Peter Empson
PCGB Member
That sums up my feelings rather succinctly too.
944S2 fibreglass bonnet.??
- Thread starter Big Dave
- Start date
That sums up my feelings rather succinctly too.
Peter Empson
PCGB Member
ORIGINAL: edh
The main problem is dual-use. It's a great compromise as a road / track car, but even so....
There are lots of things I could still do to the car to make it quicker on the track - most of which would make it a worse road car. Losing 150-200 kgs would be a start []
It is a very tricky line to draw. For me in the cabin I need a fan/heater, some sound deadening (I'm hoping the carpets alone will be enough), a cd player and electric passenger window. The power steering is a luxury that I will probably keep. Anything else has to be considered for removal or lightening within reason. The most frustrating thing for me is that I have to rely on the car, so can't really take it off the road for a few days whilst I strip the wiring loom down or do other similarly involved jobs.
Jonny944CS
New member
Hi Dave,
I have just fitted a fiberglass bonnet to my track car project this month.
The original steel bonnet weighed in at 19.8kg. The replacement tipped the scales at 11kg.
Moulded in 2 pieces, the inner section replicates the profile of the standard bonnet, providing bracing and a firewall seal-face.
It came with the captive nuts moulded in to use the orginal hinge brackets and front catch. I've fitted it using the std mounts at the moment and they seem well up to the job on initial inspection, as the stiffness isn't far off that of the steel item.
I've also added some brackets to mount the original gas struts, previously too tired to lift the standard bonnet; they now lift the fiberglass one nicely.
In terms of fit and finish, (after quite a bit lot of tidying) the panel gaps are good but the shape of the moulding doesn't follow the line of the wings very well, up to 10mm out in places.
For a track/race car it's just fine. It may look a bit out of place on a road car, but for £175+ vat I don't think it's too bad.
Including the fiberglass front wings I have saved 16kg.
Hope this helps
Jonny
Jonny944CS
New member
Ah yes, forgot that bit.
Kevin at EMC supllied both the bonnet and the wings.
Kevin at EMC supllied both the bonnet and the wings.
Interesting. What would 'float your boat' around the £40 point, which is comparable with a 944? ('Tis a question I have pondered often, seeing very little available as a replacement. Given that the image of BMW's is such that I would never buy one, don't like Mercs, could consider an Audi but they are all FWD or 4WD, Nissan 350Z perhaps? Didn't get on with the Boxster I had but could consider a 993, but that's a slightly different car.)
Where to from a 944? (Hypothetically, of course.)
Oli.
Drifting way OT here but:-
I could be tempted by a Cayman S as they seem good on the track but unfortunately lack the convenience of a 2+2.
The new Jaguar XKR is meant to be very good but may not be as good on the track as a sorted 944. Shame there isn't an XKRGT. Perhaps a Paramount or Arden XKR
A DB7 would be nice but lots of expensive trouble and nowhere near as good on the track as a 944.
V8 Vantage - missing the seats of an XKR
DB9 - not going to be as good on the track as a 944 (I could keep up with a Vanquish around Snetterton in a Lux even if I did set light to my brakes in the end.)
TVR - would break or rust or both.
Lotus/Caterham/Westfield/Nobel - Have done the small light car thing and they are frightening on the road.
GT3 looks silly anywhere but on a track - and no back seats.
Standard 911 (993/996/997) so not going to happen.
Nothing Italian
M3 or perhaps M1 coupe- Not keen on the BMW badge but could be swayed
M5 - Meant to be exceptional but hugely expensive when they go wrong - which they do.
Holden - Too raw.
I could be tempted by a Cayman S as they seem good on the track but unfortunately lack the convenience of a 2+2.
The new Jaguar XKR is meant to be very good but may not be as good on the track as a sorted 944. Shame there isn't an XKRGT. Perhaps a Paramount or Arden XKR
A DB7 would be nice but lots of expensive trouble and nowhere near as good on the track as a 944.
V8 Vantage - missing the seats of an XKR
DB9 - not going to be as good on the track as a 944 (I could keep up with a Vanquish around Snetterton in a Lux even if I did set light to my brakes in the end.)
TVR - would break or rust or both.
Lotus/Caterham/Westfield/Nobel - Have done the small light car thing and they are frightening on the road.
GT3 looks silly anywhere but on a track - and no back seats.
Standard 911 (993/996/997) so not going to happen.
Nothing Italian
M3 or perhaps M1 coupe- Not keen on the BMW badge but could be swayed
M5 - Meant to be exceptional but hugely expensive when they go wrong - which they do.
Holden - Too raw.
sawood12
New member
For me the Caymen S just doesn't have enough umph and is obviously crying out for more power. I can appreciate peoples veiw on the GT3, though for me they are awsome, however a good compromise would be a 997C2S with the no cost option 20mm lowered passive suspension with LSD, X51 power upgrade and retrofitted GT3mk2 brakes. That would give you a car that is 95% of a GT3 without loosing any of the practicalities of a normal 911. Can't wait for the depreciation to kick in!!
Neil Haughey
New member
Nothing Jap then?
Not since Nick Fearns experiences with his 350Z, and I couldn't see myself in a Scooby or Evo.
Nothing American either, as they still can't do handling and the steering wheel is on the wrong side.
I agree that the Cayman is thwarted by the marketing men. With more power and a Lim Slip, those that know have said it could be the best drivers car ever built.
Nothing American either, as they still can't do handling and the steering wheel is on the wrong side.
I agree that the Cayman is thwarted by the marketing men. With more power and a Lim Slip, those that know have said it could be the best drivers car ever built.
sawood12
New member
I think only the Germans seem make cars that are robust enough to be driven to the track, hacked round the track all day and drive back and still handle the daily commute to work the following week. There are a few friends at work with various Jap cars who have tracked them in the past but don't do so any more due to the after effects. Also those who have modded their cars seem to suffer all sorts of problems. One guy has an RX7 that has been modded to 350 - 400bhp and the thing never seems to work. Anyway, I want a car that brings me closer to the driving experience, not one that is more akin to playing a driving sim on a playstaion.
Cayman's are very slippery around the track from what I've witnessed. Plus I really like the looks and believe that they carry a cosmetic lineage of the Porsche car very much so. I am probably going to spend enough for one of those 'during' my tenure of the current money pit, but somehow I think the satisfaction of going a similar route to Pete is hopefully going to be more rewarding. If anyone ever manages to buy my car from me they will be getting an incredible car at an incredible saving...as they're not going to pay anywhere near as much as it's cost me...so no point selling it, or at least that's what my rationale will be with the better half. []
]
Peter Empson
PCGB Member
When Fen advertised his car I though it was a real bargain, but I think it was only those of us already going down a similar route that realised how much car you were getting for the money, and for us it was all too late!
The only other car that currently tempts me (that is reasonably priced) would be a 964 which would be modifed in similar manner to my car. I do love the idea of starting with a bare shell and I think that is how I would like to go, but the lure of building a proper wide bodied 944 GTR would probably be a great temptation away for the 911 [
]At the first sign of trouble from it, I would ditch the power steering. Having on my second 944 spent a not inconsiderable sum of money fitting it to "Bring it up to spec" I wish I hadn't bothered. On my S2 the brace bar is broken, so the belt has been removed, not sure if the ratios are the same or not but even like this it is easy to live with - even tight parking is do-able with my knackered joints (that is my shoulders rather than anything on the car!)
Interesting the number of people that would consider a Cayman a possible alternative to a 944... it does seem to me to be the only real natural sucessor to the 924/944/968 range. From my perspective it is the only one that looks practicle enough from a luggage carrying perspective... do they make a tow-bar for one yet?[
]
Peter Empson
PCGB Member
Thanks Tref, my current rack is leaking and I'm on my third (or possibly fourth) so am a bit fed up with changing them to be honest. I would like the potential extra feel of the manual rack and there's even a quick rack option that's tempting, but I have to parallel park the car every day and suspect with fairly wide width tyres it would quickly become a real pain. You've convinced me to have another think about it now.
I've read on Rennlist that it's not advisable to run the power steering rack without the belt, the ratio will make it heavier than standard manual and there is a concern that it could sieze or wear very quickly (however I suspect you could always plug the rack to keep the fluid in).
Funnily enough I reckon there was more "feel" through the manual rack, but it isn't gained by just disconnecting the pump... but that could be due to a lot of other differences between the two cars (2.5 lux vs. s2). Given your comments I guess I should hunt a little quicker for a replacement adjuster bar - anyone here have one spare?
Regards,
Tref.
Regards,
Tref.
ORIGINAL: Big Dave UK
John.
There IS a LSD on the market for the Caymen...
If youve read one of the latest 911Porsche mags, Alan Whittaker [Motordrive seats],, had his Caymen fitted with a Quaif diff.., I happened to be at the test day when that article was being "made"...
Good day...[
I did meet a CaymanS on the A34 and was quite impressed by the straight line performance, Ok I had a boot full of tools and the sunroof out but up to an indicated around errm...60mph there was little in it. Most cars dissapear in the rear view by then. Still no doubt he was a little suprised the dirty looking 944 was keeping up and closing as well.
Tony
OK, lesser vehicle, but my humbe S2 is noticably quicker than all three of the Boxsters I have had tussles with. None of them were 'S' models as far as I was aware, and two of them were 986's, one 987.
(If they were S models then they really should be ashamed of themselves.)
Oli.
(If they were S models then they really should be ashamed of themselves.)
Oli.
yep thats why the cayman suprised me, on trackdays GT3 and Turbo 911's dont really pull away, not sure what removing the roof panel does for drag which would have been a big factor, as would the extra weight I was carrying but it was quicker than I expected, even so. Not sure I could stomach paying more for a fixed head though, and I need 3 seats these days, still a GT3 engined cayman could be fun toy, but then I always fancied a 993 6cylinder engined 916 as well, despite disliking the noise an aircooled 911 makes
Tony
Tony
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