Only 944 - Short Shifter

[TonyKart]

Hi, first post, picked up a 944 2.7 in Leicester, from Mike - A9XXC - Got home no problems...Cheers Mike.

Anyhow the plan is to turn the car into a cheap track day car, and see if I like the way the 944 drives before committing to a more expensive 944.

After the drive home last night the first thing I need to tackle is the gear shift quality, to this end I was looking to purchase the short shifter from Only944 in the states along with the shift rod, and sort the lever pivot out myself.

Anyone used this product in the UK?

Next on the agenda a full set Poweflex bushes, to sharpen up the sloppy feel of the suspension, I have used these on other track day cars and find they are a good compromise for a road driven car, any other preferred product any thing I should be aware of that is 944 specific?

I am assuming the front ball joints are in decent order as the car just passed an MOT.

I already have a damaged 944 , would it be worth fitting the thicker turbo roll bars to the 2.7?

Brakes will receive a set of uprated pads (DS2500) or similar along with a fluid change....no need to go mad with brakes at the moment

Engine is to stay standard, just requires a cam and balance belt change.

Finally a set of track orientated tyres on the standard 16" rims.

Is there anything that requires specific attention on the 944 if being used for track days?

 

[Riverside]

A standard 2.7 will have good balance but quite a bit of body roll on track, particularly if you put sticky rubber on so thicker anti-roll bars will definitely help.

Focus on the brakes initially, the discs & calipers are good but look into cooling ducts for the front (968 ones should work well, they mount onto the lower A-arm).

Add lightness but try to keep it in balance. It's easy to strip weight from the rear, harder from the front.

 

[Ewan]

You might like to consider the short shift kit from Jon at JMG Porsche in Dorset. I have his race shift system on my car and it's excellent.

 

[Richair]

Hi, welcome to 944 ownership

I've been running a Only944 gear selector coupled with a kart track rod stabiliser (buy an alloy kart track rod off eBay and chop it down and re-tap the RH thread end, common mod so google should help) and a JMG gear stick rod for around 3k miles now and it's a really great set up and gives the car the shift it deserves.

The only issue encountered is I've needed to occasionally nip up and add loctite to the fastners on the only944 selector, but other than that it's well worth the money and is a snip compared to the alternative suggested above...

HTH!

 

[zcacogp]

Wot Rich Sed ^^^^. Get everything back to stock condition, clean and well-lubricated and see how you get on with it. That alone will make a huge improvement to the gearshift. (The rosejointed go-kart link for the stabiliser bar at the back isn't original but is a much cheaper way of re-creating the original plastic ball-and-socket joints.) Only if this is insufficient should you start to think about 'modifications'. Bear in mind that Porsche employed some very clever people when they designed and built our cars, and it's very easy to ruin them with some good intentions but lesser-quality engineering.


Oli.

 

[Eldavo]

I have the only944 front shifter,near short shifter and stabiliser bar. Fantastic products at a great price and Kyle who runs the company is fantastic with communications which helps greatly. I'd install the lot as a package as I found that after installing the front shifter alone I couldn't select all gears without adjusting the rear linkage.

Re 968 cooling scoops: I have these along with the turbo ducts but you either need 968 arms (as I have) or you have to fab up some brackets ads the 944 arms don't have the holes in them for the scoops.

 

[Paul190H]

Agree with Eldavo, I have the Only944 gear lever and short shift and love it. Great quality and a great price and great communication..

 

[TonyKart]

Thanks for the reply's, unfortunately Only944 are out of stock of the short shift kit so going to have to wait a couple of week...

 

[Andy97]

I have the Jon Mitchell (JMG) front and rear race short shift kit in my 924S race car and it has transformed the gear change for the better. Highly recommended.

As for improving handling then increasing front and rear negative camber will really help but it depends whether you are going o do far more road work than track work, as increased camber on the road may have a very detrimental affect on tyre wear!

To improve performance, speak to Augment Automotive about their fast road cam and ECU upgrades.

 

[TonyKart]

ORIGINAL: Andy97

I have the Jon Mitchell (JMG) front and rear race short shift kit in my 924S race car and it has transformed the gear change for the better. Highly recommended.

As for improving handling then increasing front and rear negative camber will really help but it depends whether you are going o do far more road work than track work, as increased camber on the road may have a very detrimental affect on tyre wear!

To improve performance, speak to Augment Automotive about their fast road cam and ECU upgrades.

Hi Andy, the car will see very little road use, back and forth to a few track days, and is really just a short term stop gap, so I can judge if I like the way the 944 drives/handles on track.

What kind of camber do the 94x chassis like to run?

I have a damaged Turbo and a very good non sunroof shell put away, that will be built into a 944 cup replica, with a few updates. If I like the way they drive....

 

[Mike_Pollock]

Glad to know you got back ok - we did think about you and the traffic!

You would be surprised how good the gear change is compared to how I got it!

The gear lever hole had been enlarged to allow it to get reverse!

I tightened it up quite a bit when I first got it and the stabaliser bar broke - rust.

It has 968 front uprights so ducting should be a bit easier.

Hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

 

[edh]

ORIGINAL: TonyKart

ORIGINAL: Andy97


What kind of camber do the 94x chassis like to run?

As much as possible in the front... Mine is set to max on my KW's at about -3. That's probably as far as you want to go for a road driven car.

 

[Ex Skyline]

ORIGINAL: Ewan

You might like to consider the short shift kit from Jon at JMG Porsche in Dorset. I have his race shift system on my car and it's excellent.

+1 [8D]. What Ewan said [8D][8D].

 

[Andy97]

ORIGINAL: TonyKart


Hi Andy, the car will see very little road use, back and forth to a few track days, and is really just a short term stop gap, so I can judge if I like the way the 944 drives/handles on track.

What kind of camber do the 94x chassis like to run?

My 924S race car has the following:

3.5 degrees negative on the front

3.0 degrees negative on the back

It also has a larger Front ARB from an S2 or Turbo (can't remember which, 27mm?)

 

[TonyKart]

ORIGINAL: Andy97

My 924S race car has the following:

3.5 degrees negative on the front

3.0 degrees negative on the back

It also has a larger Front ARB from an S2 or Turbo (can't remember which, 27mm?)

Cheers Andy, do you run with a rear roll bar?

 

[Andy97]

Yes, but tbh I can't remember the size. It's the one it came with when I bought it.