My Turbo with RS-Tuning/Cargraphic Powerkit

Alex L · Apr 5, 2008

Had this fitted a week or so ago now. Thought I'd put all my posts together in one thread...

RS-Tuning Powerkit 2

400KW / 544PS / 6200 1/min
798Nm / 3770 1/min
= BMC air-filter + 200 cell exhaust (medium loudness) + ECU

SportsAuto performance results

Cargraphic 997 Turbo RSC 3.6

* CarGraphic / Rs-Tuning ECU map (544bhp kit2) and exhaust including manifolds
* Bilstein Pss9 suspension with front carbon strut brace
* Front Aero Lip PU
* Carbon Rear Wing
* Short Shift Kit
* CarGraphic Racing 19" wheels,
* Pagid brake pads and steel braided hoses
MSRP: 176,757 EUR (with options as tested)

544 PS at 6,200 rpm
798 Nm at 3,770 rpm
151.1 PS/litre
1550 kg
357 bhp/ton

0-100 km/h: 3.3 secs.
0-160 km/h: 6.8 secs.
0-200 km/h: 10.4 secs.

Vmax: 316 km/h
Hockenheim short track: 1:10.3

Comparison with Ruf 550 kit

Plotted out the engine dyno comparison of the Ruf 550 (10650 EUR) vs the CG 544 (8495 EUR) kits:

If you add up all the PS and Nm across the whole RPM range you get:
[*]Ruf 550: 4200 PS and 7270 Nm
[*]CG 544: 4291 PS and 7370 Nm

So I guess the CG kit would be slightly faster.

First Impressions

[*]Exhaust sound is great!! (not PSE hacked-open on a Carrera great, but still a vast improvement) Wouldn't want it any louder (I got the middle loudness version) and to me at least it sounds a lot like the Tubi from in the cockpit.
[*]Turbo lag is almost gone; the car now feels like it has a NA engine given how responsive it is
[*]Turbo kicks in a lot smoother as a result of the kit - you are soon doing frightening speeds in the blink of an eye. It even sounds smoother. When I put my foot down at low revs in the original car you would have a pause then it would feel like the engine was balling up all the power to then unleash. Now when I hit the throttle you just get an instant smooth surge of power. I much prefer this.
[*]I have only pushed my right foot to the floor 3 times thus far and only very briefly - and the results are startling! The upper revs of the gears just sounds SO 'angry' and it accelerates like the cars life depends on getting away. It honestly feels like I now have unlimited power at my disposal. The concept of needing sport mode with over-boost is now frankly ridiculous.

I also got a revised Parr geometry setup which I think makes the steering feel more precise and responsive and certainly handles the power a lot better. So big thumbs up there.

Further impressions

I had a weekend away last weekend, 300 miles round-trip. I still just can't get over how smooth the Turbos and acceleration are now!!

There is also hardly any lag "" other than when cruising in 6th at 2000 rpm and you then floor the throttle. Then there is still a few seconds wait. Other than that much more like a normally aspirated engine. Great when accelerating gently through a corner. No more turbo on/off switch.

The car just feels "˜tuned'. Not like it's had all that power forced upon it, it just feels more free!!

The exhaust sound is great too. Not brilliant 2500-3000rpm on the motorway as there is a bit of a drone. Nothing too intrusive, but if you hit 3000 and onwards you just get cruising silence. Sure, if you want to hear the good noises then they are readily available with some right foot action!

Fuel economy is about the same "" I averaged 27mpg averaging 60mph on my 300 mile round trip.

So overall I LOVE the powerkit. Frankly I think the engine is healthier now than it was before so I am definitely less stressed about the warranty issue. Plus RS-Tuning (via Cargraphic) is probably THE best tuner for Porsches along with Ruf (although Ruf doesn't actually race Porsches) so they really know what they are doing. Also the ECU is tuned for the exhaust + filter combination, so I know I have a tried and tested formula. Yes, certainly worth the extra money compared to the other packages out there (albeit a bad Euro exchange rate right now pushing up the price).

As for the Parr "˜fast-road' geometry alignment; definitely sharper more responsive steering. Definitely more stability and grip putting down all that power. The car somehow feels lighter!

I am desperate to get myself a "˜Performance Box' and do some videos and sound-bites. What with snow forecast for this weekend, it may be a little while though.

Press

http://www.worldcarfans.com/9080208.007/wcf-test-drive-cargraphic-porsche-911-turbo
http://www.cargraphic.de/stepone/data/downloads/1c/0d/00/GT0208.pdf
http://www.cargraphic.de/stepone/data/downloads/8a/0d/00/SportAuto0308_1.pdf
http://www.cargraphic.de/stepone/data/downloads/53/0f/00/911_0308.pdf

Pic

Alex L · Apr 5, 2008

Couple of extra points:

1) The power charts are with Sports Chrono OFF - ie. no overboost. When ON I have been told by Cargraphic that the kit would generate 840-860Nm torque. Although some other experts have told me that if I went over 830Nm I would be breaking rods so RSC probably restrict it.

2) Going to keep an eye on my stock clutch given all that torque I have now. No slipping yet (and none reported on the other 3 kits Parr have fitted with non-upgraded-clutches). If required I will upgrade to Sachs Performance kit 2.

Alex L · Apr 5, 2008

Turbo boost observations

Went out for a spin yesterday evening (the car is SO much fun now!). Anyway, on the way back decided to test out the 'boost' values on the motorway.

So in 6th gear and normal mode, the boost goes straight to 1.0 bar when you put your foot down from about 2000rpm.
Same thing in Sport mode results in 1.2 bar every time (with over-boost arrow).

If you remember some of my threads before, I was only seeing 0.8 and 1.0 bar boost in Sport Off and On respectively (with brief glimpses of 0.9 and 1.1). Now the Turbos are so much smoother and get to 1.0 and 1.2 almost immediately after you call on them.

The acceleration I get now at 0.4 bar in Normal mode is about the same acceleration I got pre-powerkit in Sport Mode with full over-boost 1.1-1.2 bar. That's some quality tuning for you

This thing is a monster, and just with an air-filter, a free-flow exhaust and some serious know-how ECU tuning. Amazing

Alex L · Apr 5, 2008

I plan on getting a Performance Box and doing some of my own measuring.

http://www.performancebox.co.uk/

I need to find out what my car weighs though. I have a lot of factory options but I do have PCCB, light weight HRE wheels and a lighter than stock exhaust. So that should help.

Anyone interested in the kit (or other RS-Tuning/Cargraphic offerings) should contact Daniel or Lawrence at Parr:

http://www.parr-uk.co.uk/

pwebb · Apr 7, 2008

V. comprehensive and interesting write up Alex, thanks for putting in the effort for the rest of us. You should be giving Clive a run for his money in Switzerland!

Peter

Alex L · Apr 7, 2008

ORIGINAL: pwebb

V. comprehensive and interesting write up Alex, thanks for putting in the effort for the rest of us. You should be giving Clive a run for his money in Switzerland!

Peter

Indeed. Here is some interesting data...

Hockenheim lap times:

CGT: 1:08.6
GT2: 1:09.7
Ruf RT12: 1:10.2
Turbo RSC: 1:10.3
GT3 RS: 1:11.1
GT3: 1:11.7
Turbo: 1:11.9

Comparing a Stage II Cargraphic Powerkit Turbo (544PS) with a GT2 - you can indeed see the lower powered GT2 is still a little lighter on it's feet.

juliany27 · Apr 7, 2008

Alex

So you are The Stig [

]!!

garyw · Apr 7, 2008

ORIGINAL: juliany27

Alex

So you are The Stig []!!

maybe, but it was Clive who was wearing the "T"-shirt (see GT2 thread) [

]

garyw

Alex L · Apr 7, 2008

ORIGINAL: juliany27

Alex

So you are The Stig []!!

I WISH. I need to do the Porsche Driving school 'Performance' class this year. I did the 'precision' one last year and that was fantastic!

chrismouzou · Apr 9, 2008

hi alex
car looks great-been reading your progress on the forum with your upgrades-sounds really good

chris

Alex L · Apr 9, 2008

Hey, TB over on Rennteam just informed me that my CG544 powerkit was just recorded doing a 0-300kph in 29 secs! From a Stage II kit - that is just insane!!!!

To compare, the Ruf 550 kit performs as follows:

Max. lat. accel.: 1.1 G (Michelin Cup)
0-100 kph: 3.9 sec
0-200 kph: 11.1 sec
0-250 kph: 18.0 sec
0-300 kph: 32.1 sec

And my CG544 car recorded by SportsAuto magazine this week:

0-100 km/h: 3.3 secs.
0-160 km/h: 6.8 secs.
0-200 km/h: 10.4 secs.
0-300 km/h: 29 secs

The standard Turbo (Tiptronic) numbers:

0-100 km/h 3.7 seconds
0-160 km/h 7.8 seconds
0-200 km/h 12.1 seconds
0-300 km/h 40.7 seconds

Alex L · Apr 12, 2008

Video:

http://video.google.co.uk/videoplay?docid=3699494440127631019

You need to turn your volume RIGHT UP in order to get a 1/10th of the roar!!!

Alex L · May 3, 2008

Got to love those HRE P40's...

Sorry, any excuse to post pics of my Turbo [

] [

]

RICH.P · May 3, 2008

Don't be sorry!
Look at pictures like that all day long [

]

Dylan1 · May 3, 2008

beautiful alex-i love your photos too!![

]
how on earth do you keep those alloys so clean-do you clean them every day??

Alex L · May 3, 2008

ORIGINAL: dyllan
how on earth do you keep those alloys so clean-do you clean them every day??

Thanks guys [

]

The wheels stay clean all the time since I got a Porsche with ceramic brakes. They are worth the extra money just for that [8D]

Dylan1 · May 3, 2008

of course-forgot that-as you say another reason...[

]

garyw · May 4, 2008

Super pictures Alex.... makes me want to take a few more of mine.

garyw

Alex L · May 4, 2008

ORIGINAL: garyw

Super pictures Alex.... makes me want to take a few more of mine.

garyw

Yes, FAR TOO FEW people on this board post pics of their beautiful cars!!! [

]

shavster · May 6, 2008

ORIGINAL: Alex L

Hey, TB over on Rennteam just informed me that my CG544 powerkit was just recorded doing a 0-300kph in 29 secs! From a Stage II kit - that is just insane!!!!

To compare, the Ruf 550 kit performs as follows:

Max. lat. accel.: 1.1 G (Michelin Cup)
0-100 kph: 3.9 sec
0-200 kph: 11.1 sec
0-250 kph: 18.0 sec
0-300 kph: 32.1 sec

Click to expand...

And my CG544 car recorded by SportsAuto magazine this week:

0-100 km/h: 3.3 secs.
0-160 km/h: 6.8 secs.
0-200 km/h: 10.4 secs.
0-300 km/h: 29 secs

Click to expand...

The standard Turbo (Tiptronic) numbers:

0-100 km/h 3.7 seconds
0-160 km/h 7.8 seconds
0-200 km/h 12.1 seconds
0-300 km/h 40.7 seconds

Click to expand...