Hi all, I picked the car up this morning and all I can say is wow! Huuuuge difference over my prior flash. The car has a hell of a lot of TQ from off idle all the way up to near redline. Not peaky or "boosty" at all, it just lays down the power and TQ and freakin accelerates like a scalded-*** ape! Sounds great and runs smooth just like it rolled off the line with 550 HP. No numbers but my butt dyno echos the engine dyno sheets from Ruf.
The clutch is only slightly stiffer than stock, very usable as a DD. Release point feels very similar to a GT3 clutch if you have driven one. No complaints at all.
Ruf also added a Bilstein adjustable suspension. It rides pretty good, a little stiffer than my springs. Hard to say if the performance is better or not yet. Most importantly for me my ride height is now at a much more practical level with my driveway. So all is good.
I just wanted to say thank you the guys at Ruf- Hans, Jackie and Wayne are true professionals. Ruf was able to accomodate my needs and give me a truly personalized 550 turbo conversion. They definitely know a thing or two about customer service and how to treat clients.
Bobby, your car looks great!

One thing, I almost got screwd on my flight this morning. As soon closed the cabin door shut some woman went completely ape sh*t, balling and crying. Luckily she was calmed by the FA. I was about to freak on her if she made me miss my flight!

 

I'm pretty envious Doug.... What was your setup before the conversion...a GIAC + Tubi right? Are you doing anything for break in?

 

Hey Doug,
Glad you are happy with the mods. You should grab a P Box from one of the Houston P-gang and educate us on how fast a 550 will do 60-130...
Congrats!!
Mike

 

Congrats and hope you enjoy the upgrades for a very long time.

Just curious, does this change any of the warranty's on the car? If so, how. If not, then even more Congrats!

 

Bobby, I had the Giac/Tubi, I kept the Tubi cause I just like the sound. But I will most likely complete the conversion with an exhaust at some point. No break in just drive it hard! You just need to be mindful of the increased TQ because it will break the tires loose quite easily now.
Mike, I plan to get out there at some point and see how it does. I did it once in my car bone stock, but with 3 shifts it was way off the mark at something like 12 seconds.
'Cane Ruf gives you a 1 year warranty on their work and they will go to bat for you if there are any problems. That's pretty good IMO, plus it's a lot more than any tuner will do. I am not really worried about the warranty. Remember Ruf has a very special relationship with Porsche, they tune the personal cars for the family. Go Canes!

 

Wow... Now I am *really* jealous.

 

Yes it's a real Jeckle and Hyde, completely factory sedate one minute and a total monster when you hit the throttle in anger

 

Hmmm hmmm hmmm now I am droolin'. Ruf -- Enuf' said I guess.

BTW, I am very glad the Bilstein seems to be working out for you. With this much force (spinning the freaking wheels!?) I would imagine big problem with front back weight transfer with the stock springs.

I have no idea how Bilstein compares to the Ruf's revalved-respringed-Bilstein, is the Ruf stiffer/more aggressive?

 

I love that meteor grey color. Have fun with your new power!

 

The Ruf is slightly softer from what I am told.

 

We could of down the 60-130 on the dyno! I am curious to see the RWHP/TQ...

Congrats on getting it back! Get some in car videos for us.

 

Congrats! See if you can get a Performance Box and see how your Ruf 550 compares to the one RC tested over on Rennteam (although that was a Tiprtronic car with Cup tyres):



Ruf certainly is worth the extra money if you can afford it. I spent a LOT of time researching and comparing the Ruf 550 and Cargraphic 544 kits as I think these are the best Stage II kits on the market (certainly the most expensive). In the end what swung it for me was that there was a CG reseller in the UK whereas Ruf required shipping the whole car to Germany and back.

 

Thanks Alex, if it runs anywhere close to the car on Rennteam I'll be very happy. My car is a 6 speed on cups.

 

Lookin' good!