Stone Chips .. and my life of pain

[ballcock]

I never gave a crap about em til now. I used to laugh at people blubbin all over their bonnets. My time has come .
Anyone know who to go to in Dublin?
Or has anyone tried to tackle the problem themselves?
Porsche sent me out paint and lacquer sticks , No instructions...
What do I use to rub them down after treating them???

[Irish]

ballcock said:

I never gave a crap about em til now. I used to laugh at people blubbin all over their bonnets. My time has come . Anyone know who to go to in Dublin? Or has anyone tried to tackle the problem themselves? Porsche sent me out paint and lacquer sticks , No instructions... What do I use to rub them down after treating them???

I feel your pain. I spent last easter cringing on Irish roads.....cement lorry after cement lorry throwing years of grit at me.....

I think you will find that you can live with them. Wait six months and if it still REALLY bothers you get it done.

[ballcock]

Ta Irish, I hope you're prepared for the same chip onslaught when you venture back here full time!!I reckon I'm getting the worst stoning on the M50 , believe it or not , as I have to drive up the preceding cars arse or else the same feckin cement lorry will pull out on top of me.

[markomah]

It's not just the M50; I had the stonechips on my bonnet cleaned up before I bought it. 8 months on, it looks like someone's been at it with an ice pick.

I think the 911 just operates as some form of pebble magnet...

I'm trying to be laid back about it, but it's hard [sobs quietly over keyboard]

[ballcock]

There there .. (Manly electronic group hug moment)
I have to say , I gain consolation in that I'm not alone .. Not wishing to visit stone chipping on anyone of course.
No advise coming thru on DIY chip hiding though. Is the general idea to grin and bear it? I suppose it gives me another excuse to drink to forget!

[brady]

ive stopped caring about it, but the ones that look like someone had a chew on ur bumper are nasty! high speed stones

[up-the-dubs]

Are 911's pretty soft? Can't say any of the 3 cars on the drive suffer this at all. A few years ago myself and a mate had Puntos at the same time, both bought here but he was living in London. I did far higher milage but his car came back like swiss cheese after a year and mine was fine. I never thought it was that bad here.

[markomah]

Obviously can't agree (for reasons of pride, ego, maculinity, etc., etc.) that 911's are "pretty soft" but I do think that there's something in the bonnet shape/aerodynamics that makes them more vulnerable to stone chips than other cars.

Having driven a Saab 900 Turbo (2 years), a Jag XJS (3 years) and now the 996 (7 months) over the same roads, the 996 has picked up more chips that the other two put together.

I've always found girls with freckles rather attractive; I'm trying to develop a similar mindset with regard to car bonnets!

[ballcock]

Depends on where the freckles are located!! (And if they'll let you see em)

[Irish]

Ballcock,

I am back in the 996 zone after my temporary 993 hangup. Going for an 00/01 C2/C4 manual. I reckon I can change for £15K all in and VRT free. Looking forward to runs in the hills!

A

[SpudMurphy]

A body repair shop that I have used and have been very pleased with is:

Alan Mears - email: [e-mail] phone [phone]

He did a couple of small jobs for me on a Mercedes E class and an Audi Cabriolet. He does excellent work and gets a lot of jobs from the local Audi/Merc/VW dealership.

He is based in Bray, Co. Wicklow.

Hope this helps.

[ballcock]

Thanks Murf , Glad to see you've had a eureka moment , Irish!
In fairness I still wonder if I should have gone for a 993 , and I think no matter what you get you'll still be scratchin your head.
However , '01/'02 996's are makin early to mid 70's in ireland at the mo , and you should have no trouble getting the opc warranty so you're laughin!!
Have a look on the Cridford's sight as I think they offer good value for money and all seem to have a full psh .. Can I put the cat among the pigeons tho????
If I was in your position I'd be pullin out all the stops to try and get a c4s!!

[Irish]

Re Cridfords: Maybe checking out the Iris blue car at the weekend. Perfect in every respect except no door speakers. Do you have them? I like them in my Boxster but Porsche standard system is rubbish so might need to following:

[url]www.prestigeaudio.co.uk/auto/images-auto-1-23-99-339.html[/url]

[ballcock]

Funny you should say that irish .. my car has the bog standard system , which I thought was going to p1ss me off .. and I DO like my sounds , I play in a blues band for fun ... But it hasn't bothered me at all , my ear's more listening out for the 4000+ engine wail! But then I only do about 20 miles a day , 4 days a week , on average.