Tuning the 944 Lux

[sawood12]

I have a confession to make, i've not actually fitted my M030 ARB yet, it's been on my garage floor for about 5 months or so now (I know I deserve to be stripped naked and walked through the centre of town whilst being flogged for not fitting it as soon as I got it) so the ARB i've got for sale is still fitted to my car. However I will make a concerted effort to fit my M030 ARB next weekend (weather permitting). I also forgot that I have a rear ARB as well. I bought the front and rear M030 ARB set 2nd hand but subsequent research has tought me that my current std rear ARB is the same as an M030 rear ARB so I wont bother replacing my current one.

 

[Clint B]

Doh, you gotta hate that. At least you shouldn't have any trouble selling it on. Been chatting with Peter and hopefully I'll be releiving him of his ARBs and throttle cam. Nitrous would probably be the last thing id do, but a very interesting point! Has anyone else succesfully nitroused their 944?? Not something I'd want to experiment with I think. The other thing I was going to ask you, Peter, was where you got your short shift kit from and whether it was money well spent? Did it perform like you thought it would? Its just that that was another thing I had thought of, as I think the throw on the gears is pretty long for such a cool little gear stick ;-) Also the green cone filter? I checked out thier page the other day, did fitting that help with the performance, or just a nice whooshing sound when you floor it?

 

[Guest]

the short shift is something that, in my humble opinion, should have been done from the start! It can be a bit awkward to fit, but it's worth it!

try this:

http://www.porscheclubgbforum.com/tm.asp?m=120326

 

[Peter Empson]

I got my short shift kit from type 911 and it's something I'd have no hesitation in recommending. It gives a much shorter throw as expected but with only a fairly small increase in effort (but it does take a while to get use to it). From memory I think John has one on his Turbo too and believe he noticed the same.

The only downside is that it seems to have a
habit of running dry, needing a good spray of grease every year or so to keep it from getting sticky, but access isn't too bad when on the ramp so I just have to remember to ask the garage to do it every service.

The air filter makes a great noise and it seems to help the car rev more freely, but I doubt there's much in it in terms of gain (particularly without a chip).
The kit I bought was overpriced considering the naffness of the bracket provided, JZ sourced (or made) a much better one to replace it. I'm hoping to reuse the filter on my S2 engine, but if it doesn't fit then this too will be for sale []

Best regards,
Peter

 

[Diver944]

I think Peters Lux will be one of the fastest in the country and will surprise even more exotica on track. Circa 230bhp and under 1300 kg with hard suspension and grippy tyres will be a very interesting proposal [8D]

 

[Peter Empson]

Hi Paul,
Thanks, but its still got a long way to go as I suspect the weight has crept up again (I'm really not sure how much more the S2 engine weighs, but its certainly appears much bulkier).

I think I'm going to need to get a bit more radical, particularly if I'm adding a half cage as intended and I want to reach my planned power to weight (to get this I need to be below 1250kg ideally without losing front carpets, electric windows, heater or stereo, as it is after all the car I drive daily).

I think the sunroof has to go, and I'm going to need a lot of fibreglass panels to replace the bonnet, bumpers etc.
Oh and a diet for the driver definately wouldn't go amiss either! []
Best regards,
Peter.

 

[Guest]

Fill your tyres with Helium instead of air. That'll also reduce your unsprung weight []

It's quite incredible how much weight you can take out of a car if you need to. Of course, if you're using the car as your daily transport, you're limited because you still want your creature comforts.

If you want to keep your carpets, but aren't too worreid about it getting a bit noisy, strip out the sound deadening from underneath them. The first race car that I built was a Rover SD1, and we took 20 Kg of sound deadening material out of the car. Overall, we got the weight down to 1160Kg, which isn't bad considering how heavy the car was to start with []

 

[Fen]

Take the 'leccy windows out Peter - that doesn't compromise the daily driveability. Also you can get rid of the power mirror motors and central locking too and then all the wiring to the doors can come out apart from speakers.

 

[Peter Empson]

Hi Fen,
I might compromise and keep the passenger side electric window as I do use it for ventilation on most trips, the door cards will probably morph into something like RS ones too as the rubber section is quite heavy. The mirrors will go, but whilst I'm at it I'll probably replace them either with cups or something much lighter like the DTM style ones.
Have you converted your sunroof to manual operation? If so was it worth it?
I'm hoping to make a carbon/fibreglass panel but may just end up buying a replacement roof section in time for the respray.
Best regards,
Peter.

 

[Fen]

I got a quote for the 924 manual sunroof parts from Adrian but at £60 for one bit I decided it's a Porschapart job - haven't phoned them you though. I fancy an RS type door card as well; just the window winder and a couple of pull cords to open and close the door [8D] (and a speaker)

 

[Peter Empson]

Yes, I've seen a few done by people who post on Rennlist and they look great. I intend to buy a pair of tatty used panels to hack up, keep the top section and replace the rest with a carbon panel which I may or many not trim with vinyl to look like the 964RS part (depending how well the bare carbon finish works out). Porscheshop list the the pulls and handles on their site too, although i suspect with a bit of research cheaper parts could be found that would do the job as well.
Best regards,
Peter

 

[Fen]

Got a source for the CF sheet? That is how I would like to do mine. What about you John, I was going to ask where you got the CF you used for the cubby and ashtray. Off the wall I've been looking at this http://www.raintracker.com/ which is around $150 and doesn't look like it weighs much, the idea being when the track is wet but it isn't raining you get loads of spray when behind someone but none when the track in front is clear and I found at Silverstone I was constantly messing with the wipers when I would rather have been steering etc.

 

[944Turbo]

Rain X weighs even less
Tony

 

[Fen]

Good point well made. It's an arse to apply though.

 

[944Turbo]

IIRC the last bottle I bought had revised instructions for application, cant remember the specifics but there was a change - never had any real trouble before once I had a suitable water mist aplicator (an old amourall bottle).
Tony

 

[Peter Empson]

Demon Tweaks sell CF sheet, but it's expensive. I purchased some raw fabric from www.resin-supplies.co.uk when they had a sale on for a loudspeaker project that I've been working on. It's dead easy (if rather messy) to make flat sheet look pretty good, just use a piece of glass to lay it on and the finish is very smooth and shiny (and to keep costs down you can use fibreglass behind a top layer of CF).
I've used some off cuts to blank off the holes where the fog lights were and have copied Johns ash tray replacement (albeit very badly hand cut, I really must do another one).

As an aside, Porsche Apart have just sent through the eBay 968CS rear seat carpet today and i'm very impressed, it looks great, so I think it was worth the money (even if its heavier than using nothing at all). The only downside is it'll make my other carpets look really faded in comparison.
Best regards,
Peter.

 

[jez_anderson]

Hi Clint, I'd be interested to know how you got on, what did you do or not and what the results were. I've got an 86 Lux and am wondering what to do with it.

 

[Clint B]

Well hello again guys. Nice to come back to this thread after a bit of a break! Since writing last I've installed the following:

- ProMAX Power Kit
- Pioneer AVH-P5700DVD Headunit (with iPod adapter)
- New brighter Headlight/Sidelight bulbs

The ProMAX kit was easy to install and improved the feel of the car greatly. It accelerates a lot swifter and stronger now and is a lot more free revving and willing. You may not notice a vast difference straight away, but the more you drive the more it seems to "adapt" and it just gets better and better. Its a lot more fun to drive now, and doesnt hold back like it used to. I would definately reccomend this kit. Haven't installed the spark plugs that come with the kit yet, gonna do this on the next service. Need to get back in touch with Peter Empson to see if he still has those ARBs and throttle cam. I'm still interested Peter. Email me your address and I'll get a cheque off to you! Christmas was a bit heavy on the wallet this year! When you drive a Porsche people seem to expect good presents from you! Ha, how wrong they are! Hope you guys are all well.

 

[pae]

I'd echo the comments on Promax power kit 1, good value upgrade to n/a cars.(funny, I've not got around to fitting the plugs, either).

Phil

 

[Guest]

Hi Clint, if you want to "sound" faster, you can cut the front box out, and weld in straight-through tube. I think maybe your car is non-cat? Like all these things not perhaps quantifiable in power but it does sound good. I`m waiting now for my back box to go so I can fit something "innovative" at that end as well! I also replaced my vacuum pipes, and was surprised at the difference, there must have been a leak somewhere. Try diverting the crankcase breather pipe away from the air filter box if you`re worried about clogging up a panel filter. Have you checked suspension dampers, new inserts can make a dramatic difference to handling with only modest cost.[8|]