Great board, glad I found it. Now, I have a question.

I have a 996 Turbo, and it doesn't feel like a Porsche of this calibur should feel, it feels too light and springy. Clutch is too light, shifting too light, suspension is too soft. What should I do? Is this normal? My last car 911 was a '86 Turbo, this new one feels like a featherweight compare to it. Its much faster, but I want overall feel also.

 

Sell you'r turbo and buy a GT3.

 

I was afraid that would be the answer. Need turbos! I suppose I need a GT2..... isnt there anything else I can do.

 

ship your car to imagineauto along with a check for $20,000. I am sure they can "fix" it for you.

 

personally, wise money spent on a good suspension and a good camber set up will make a huge difference. Try and lighten the car, as much as you care to. Get a short shifter, ECU, turbos, wheels and tires, etc....then it will transform into a true beast, but it will never be like a true race car, unless you feel like destrying a perfectly good 996tt.

 

hmmmmmmm.............

 

Well said oak

 

"wheels and tires"

why wheels? lighter ones (or wider like the GT2)? which tires are you referring to?

 

i'd ask CJV, he seems to of nailed it right

 

If you really, really want it to feel like a true race car, the recipe's pretty simple:

Fully adjustable coil over suspension
Fully adjustable, rebuildable dampers
Larger, adjustable front and rear sway bars
Strut tower braces
Full welded cage, extended to the front and rear suspension mounting points
Remove all emissions controls
Install headers and free flowing exhaust
Remove all items not necessary for racing - A/C, stereo, power seats, passenger seat, most dash components, most interior pieces
Larger brakes and ducting to center of rotors
Add all the power enhancing devices you can - larger turbos, intercoolers, injectors, remap the computer, etc.
Rebuild the engine for increased durability
Increase the track width
Widen the body for increased track
Install Porsche aerodynamic aids
Lighten the car with fiberglass panels and/or carbon fiber
Lexan glass
Run lighter, wider wheels on full race rubber
Install a racing gear box, Hewland or sequential
Change the rear end gearing to suit your needs
Devote several hours a week to tuning the car at the track to make sure that everything is working optimally

Unfortunately, the true race car feel will cost you a small fortune (easily double the price of the car), be a pain in the **** to drive in day-to-day traffic, and might get you arrested ... but, it'll definitely feel like (and be) a race car... (For a milder approach, see my last post below.)

Yours in speed,

 

It will cost a few dollars, however if you do it correctly it is far from "a pain in the *** to drive." On the contrary, it is a lot of fun.

 

CJV. I think you are right. I wasn't thinking of the whole picture. On the track, it'll be an incredibly fun car to drive! And, even on the street it would be fun for a run through the hills, on that favorite road, that sort of thing. It is really only in day-to-day traffic, it would be a pain in the ****.

So, it kind of depends on what you want. If you want a car to feel like a race car on the drive to work every day, I'd think twice about it. But, if its for the occassional ride out in the twisties and/or for track use, it would be well worth the effort.

If the car were mostly street driven, personally I'd just do the suspsension (coil over, dampers, sway bars and maybe strut bars) and mild engine upgrades - (e.g., something on the order of 500-600 HP). That'll certainly make the car feel much more racey, and it'll do pretty well on the track too.

Yours in speed.

 

racer36,

I agree with your thought process, to a point. Power and response wise, I chose to install an adaptive boost controller for precisely your concerns. I use boost level one (1.0 bar) for around town. It is really streetable. No problem driving in stop and go traffic or grocery market parking lots (with the exception of those darn speed bumps). As for the suspension. A JRZ triple adjustable can be set (if you know the settings you want) in about two minutes. It can be soft or bone jarring hard in no time at all.

Like you said though.... it can be very expensive.