'playing' with cars doubles up as my hobby and it will be 'unique'. It is not meant to be a GT3 replica (hence no bodykit), but it should be lighter, with more track oriented suspension and the shorter gearing, so hopefully a good match at least at 9/10ths.
I certainly won't be putting a GT3 badge on the back
Mikey has been taking photos of everything as he has been doing the jobs, so I have quite a selection:
Intrax Titanium dampers (picture from web):
Brakes after being blasted and cleaned:
Brakes after returning from paint shop:
Exhaust manifolds fitted:
Front bumper post-paint:
Rear bumper post-paint (note it is a 'later' style bumper):
All red rear lights:
Short shift installed:
I will get some more photos of parts like the seats and gear stick etc up when Mikey sends me some photos or I get the car back. It should look great, lowered, with shiny black paint, slightly grey (but very metallic) wheels, with yellow calipers sitting behind them. Hopefully it will handle like a dream (if a little stiff) and I will still be able to squeeze my frame into the carbon seats!
As a project, it is still not finished. I am getting 200 cell sport cats custom made and fitted and then some custom rear silencers (to get me through noise tests) and a remap to tie it all together. But they will be done once I have it back. In the long term, I would love to get rid of the sunroof and save some weight and rattles with a carbon roof. But that will be next year methinks!
This also happens to be my 996th post on PH, so it is rather fitting that I start this thread at that milestone.
To give you some background; I bought my black '98 Porsche 996 Carrera 3.4, manual back in March 2008 from the PH classifieds. It was in pretty good condition and didn't have too many miles on it (72k). There were no signs of engine trouble and it had recent bills totalling a fair sum of money. It was in the spec I wanted (black with black leather) and had the LSD, which was important to me as I always knew I would track it at some point.
After collection, a gearbox fault appeared and that was changed under warranty, so I had a nice, new gearbox! I ran it as a daily driver for about 9 months before starting to collect a load of track parts at the start of this year. I now drive my Renaultsport 172 everyday and the Pork has become a strict trackday/ weekend car.
So, a (probably not complete) list of the parts I have bought:
- Intrax titanium adjustable dampers (all round)
- Short shift kit
- Equal length exhaust manifolds
- Carbon and black alcantara (with red stitch) bucket seats
- GT3 black, alcantara (with red stitch) gear lever
- New, clear front lights
- New, all red rear lights
- New M030 ARBs & bushes
- Carbon strut braces front & rear
- Induction kit
- New front & rear bumpers (for cosmetics)
- Toyo R888 tyres on refurbished rims (www.wheelrefurbishing.com) in Honda Civic Type R grey
- Steel braided brake lines
- Assorted other bits and pieces
Other services performed by Mikey at Autofarm
- Full front and rear brake rebuild including new seals etc
- All brake calipers painted yellow
- Fitting of all parts & Geo
- Air con radiator change
- Sorting out some niggles/ rattles
So, the car is due back from Autofarm at some point next week. It has been there a while now as Mikey is very thorough and the car also had to go to and from the paint shop as both ends of the car needed spraying. He has also been very patient with me w.r.t. getting parts sent to him. We are still waiting on the seat mounts/ sliders and the alcantara gear stick, but both should be there today/ tomorrow, so it is just a case of bolting it all together!
To say I am excitied is an understatement!
It has cost a fair amount of money and I could have probably bought a 996 GT3 at Christmas, when the bottom fell out of the market, for what it has cost me over the past 16 months (including buying the car). But, 'playing' with cars doubles up as my hobby and it will be 'unique'. It is not meant to be a GT3 replica (hence no bodykit), but it should be lighter, with more track oriented suspension and the shorter gearing, so hopefully a good match at least at 9/10ths.
I certainly won't be putting a GT3 badge on the back
Mikey has been taking photos of everything as he has been doing the jobs, so I have quite a selection:
Intrax Titanium dampers (picture from web):
Brakes after being blasted and cleaned:
Brakes after returning from paint shop:
Exhaust manifolds fitted:
Front bumper post-paint:
Rear bumper post-paint (note it is a 'later' style bumper):
All red rear lights:
Short shift installed:
I will get some more photos of parts like the seats and gear stick etc up when Mikey sends me some photos or I get the car back. It should look great, lowered, with shiny black paint, slightly grey (but very metallic) wheels, with yellow calipers sitting behind them. Hopefully it will handle like a dream (if a little stiff) and I will still be able to squeeze my frame into the carbon seats!
As a project, it is still not finished. I am getting 200 cell sport cats custom made and fitted and then some custom rear silencers (to get me through noise tests) and a remap to tie it all together. But they will be done once I have it back. In the long term, I would love to get rid of the sunroof and save some weight and rattles with a carbon roof. But that will be next year methinks!
Edited by dom9 on Monday 10th August 15:26
R2FU said:
Great project, keep us posted.
I've heard it said 996 motors are vulnerable to oil supply issues under sustained high-G cornering on tracks. Are you taking any steps to address this or is it just an internet myth?
Well, I have heard it mentioned many times and Autofarm have developed a deep sump kit to try and combat some of the problems. However, I had a chat with Robin and Mikey and the fact that I live in London (speed bumps) and my car is very low means that it may not be such a good idea for me as I might ground it etc...I've heard it said 996 motors are vulnerable to oil supply issues under sustained high-G cornering on tracks. Are you taking any steps to address this or is it just an internet myth?
They actually don't believe it to be 'that' bad a problem and I don't think my driving talents are up to huge cornering G's anyway - LOL!
There is a Porsche X-51 deep sump and extra scavenge pump kit to sort those issues... But trying to get your hands on one is easier said than done!
We shall see... fingers crossed nothing goes wrong, but if it does, then I will be getting an Autofarm 3.7 rebuild and we can address the cause of failure at the time!
Chris - I can't afford a 3.7 at the moment!
I was even lying in a puddle, in the dark at 11pm last night changing the discs and pads on the 172... By feel!
We shall see what happens with work and what is in the bank next year! A 3.9 would be extra nice - LOL!
Rob, it is similar to your project car, but the interior is less 'wild' (sadly! I loved the interior on that car, I think I started or contributed to a thread about it) and my engine will probably have a shorter lifespan!
But the philosophy is very similar! I wanted more of a Clubsport type car as opposed to a GT3 type replica, hence the lack of a bodykit... I think the standard looks, but with the black body and darker lights will make it a bit more 'sinister' on the road etc!
I spoke with your chap about those Cobra Misano seats, but they were mega money... I would love an alcantara, stitched steering wheel but I have hit budget capacity for this year, so it will go on the list for future mods. Along with carbon interior parts etc etc etc
It looks like I will be keeping this car for quite some time!
I was even lying in a puddle, in the dark at 11pm last night changing the discs and pads on the 172... By feel!
We shall see what happens with work and what is in the bank next year! A 3.9 would be extra nice - LOL!
Rob, it is similar to your project car, but the interior is less 'wild' (sadly! I loved the interior on that car, I think I started or contributed to a thread about it) and my engine will probably have a shorter lifespan!
But the philosophy is very similar! I wanted more of a Clubsport type car as opposed to a GT3 type replica, hence the lack of a bodykit... I think the standard looks, but with the black body and darker lights will make it a bit more 'sinister' on the road etc!
I spoke with your chap about those Cobra Misano seats, but they were mega money... I would love an alcantara, stitched steering wheel but I have hit budget capacity for this year, so it will go on the list for future mods. Along with carbon interior parts etc etc etc
It looks like I will be keeping this car for quite some time!
s_mcneil said:
Get the 'console delete' kit to remove the CD trays, gives you way more left leg room and that slightly retro interior look. It's fairly cheap and a first class mod...
I have thought about it... But not yet pulled the trigger.The reason being that, although it goes slightly against the weight loss ethos, I might move the AC controls down there and get a sat nav/ double din radio unit put in, to help me find where I am going at the weekends and for tracks etc! You can't read a map and muchos leptons!
All suggestions welcome though... As long as though don't damage my wallet too much!
Lou Lou, if you are reading this... It was an awful lot cheaper than it looks, honest
Can you do me a favour, Woogie?
I believe Mikey has managed to destroy his camera, so if my car is there, get some photos for me?
There won't be much progress, probably, from those pictures above though as I think next week is 'put it all back together' time. So, don't bother if it is any hassle!
Their quote was competitive compared to the other 5 or 6 I got at the time, but they have such good expertise up there that there was never really any doubt who I was going to use, after meeting them. Josh, the owner, seems like a nice guy and came over for a chat the other day as well.
Ask for Robin or Mikey and they will sort you out I am sure. In fact, Robin posts on here sometimes, but I have forgotten his user name... He might see this in a bit anyway!
I believe Mikey has managed to destroy his camera, so if my car is there, get some photos for me?
There won't be much progress, probably, from those pictures above though as I think next week is 'put it all back together' time. So, don't bother if it is any hassle!
Their quote was competitive compared to the other 5 or 6 I got at the time, but they have such good expertise up there that there was never really any doubt who I was going to use, after meeting them. Josh, the owner, seems like a nice guy and came over for a chat the other day as well.
Ask for Robin or Mikey and they will sort you out I am sure. In fact, Robin posts on here sometimes, but I have forgotten his user name... He might see this in a bit anyway!
Ah ha - Have time to log in here, but not email me - I see
Just logged in oop north to check I got paid today and thought I would check this thread - LOL!
Good news about the suspension, assume the 'suspect' damper is ok?
How does my knob look?
Anyway, anyway... We can talk about this offline!
Nice progress my friend! I can't wait to drive the finished result home!
Thanks for all the hard work etc
Just logged in oop north to check I got paid today and thought I would check this thread - LOL!
Good news about the suspension, assume the 'suspect' damper is ok?
How does my knob look?
Anyway, anyway... We can talk about this offline!
Nice progress my friend! I can't wait to drive the finished result home!
Thanks for all the hard work etc
98C4S said:
CraigW said:
thats going to be fantastic, i love one offs.
Me too, lots more pics pleaseWhere did you get the red lights from?
I got them from Porsch-apart... Saw them on eBay and fired them an email over. Give them a call, they may have some more!
MikeO996 said:
What was the thinking in re-furbing the brakes rather than upgrading?
The brakes are brilliant as they are... IMHO!The car is now lighter than standard and I run much stickier tyres, so braking should be even better!
Upgrading them to something significantly better would have been a fair bit more expensive and I just don't think I 'need' them yet... Time will tell though and if the engine gets upgraded in the future, I will take another look at the brakes.
Brilliant - Cheers Woogie!
Lots going on there! Don't worry, we have a new, unripped rubber bellows thing for the rear wing! LOL! Just one of the many little bits and pieces that is being changed!
The Recaro seats aren't mine, but it looks like mine may have been underneath! Nice to see the dampers on though. Think Mikey is going to skim the discs as well, before it all goes back together, when the calipers are finished.
How did you get on up there? It's pretty cool setup, huh?
Lots going on there! Don't worry, we have a new, unripped rubber bellows thing for the rear wing! LOL! Just one of the many little bits and pieces that is being changed!
The Recaro seats aren't mine, but it looks like mine may have been underneath! Nice to see the dampers on though. Think Mikey is going to skim the discs as well, before it all goes back together, when the calipers are finished.
How did you get on up there? It's pretty cool setup, huh?
Good stuff!
It is one of the few places that the sat nav actually takes you to as there are no other places with the same postcode - LOL!
We are hoping it will all be back together next week, so I may well be picking it up! I am sure I will get some more photos from Mikey next week to show progress, so I will post them up here!
I think we need to have a discussion about ride height on Monday!
It is one of the few places that the sat nav actually takes you to as there are no other places with the same postcode - LOL!
We are hoping it will all be back together next week, so I may well be picking it up! I am sure I will get some more photos from Mikey next week to show progress, so I will post them up here!
I think we need to have a discussion about ride height on Monday!
Definitely! LOL!
The seat on top looks like a Recaro Pole Position in GRP, I think they were probably using it to measure up the subframes to order mine.
If you saw some black, carbon seats with red stitching, they were mine!
Think Mikey will be sending me some photos over today, so I will get them posted up later!
The seat on top looks like a Recaro Pole Position in GRP, I think they were probably using it to measure up the subframes to order mine.
If you saw some black, carbon seats with red stitching, they were mine!
Think Mikey will be sending me some photos over today, so I will get them posted up later!
A quick update and lots of pictures...
Mikey has been very hard at work the last couple of days trying to get my car out of the door! As per usual, you will see his attention to detail! I can't wait to get the car back now, it shouldn't be too much longer!
Piccy of a table of parts, mainly cosmetic - Have a look at the new front badge! It is off a Porsche 962 (one of my favourite cars of all time), it is my little tribute to the great Porsche racing cars:
This is my GT3, alcantara gear stick - Red stitch to match the seats:
The brakes being skimmed:
A bolt in the hub needed a threaded insert - Nicely picked up and sorted by Mr. Wastie:
Brakes and dampers on the car and looking great, IMHO:
ARBs, both old and new:
Gratuitous damper picture:
Almost there now, maybe a couple more days while we wait for Design911 to get the seat sliders and brackets over to Mikey:
Mikey has been very hard at work the last couple of days trying to get my car out of the door! As per usual, you will see his attention to detail! I can't wait to get the car back now, it shouldn't be too much longer!
Piccy of a table of parts, mainly cosmetic - Have a look at the new front badge! It is off a Porsche 962 (one of my favourite cars of all time), it is my little tribute to the great Porsche racing cars:
This is my GT3, alcantara gear stick - Red stitch to match the seats:
The brakes being skimmed:
A bolt in the hub needed a threaded insert - Nicely picked up and sorted by Mr. Wastie:
Brakes and dampers on the car and looking great, IMHO:
ARBs, both old and new:
Gratuitous damper picture:
Almost there now, maybe a couple more days while we wait for Design911 to get the seat sliders and brackets over to Mikey:
Edited by dom9 on Monday 10th August 15:33
Squares said:
Looking good Dom, give me a shout when its done and we can see if we can get the discs to match the colour of the locking collars on those fancy dampers. :-)
No! I am never driving it - ever!If I did, I would have to clean it and then I would make the paint all swirly again, dirty the dampers and calipers and generally put miles on it!
We shall be terrorising the roads of SE England soon my friend. All at legal speed limits of course!
Thanks chaps - I am dreading stone chips, but what can you do? Re-paint it every year or two, I guess?!
Here are the latest pics from Mikey:
Threaded insert for the caliper mount was apparently a pain but sorted now:
Rear 3/4 view - How cool does that look on the (slightly) grey alloys (hard to tell compared to standard), with the Toyo R888's and yellow calipers? I am really pleased with it! It looks very aggressive this low and the ride height will have to come up a bit for it to be useable to and from London, but I think it looks awesome:
Front view - Again, quite racer-ish without the bumper on:
Just waiting for Design911 to get the seat mounts over to Mikey and we are almost there - Really excited about all this now, in case you could tell!!!
Here are the latest pics from Mikey:
Threaded insert for the caliper mount was apparently a pain but sorted now:
Rear 3/4 view - How cool does that look on the (slightly) grey alloys (hard to tell compared to standard), with the Toyo R888's and yellow calipers? I am really pleased with it! It looks very aggressive this low and the ride height will have to come up a bit for it to be useable to and from London, but I think it looks awesome:
Front view - Again, quite racer-ish without the bumper on:
Just waiting for Design911 to get the seat mounts over to Mikey and we are almost there - Really excited about all this now, in case you could tell!!!
Edited by dom9 on Monday 10th August 15:35
SNDa said:
Looks fantastic. Are you going to need new exhaust tips - they seem to have disappeared under the bumpers ;-)
Also, guessing there's now little room under the wheelarches to allow for wheel spacers?
TBD mate...Also, guessing there's now little room under the wheelarches to allow for wheel spacers?
Meant to be getting either Miltek or custom exhausts... So have left the silencers pretty much alone for now!
Will see how they look when I see the car, but they are not top priority at the moment...
Wheel spacers are difficult as teh car runs so low and I think they may rub the arch with spacers. These were another case of suck it and see. I would 'like' them, but not if I bend the $hit out of an arch or shred a tyre when hitting a pot hole or going over a speed bump...
Can't wait for the lights to go back and the seats to go in!
woogie said:
dom9 said:
woogie said:
looks great
Will it be there Saturday when I am back ?
I suspect so! Seat subframes are yet to arrive and there are still a fair few bits to do inside and with the setup, so I expect it will be finished next week now!Will it be there Saturday when I am back ?
Chomping at the bit here!
dtmpower said:
Looks smart ! But are the wheels on backwards ?
LOL - I thought the same thing when the guy fitted the tyres! The wheels aren't 'sided'! I had never noticed 'til Mikey pointed it out when I asked him if we should swap the wheels around. In other words, all 4 'point' the same way when you line them up, so on one side they go 'forwards', if you like, and on the other side they are the opposite!You would have thought Porsche might have made them so they 'go the same way' on both sides, but then again, I don't think that fitted in with their 'new' (at the time) production philosophy and cost cutting!
peterpeter said:
what is this all costing dom?
A fair amount... Better not reveal costs as threads have eyes! However, what I will say is that almost every single part I got a 'deal' on. I spent a lot of time researching parts dealers and seeing if we could do a deal, i even bought some parts from america and made extensive use of eBay!
Mikey has been a STAR! He has done his best to source bargain parts (but still quality/ OEM) and minimise expenditure through refurbishment as opposed to replacement and has been a real saviour, budget-wise.
But yes, it is still many thousands! Hopefully it will be like a new car, inside and out and drive better than when it left the factory!
peterpeter said:
would it have been cheaper to have sold the 3.4 and got a gt3? or are you doing it for the challenge (which I can respect)
I think I have done a pretty good job, budget-wise (he says, before seeing Mikey's final bill), so my calculator says that it would NOT have been cheaper selling the 3.4 and buying a GT3, the cost to change would definitely be higher, though possibly by only single figure thousands.No, I like the challenge, 'playing with cars' is my hobby and I love having something unique. You also have to remember that a lot of this stuff needed doing and the car would not have sold for much with cracked F&R bumpers, air con not working, electric seat buttons (some) not working, at least one damper leaking etc etc etc
On a good day it might have made £16k I suspect as it was still the 'right' colour combo. But now, although it won't appeal to as many people, it will be 'like new', I am hoping. And that is the thing. If I had bought a cheap GT3 it will have almost certainly still needed its bumpers painting, the air con sorting etc etc as that is just what happens at that age. I changed my dampers for adjustables, but they needed changing anyway... I suspect a GT3 would have needed its dmapers done at some point... Maybe brakes as well!?
So, in a way, although I have spent a lot, and I would not have needed or probably wanted to upgrade a GT3, had a I bought one, 75% of the things I have done to the 3.4 would have needed doing to the GT3, just maybe not immediately, because they are 'at that age'.
It may be difficult to sell on because of all the mods but I will have most of the parts to put it back to standard. I actually don't intend on selling it anytime soon though (fingers crossed nothing necessitates a sale) and I may just keep it forever and continue to upgrade it as my hobby, so I leave my other cars and any future cars alone!
Will hopefully get some pics with the lights back in and the seats and gear stick fitted soon!
Gassing Station | Porsche General | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff