That is my car, I'm considering selling it while contemplating moving to a gt3 before I swap even more crap over.

This is by no means my first, and I've been looking at 73 rs replicas also. -with 993 propulsion of course...

4/20/2009 5:33:49 PM

How is the economy still in a recession with Ahmet at the wheel! haha

4/20/2009 5:56:59 PM

^^ Damn, I saw that and thought, "That Ahmet's car? Naw, he just bought it. I know he isn't selling it already..."

GL on the sale buddy. If I had the equity available, I'd probably snatch it up from you. I've never been in a 996 before. What are you doing this weekend? I'd love it if you showed me what it can do

[Edited on April 20, 2009 at 8:52 PM. Reason : .]

4/20/2009 8:51:26 PM

I have a bike race this Sunday, and thinking about going rafting Saturday, but no solid plans. May also go to VIR for the Rolex/Bosch shenanigans sometime Thursday/Saturday.

I'm not really sure what I'm doing w/the 911, but I can't say that I'm not happy with it. It's by far the most satisfying to drive car I've owned, not to mention it's grip to comfort ratio is ridiculously good. It rides nicer than my M3 did, and has SOOOOOOOOO much more grip. There's also less wind noise than most cars, particularly at higher speeds. Anyway, I really want a GT3, trying to resist. I keep telling myself, there's still other cars I want to own... We'll see I guess.

4/20/2009 9:16:02 PM

go big or go home!
(i just want a ride in a gt3)

no go on the c5?

4/21/2009 1:00:00 AM

So, obviously the C5 is mine now, but this thread is about the 911...

The full GT3 suspension set up on the way, yay! I'm excited, but I keep second guessing my decisions as I keep pouring $ in this car. It'll still be quite a bit less money than a GT3 should I need to walk away from it, so that's an appeal...

Will update this when the suspension comes in. I have quite a few track events scheduled in the next few months. Oh I hope there won't be a repeat of VIR N. a few weeks ago, that was painful.

4/23/2009 8:49:43 PM

Detail:


Driving it back to back w/the Corvette is very enlightening. They're such polar opposites. I will write more at some point.

4/24/2009 4:09:43 PM

you mean less power than a geo metro?

4/26/2009 1:54:42 AM

The 911 is so much more active during cornering, it moves around quite a bit, and it's unequal frequency between the front and rear suspension/movements really takes some getting used to. Despite all this motion though, it never fails to feel planted. The Corvette in comparison has a lot more body lean, barely moves over bumps yet does not feel planted. The firm brakes of the 911 helps quite a bit. The Corvette is not as playful. It's fast steering really helps control the car when it's getting loose however. It feels like a smaller car when it's getting out of hand, but otherwise the heft is somewhat transparent. They're both remarkable in their own way. I may try to keep both for a little longer than I thought. Maybe continue making the 911 a bit more track oriented.

4/26/2009 4:39:32 PM

you mean less power than a geo metro?

4/28/2009 7:35:18 AM

I'm... not very happy at the moment. The "complete coil over assemblies" apparently doesn't include strut mounts (granted they're monoballs), nor shock mounts in the rear. There goes another $1k or so... I need another set of tires and brakes, and the track event's coming up in two weeks. Mayhaps take the Corvette. Dang it.

4/29/2009 10:41:22 PM

Money:

4/30/2009 5:18:24 PM

should've gotten koni adjustables. would have saved about two pounds and given you better traction for the hole shot...

4/30/2009 5:53:06 PM

Is that better than Meghan Racing?

4/30/2009 9:14:56 PM

Meghan Racing? That name sounds familiar, guessing it's a Honda tuner?

Anyway, so that was manageable. Add $1400... I just hope when this is done I won't have other crap to fix.

Certainly don't think I'm going to make money on this car anymore, shame. I guess it's going to be as close as I can get to a GT3 w/out spending another $50k.

[Edited on April 30, 2009 at 10:24 PM. Reason : Meghan Racing?]

4/30/2009 10:22:52 PM

http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_trksid=p3907.m38.l1313&_nkw=megan+racing&_sacat=See-All-Categories

5/1/2009 1:22:53 AM

you could have borrowed the suspension off my civic dawg! it looks better then your photo above >.< .

get that welder and help me DO WORK



[Edited on May 1, 2009 at 8:03 AM. Reason : plzplzplz]

5/1/2009 8:03:34 AM

do it yourself slacker

5/2/2009 5:48:23 PM

So, finally the suspension arrived today. Of course I could not wait and just got done installing the rear...

Comparison b/w the Eibach sport spring/Sachs shock and the GT3 H/R Custom coil over with Bilstein sport shock -note the independent height adjustability of the sway bar pick ups:


mmm, adjustible drop links:


Alfa club in 10 days and counting. Tires, brakes, alignment and front suspension to go. Maybe I can even squeeze seats in? Will update.

5/7/2009 2:58:33 AM

Just took it for the first drive w/the suspension. Lots of fun, a lot more work to drive hard, way more tail happy. Front bar's 1 hole from softest (of 5) rear is 1 from stiffest (of 4). I will tune it after an alignment and different tires.

5/8/2009 12:38:51 AM

The 911's still listed for sale, even though the complete GT3 suspension swap is now complete and I'm aligning it tomorrow, and ordering more tires for it. Still looking for a set of seats. HOWEVER, both the cars are listed for sale, and I'd still consider something like this if they were to sell:

5/8/2009 2:31:35 AM

Quote :

"complete GT3 suspension swap is now complete"

5/8/2009 8:09:03 AM

GT3 = 100 to the wheels

5/8/2009 8:15:56 AM

^ AT LEAST

5/8/2009 9:55:45 AM

dude i hate to say it. but find happiness and rest there. stop looking for the next best thing. the grass always seems greener doesn't it. then once u get there u realize it isn't. u've been stuck in this new car cycle for a long time now. If it's what makes you happy tho, awesome and just ignore this comment.

5/8/2009 10:04:45 AM

What're you asking on the 911?

5/8/2009 10:29:12 AM

Actually, Ahmet just needs to build his own car from scratch. On top of that, he needs to also just buy several Bmw's, Evo IX, Evo X, S2k, Cayman S, GT3, STI, Ferrari 348, Exige, c5 z06, c6, LSx Fd, Miata, etc... and keep them. That way he's got a car for any particular mood that he's in...

Just like a stereotypical woman and her shoes...


[Edited on May 8, 2009 at 10:50 AM. Reason : .]

5/8/2009 10:46:41 AM

^best idea ever

5/8/2009 10:54:50 AM

^^ /thread

5/8/2009 11:01:18 AM

He needs to get us jobs at his work so we can afford spare corvettes .

5/8/2009 12:32:29 PM

^seriously, to hell with what I'm doing now. Hook it up, brotha

5/8/2009 12:48:24 PM

I like switching cars, so I'm not really complaining. The thing is, it's not until you live with something that you really discover it's short comings, and it's up sides. I do tend to want "better and more" but I like variety.

I'm asking $24.5k for the 911, which includes the suspension and currently the Porsche Tequipment roll bar -supposedly developed with Porsche to stiffen the chassis, they claim over 30% torsional stiffness improvement, how cool is that! Anyway, I have a few upgrades left (brake pads/rotors, seats, possibly an oiling upgrade). Other than those and some decent tires, I'll probably leave this car alone.

Quinn, you hook me up w/a job like yours, and I'll hook you up with one like mine. :o

5/8/2009 2:29:16 PM

if only I had 25k i would jump on this! haha

5/8/2009 2:42:23 PM

Tell me about it. Hey Ahmet, you feel like thrashing an S2000 for a few months as your next car

5/8/2009 4:35:43 PM

Heh, I like S2ks, ask me once the Corvette is gone! I doubt it though, I usually look for outstanding deals, or a car that needs something. Also, it kinda sucks driving other cars after the C5, they all seem so anemic.

5/8/2009 4:53:59 PM

What's up w/double posts on TWW, I've never had a double post on any other message board...
Anyway, going in for an alignment, will update.

[Edited on May 8, 2009 at 5:06 PM. Reason : Double!]

5/8/2009 4:53:59 PM

All of the suspension is in, car's been corner balanced. It handles amazing, steering response is ridiculously good too. I can't wait for tires!

Here's a picture of it held up on one jackstand:


I will probably soften the sway bars just a tad, currently it's a bit too stiff for anything but the smoothest surfaces.

Speaking of, the adjustable drop links for the sway bars were roughly $1300. I need to replace two of the heim joints, I certainly hope I can get the parts separately...

5/10/2009 10:57:19 PM

Just got the tires in also. Everything's in the car, other than lots of rain, should be a good weekend -I hope.

I'll note it here again, instructing w/the Alfa club on the 16th and 17th (that's tomorrow and Sunday). Drop by if you can.

Will update.

5/15/2009 4:00:11 PM

Quote :

"Speaking of, the adjustable drop links for the sway bars were roughly $1300."

Are you out of your fucking mind?

I've been helping a friend (V8 into the RX7 and custom SLA front sus) with his suspension, and we're using aluminum hex shafts and nice QA1 rod ends on everything that moves on this car. All total (rear trailing arms, panhard bar, front lower control arms, front strut rods, front and rear swaybar links) is less than half that.

There's a fine line between Porsche tax and stupid tax.

5/15/2009 4:31:39 PM

The ability to buy factory racing/motorsports parts is a big reason why I like Porsches. Yes they're expensive, but there's a noticeable engineering/quality difference between this stuff and say shade tree one size fits all BMW sway bars for example. I prefer factory whenever I can. A dealer supplied set of racing seats, DOT approved clip in 6 point harnesses, factory bolt in roll bar that significantly increases chassis rigidity etc. You do pay, but if you can have the means, it's worthwhile IMO. A lot of this is hard to justify for me too, but this is a relative scale. An F 360 challange can easily cost $5k to prep for one weekend.

That said, these drop links were the only non factory parts I got -as a part of this kit. I will be replacing the heim joints and probably bolting on GT3 cup drop links. You'd need a gun to make me pay $1300 for 4 drop links. You should know that Dan...

5/15/2009 5:19:11 PM

So this track event was another exercise in torture for me. The 911 was all over the place, extremely hard to drive fast. It would change set mid corner without different inputs. This is similar to what it was doing with the last suspension as well. There isn't a whole lot left that I hadn't replaced/upgraded in the suspension/chassis.

Anyway, I had gone from Nitto 555s to Sumitomo HTR Z IIIs, JUST had them mounted on a very hectic Friday (yesterday) -btw Merchants drove my car, which I'm not happy about- and I find out today that the tires were the culprit. Swapping to another set of wheels/tires from Dan's C2 (custom Kinesis wheels in GT3 sizes) made all the difference. I literally cannot believe that tires/wheels? would make such a profound difference. Not just my opinion, I had Tom Hart drive the car back to back with me as well (another long time C2 and currently GT3 owner/instructor). Goes from un-drivable to pure bliss. I guess this means another set of tires for me. That's another $7xx gone in two weeks, for the rear tires alone. This is getting old...

5/16/2009 11:41:23 PM

^5 flexin out?

5/19/2009 9:27:38 PM

poast

5/19/2009 9:28:29 PM

Flexing out?

I posted the picture to show just how stiff the chassis/suspension is. The car feels awesome, but fell on it's face on street tires at VIR. I would not have believed that all it's shortcomings were due to it's tires, had I not tried swapping wheels/tires with two different people. This is my second set of tires with which the car had issues.

So, Porsche only has a handful of approved tires for the 911, and I was inclined to think that it is just marketing, but trying Michelin PS2s back to back with my Nitto 555s... Well, I ordered another set of tires (Azenis all around). I don't want to shell out for R comps/2nd set of wheels, but it seems like the car would be transformed again still.

Man, it was just so fast on the borrowed set of wheels/tires, it felt unstoppable, pure pure bliss. What a tease, 5 laps in/out, and I was done. I've been trying to make this thing work for months and thousands of $ now... Trying to save money on tires, so far, has not panned out. Positive side note, with GT3 cooling ducts even pure street pads had absolutely zero fade, rock solid pedal all the way through.

5/20/2009 12:52:16 AM

who woulda thought, i always was told that every kind of tire was exactly the same, no wonder my mud tires were louder than highway tires

5/22/2009 11:26:31 AM

I am not able to discern between babble and a serious post from you, so in case you're being serious, I shall present a bit more info.

The situation is somewhat complex, and it seems that this car is immensely sensitive to it's tire/wheel set up. I'm beginning to suspect a wheel/spacer issue, but I cannot honestly see how/why that would be.

The car has had 6+ sets of tires on it on the same wheels, I've spent over $2k in tires in the last 3 weeks alone (993 twin turbo hollow spoke factory wheels 7.5 x 18 front and 10 x 18 rear, tire sizes 225/40/18 and 265/35/18)... as well as others. Let's look at the last few;

Kumho Ecsta --> Steering wheel slightly crooked to the left. Other than obvious lack of feedback/grip, OK otherwise.
Sumitomo HTRZ II --> Pulls slightly to the left under power slightly unstable on track, but acceptable.
Nitto 555s --> Pulls hard to the left under power, also very unstable on track.
Sumitomo HTRZ III --> No pull, but steering wheel slightly crooked when tracking straight. Very unstable on track.
Azenis RT 615 --> Steering wheel is very crooked to the left, haven't had it on track but seems stable. Immense amount of grip. Since Azenis are not directional, I also tried running the left wheels on the right side. Wheel still pointed left when going straight.

My car has spacers in the rear, but due to offset, the following wheels did not utilize the spacers:

GT3 wheels (sized an inch wider front and rear, 235/40/18 front 295/30/18 rear):
Michelin PS2 --> Drives well, no obvious issues. Swapped back to back with the Nitto 555s.
GT3 sized custom Kinesis wheels, slightly more offset:
Michelin PS2s, N Spec --> Incredible amount of grip, tracks straight, no issues. Swapped back to back with HTRZ IIIs.

Tomorrow I will swap to C2 sized PS2s on another set of identical wheels. I may try leaving out the spacers. It will be interesting to see if the steering wheel issue follows the wheels to the other car.

5/23/2009 1:44:25 AM

OK, reporting with Azenis;

I am at a loss for superlatives to describe how it feels to drive now. It's all that and a bag of chips. Will post more later.

In other news, I will be paid to instruct for Volkswagen NA at NJ Motorsports Park next month, yay.

5/27/2009 11:37:35 PM

OK, I thought of one way to describe it's handling; It feels like a Miata but on a regular car scale. It's immediacy to turn is impeccable, yet I could see somebody else thinking that it understeers too much. Currently it's rather neutral at the limit, but if you turn in too abruptly, it will understeer. I may stiffen up the rear bar to compensate slightly -though this is just for fun and giggles, I'm very satisfied at the moment. Anyway, the more prudent thing to do would be to soften the front instead, the car generates enough grip to easily pull the inside front wheel off the ground on the street as is. I'm just afraid it may take away from it's sharpness. This on Azenis, a tire that has rather crummy steering feedback.

Oh my, I should order brakes and get another set of seats asap.

5/28/2009 5:51:34 PM

Quote :

"Anyway, the more prudent thing to do would be to get some people off tww hired at my work"

5/28/2009 8:01:33 PM

where do you work?

i need a job

5/28/2009 8:41:43 PM