Awesome write up on a beautiful car!! Congrats!! Gl on that coding, what a B*t(h that can be...

 

awesome write-ups, great to see you enjoying the car.
if you are looking for faster revs, then you should consider a lwfw.
this component is why your mk1 revved faster.

congrats, and enjoy!

 

Since car is DD, how many miles do you usually put daily? Looks great and excellent write ups. Thanks for sharing.

 

Hi datax,

I average about 7k miles a year. I live 8 miles from where I work so about 16 mi / day when it drive it to work, which is 80% of the time. It makes what would otherwise be a mundane commute be an experience to look forward to twice daily! I live on the edge of town so I can open the car up and let it breath on the last part of my drive home and sometimes I take the long way through the twisty back roads if I'm in need of an after work pick-me-up. No need to break out the alcohol to wind me down at the end of a stressful day. The GT3 is my medicine.

 

I like your style. Above post make me wish my commute to work is as fun as yours. And, there are more tire choices available for 7.2 RSes as I'm a bit iffy about having to use PS Cups in all weather. I used to DD my 996 GT3, btw. Loved every moments of it.

 

If you see a post from sharkwerks, they drove in rain with ps cups with no problem. Obviously, not ideal but doable nonetheless.

 

Yup, definitely doable and I've done it but when weather gets cold around here (north east), I've had some scary moments in my 6GT3 in wet. Just that for cold and wet conditions, I see proper road tires as a cheap insurance. May be new RS is even more doable and tolerable because of slightly bigger tires, traction and stability controls compare to lowly 996.

 

Yes it can be done...
The 10 Freeway in LA during rush hour...


Or with horns:

 

Alex enough with posting in this forum. Get busy installing the shrks bypass installed in my RS;-)

 

I was able to get over to the dyno today for a follow-up visit to yesterday’s baseline. I’m happy to report +15hp, +8 lb-ft, at the wheels. With sport mode off, I was pleased to see no torque loss below 4k RPM, which I was actually expecting based on reported figures and posts. With sport mode on, there was the expected torque loss below 4K RPM since the higher flow capacity means less exhaust velocity and thus less scavenging effect. Torque loss in sport-mode below 4k RPM around 10-20 lb-ft but I’ll take a closer look at the graphs later and provide an exact figure. Just as the gains are too small to be felt, so is the torque loss below 4K. I.e., too small to be felt. Again, torque loss is only in sport mode and below 4K.

Also in the spirit of full disclosure, CEL did fire this morning and due to the high-flow cats. The Akra is a 100CEL system so I am not surprised and their site says clearly that they recommend an ECU remap to avoid CEL, which is currently in progress (going with EVOMS). Anybody considering this system should also plan to follow Akra’s recommendation. Will follow-up w/ another pull next week or following for incremental gains from the EVOMS update.

Regarding the splinter thread around the MPSCs. Today was the first real rain I drove the car in (60 miles total in the rain and on the highway to and from the dyno). The tires were perfectly fine in the rain. However, there was no standing water and it stands to reason that MSPCs are going to be scary in standing water given their tread depth (or lack thereof). Anyway, just adding my 2cents here because I’ve read so many threads claiming how scary the MPSCs are in the rain. I was going 70-80 much of the way and all was perfectly fine. Curious if this is a case of the N-spec tire versus regular MPSC. I would love to hear a breakdown regarding differences between the N-spec and standard MPSC. Does anybody know?

 

200 cell cats are good for a street car.

 

Here's the dyno run from yesterday:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bI36vsXEoeU

Re: 200 cell cats, I've had issues w/ those too although ECU less finicky about firing CEL with them. With the 200 cell cats I had, I had no problems w/ Shell gas but Chevron caused CEL every time. I know it sounds like a ridiculous statement and perhaps something specific to my car and the formula for my area, but after a while I was able to recognize the pattern and then once I did, on test I could repeat CEL firing iff Chevron fuel 100% of the time. Shell => no problems. Not suggesting Chevron > Shell, just reporting on my particular results regarding the two.

Tomorrow I p/u car from Cantrell with EVOMS update. That will address ECU, add some power, and should give me the great throttle response I am looking for. I am very excited. The car will finally be complete (er, almost anyway). Just some window tint, and other minor stuff.

 

I picked up my car from Cantrell today w/ the EVOMS ECU remap. I'm going to do one more dyno pull next week to see the incremental effect of the EVOMS software on top of the Akra exhaust. I'm expecting good gains because the car now feels perceptibly stronger as compared to stock. Also -- as advertised -- throttle response is improved w/ the EVOMS software. In combination with the exhaust, throttle response is substantially improved as compared to stock. I am now satisfied with how the engine revs.

So far, no CEL. I expect this will continue to be the case as Akrapovic recommends an ECU remap for the Evolution (race and non-race version), and now my car has it. I also expect so because EVOMS has tuned Akra fitted 3.8Ls for max performance and no CEL. I also have to say, when Colin asked me if I wanted left foot braking enabled as part of the ECU remap, I knew I made the right choice going with EVOMS.

The Akra/Evo combo is not cheap but I am very happy with the end result. Below 3,500 RPM in non-sport mode, the car is a kitten and one would be hard pressed to tell the difference from stock form. Put your foot into it and the car comes alive in a way that will make your wife look at you and say, “Really?”

It’s really hard for me to imagine that a car can get any better than this with the possible exception of a similarly prepped 4.0. I expect that I’ll want a 991GT3/RS when it becomes available but I’m going to need to get busy so I can swing it because I plan on keeping this car for a long, long time -- something I’ve never said about any other car I’ve ever owned. I love its analog nature and it sets the pinnacle for a dying breed IMO. I expect people will look back on the RS like pilots looking back on the P-51 and Spitfire airplanes – a pilot’s airplane.

 

Nice job! What a beauty.

 

Great review of the Akra Evo. I had it on my last car (E92 M3) and it was the best combo of under the radar cruising and beautiful WOT sound. Very impressive job putting your personal touches on your RS.