So it started off as new front top mounts on the 993

[Wozy68]

New front damper top mounts were required the service guy said .....

Then it was, 'The rears are looking a bit ropey also' he stated. Well I thought, whilst in there, best replace the rear ones as well.

'Your original dampers are looking in a pretty rusty old state, plus the bump stops have disintegrated due to age and so the gaiters/bellow thingys'. Ok so whilst you have it all apart install new FSDs, M033 springs and the other bits as well I tell him.

'I've just noticed the ARB bushes have a bit of play and so the drop links, he says'. Damn, ok whilst your there replace all four of both .... 'Ok', was the reply.

Result? Hmmmmm. Now the car feels soggy in other areas. 'Well yes' he states, the cars done 130K miles on its original suspension, including control arms, wishbones etc etc, all its ever had replacement wise was one offside front balljoint 30K miles ago. You'd feel soggy after all those miles'.

So 12 months on and hell of alot of dosh more (well for me at least), we have this tidy little lot.

The last parts came this morning, it's all going to be installed in a week or so, then off to Center Gravity early August to be have the Geo of its life.

She had better feel like a new car when I get her back, or I'l be well cross

Edited by Wozy68 on Wednesday 24th June 11:33

[mark.c]

Went through the same thing a few years back with my Turbo, parts buying escalated quickly (as did cost!) . If you needed to hear it then you are you are definitely doing the right thing and the car will feel much better

[Wozy68]

mark.c said:

Went through the same thing a few years back with my Turbo, parts buying escalated quickly (as did cost!) . If you needed to hear it then you are you are definitely doing the right thing and the car will feel much better

Oh blimey

[mudy]

I did all this with my 88 turbo but only after I'd done top end exhaust etc - the best money I spent was the money I spent on the suspension refurb for defs

[ras62]

Worth thinking about the wheel bearings at those miles. There's a lot to be said for the simplicity of a 964 rear end

[BrewsterBear]

I'm 80% of the way through rebuilding my 911 SC. I budgeted £15k for it. Once the engine and gearbox bill are in I'll be over £30k. My intention was to reuse and refurbish anything I could, but the more I went on the more I realised that 33 year old components need replacing. There's very little that won't be new on the car, so whilst it's not a financial road to success it'll be a pleasure driving and owning an almost brand new classic car.

[Stonic]

Replacing the full suspension and wishbones transformed my 993. I had pretty much not used it for a few years and every time I did I thought how awful and twitchy the handling was. Not anymore. The handling and ride are now great and it feels like a new car. Been mine for 16 years and other than a calliper rebuild and a steering rack it's just been normal servicing. Just have to say again how much fun these cars are when setup properly.

[Stonic]

Replacing the full suspension and wishbones transformed my 993. I had pretty much not used it for a few years and every time I did I thought how awful and twitchy the handling was. Not anymore. The handling and ride are now great and it feels like a new car. Been mine for 16 years and other than a calliper rebuild and a steering rack it's just been normal servicing. Just have to say again how much fun these cars are when setup properly.

[Wozy68]

Well tomorrow is D day, she's off for her replacement suspension. This will be the final stage and all parts to do with how the car handles and deals with our roads will have been replaced within the last 12 months and 5K miles.

So as a thank you whilst pulling in the drive tonight the sunroof broke so now doesn't shut.. .... I'm praying it doesn't rain tonight as she's out in the open.

[aceparts]

Money well spent

[rouge59]

I've just had a full suspension refresh & proper geometry done on my 85k crappy little, worth bugger all Boxster, & it's driving like a new car.

Best money I've ever spent.

[jackal]

put a welded cage into it !


single best thing i've ever done .... like putty in your hands, a fitted leather glove, an extension of your own soul

[Wozy68]

jackal said:

put a welded cage into it !


single best thing i've ever done .... like putty in your hands, a fitted leather glove, an extension of your own soul

I had thought of installing a pair of Pole Positions but think I'll run out of time before the Geo is done to get them fitted. C&G want to know my weight before they Geo the car, so I assume a weight saving of around 30 kilos would be important also.

[A993LAD]

Hi wozy

I've been following this thread with interest. My current 993 had received a bit of a suspension refresh not long before I bought it and I was surprised how much better it handled compared to my previous 993 which was much lower mileage but the suspension was original.

I'd be interested to know what people think should be the reasonable expectation for mileage/lifetime of front suspension though?

I'm asking because my car went in for a service a few weeks ago and they called me up to notify me that the bump stops on my front shocks had completely perished/disintegrated and that one of the top mounts was starting to delaminate. They weren't recommending replacement if the car handled okay (which I think it does) but just wanted to notify me.

Given that the car had new shocks and top mounts fitted less than five years ago (I'm sure I could dig out the receipt for the exact date) and about 20k miles, would you expect the suspension to have deteriorated so quickly?

In fact I'm not even sure what a delaminated top mount looks like or what effect it might have. But I took the car through france last week and across some alpine passes and it seemed to handle much the same as when I bought it 3 years ago.

Edited by A993LAD on Friday 10th July 08:51

Edited by A993LAD on Friday 10th July 08:53

Edited by A993LAD on Friday 10th July 08:54

[Wozy68]

Hello matey

The start of my epic suspension rebuild began when OPC Swindon in February of 2014 notified me that generally my suspension was on its way out and that both front top mounts were just about shot and everything else had wear in it.

So originally I had new front and rear mounts fitted dampers etc etc. to be honest the original setup felt better but like I've said, I believe this was due to the new stuff emphasising the worn everything else (well I hope that's the reason)

My original suspension top mounts etc had lasted over 125k and the old dampers though rusty hadn't even started to leak. This however is massive mileage it seems for 993 suspension to last and is not I don't think the norm, my car though had been owned by a 'senior' person and had spent most its previous life going up and down the M6 and occasional drives pottering around the countryside.

I kept the original parts and I couldn't tell that the front top mounts were worn out so no idea how the OPC could tell whilst they were still installed, but as they knew they wouldn't be replacing them, they had no reason to tell me porkies.

So I'd say that 20k miles is way short of what should be expected from top mounts dampers etc and would expect 60k minimum, unless of course you take her to Oulton Park every weekend and rag her senseless

Edited by Wozy68 on Friday 10th July 09:20

[Wozy68]

Slippydiff said:

There seems to be a common misconception that the bump stops are an integral component of the damper, and thus they'd have been replaced when the dampers were replaced. Firstly they're not an integral part of the damper, and secondly unless they're totally shot, many don't get replaced when the dampers are changed.
The bump stops lead a hard life in less than ideal conditions. They're wrapped around the damper shaft that gets hot and is exposed to all manner of debris along with water and salt .

.

My bump stops were virtually non existant so I replaced those as well. The guy who installed the dampers etc stated customers rarely spent the money on the stops (They are pennies), yet normally the originals were kaput....

As you state. It aint just dampers and top mounts that should/might need to be replaced and allowed for in replacement.

[Wozy68]

So almost complete, picking up Monday and off for the Geo of its life on Thursday. Can't wait

Edited by Wozy68 on Saturday 1st August 15:34

[Wozy68]

Well got her back today. C&G on Thursday.

Costs for a full 993 suspension refurb if anyone is interested. I did it over a year in two parts, mainly because the rest of it felt worn out after installing the first lot. OPC also pointed out suspension wear when she was serviced.


2014
FSD dampers £744.00
M033 springs £399.00
Front & rear ARB bushes and drop links x 4 £725.92
Top mounts x 4 £675.00
Various bits and pieces, bump stops and damper rubbers etc £60
Install and GEO £720.00

2015
Rear suspension upper control arms front £194.50 per pair
Rear suspension upper control arms rear £258.60 per pair
Rear suspension lower rear control arms £192.00 (Hartech reburb) per pair
Rear suspension 'A frame' track control arm £603.20 per pair

Front suspension wishbones £324.00 (Hartech refurb) per pair
Front suspension wishbone balljoints £149.60 per pair
Front trackrod ends £219.98 per pair

Install of the above (I got it heavily discounted because I know the fella) of £1080.00 which included install of new set of ignition leads so that evens it up.

Total out lay £6335.80
Geo @ Center Gravity this Thursday £567.00 (Estimated)

Grand total of £6902.80

Things to remember and this is important.

Prices vary wildly for OE TRW suspension components. I sourced a lot of mine from Germany as UK prices were madness. For example for the rear suspension upper rear control arms, the cheapest I could find them in the UK at the time was £468.60 per pair. I eventually got them from Germany for £258.00 per pair.

I've been informed that Porsche are stamping down on TRW supplying parts in the UK (No idea if this is happening anywhere else in Europe) to third party suppliers and forcing a lot of parts to be sold only through the Porsche network or at least with Porsche 'tax' added. So if you are thinking of a suspension refurb on your 993 start purchasing now, and search hard for the parts.

I went for refurb front wishbones from Hartech for two reasons, cost and knowing that Hartech have a good rep. I just could not afford to spend around £900.00 for a pair of new front wishbones. The refurb ones seem absolutly great and they even paint them silver for you.
Refurb rear suspension rear lower control arms was due to supply shortage. I just couldnt get them in a reasonable time frame without spending silly amounts from either the well known UK Porsche suppliers or Porsche themselves.

In the end, what really surprised me is that Porsche OPC or Porsche parts sellers differ little in price on a lot of Porsche branded parts.
The biggest surprise though is just how wide the gap is on component prices from different suppliers in different countries. Absolutly gobsmacking ... Do your research is all I can say.

The old girl had done 125-130K miles on the old suspension and only an offside front balljoint had ever been replaced. She had a gentle owner before me, so I'm hoping she wil require nothing suspension wise for at least another 60K miles.

[Wozy68]

Engine rebuild on a 993 with less than 200K miles on her?

It aint a 964.

[Solarized]

Eek that seems quite expensive.
Hope it's been worth it!