sml

911jetta ... can you please get some decent suspension and decent wheels. it could be a nice car but those supercheap wheels from tirerack and SUV ride height make me cringe everytime i see your photos.

sorry but for over 12mths, everytime I see your car that crosses my mind and it is really bothering me.

are these your wheels ...
http://www.tirerack.com/wheels/Wheel...All&sort=Brand

911Jetta

sml...thanks for the comments (I'd like to see them before you edited it?), I'm glad you care enough to make your opinions know. I like the passion! I know what you are saying and it doesn’t' bother me much. I must be a simple man, happy with what I have....

I like the honestly and totally understand it, but you also have to understand were I'm coming from, at the very least so you don't vomit when you see another picture of it.

You do see the car on the forum a lot (I guess I should apologize?). Since I've bought the car I been on so many wonder trips and have met a lot of great people, the pictures are part of my memory. It's been incredible really.

Since you mentioned it bothers you so much I feel I have the right to say a couple things that might help you down the road...(or at least understand where I'm coming from).

1- It's a 964...a 911, they are all beautiful in their own way....stock and mint, all the way to rusted and with huge wings. I stop and look at everyone I see parked. They are all part of the family and all have many stories to tell. It makes my day to see any of these special cars. I’m not jaded.

2- I understand the majority like their 964s in a certain way, with certain wheels, mirrors, and brake vents. Yes a 964 looks awesome that way. I grew up around a lot of hot-rodder’s, engineers, and having lived in a couple different countries, so I'm open to lots of different things. I’m done with grade school and having to wear what the “group” tells me to wear. I have design and product development experience, there’s a lot of interesting stuff out there. I like passion and solid engineering, bring that to the table and any differences don't seem to matter.

3- You need to drive more buddy. Get out a live a bit and don't worry about what parts you hang on your car that you think look cool...someone else won't think they are cool. I love your car (though I haven't seen pics in a while?).

4- Of course the car needs new dampers, and lower springs would help the handling and looks. BUT…in the time that I've held off on changing the suspension, I've done many mountain rides with friends in heavily, I mean heavily modified cars (both engine and suspension). Something ALWAYS happens to those cars during a drive, OR there are a couple sections of mountain roads that they have to crawl through because the car was bouncing everywhere and was set so low. I happily skip through all that and just keep on motoring at the front of the group. All that to say a completely stock 964 can eat up a lot of the nasty road conditions, keep its wheels on the ground and really hustle through the turns (and be a whole lot of fun while doing it). Who would believe it?! In the end it's how comfortable you feel in the car and how much you are willing to hustle it.

5- I've survived a couple scares in my life (cancer, a child that nearly died a birth, etc.) that have taught me a few things...life is precious, get out and create adventures. I don't need (but I do want) KW3 or BBS rims to feel satisfied with what I have. All in good time my friend.

6- I hope to retire a couple years earlier than most, and am well on my way. I had to have 911 though...it's not an investment but I think I bought pretty smart. I have lots for friends who have had some pretty serious cars over the years...while I rode my bicycle to work. Think of the money delta on that one?! It tough exercising moderation when I see all these gorgeous cars on this forum. I have bigger plans in life, and the 964 is along for the ride.

7-Regarding the rim design. The cheap rims are also mounted to cheap tires...double whammy. One thing I've found out is that once an industry reaches a certain maturity and consumer expectation level, the products at the bottom aren't too bad. Yes the rims are cheap, but no worse than all the Cup1 reps out there; they're probably made in the same factory...

Actually I give Tire Rack lots of credit for spec’ing some awesome rims. The fronts are 7 1/2”, not 7s like lots of Cup1. That's a big plus. I love the big 9" rears also. The offsets are also perfect, so no spacers needed or rubbing either. The perfect spec for someone upgrading from 16"s. I've seen lots of really cool wheels on this forum...and lots of help needed to get them to fit. Silly really, but it looks cool.

Tire Rack also spec’d a really interesting design. My amateur assessment is that it's a unique blend of 993 Turbo Technology rim and 996 GT2 rim...the design borrows heavy (completely copies) from existing Porsche rims but adds creases to the spokes and rim edge to give the wheel less of a soft look. The spokes go all the way to the rims edge, so they look really big for 17" rims. Plus they are easy to clean. Actually I think they were a pretty smart purchase. People that see them first hand on the car really go out of their way to tell me that they like them. You might not be used to it, but the design is unique and completely fitting to Porsche design. When does “cheap” turn into a “smart” buy?

It would be one thing if I was touting them to me something they weren't. They get me everywhere I need to go (on and off track) and they don’t hold the car back at all. Extra $$$ in my pocket to buy the first round of beers after the group drive.

I know it’s long winded, but I hope I got across some of the points that make my Porsche experience so rewarding for me. I hope you can enjoy the spirit that I bring to my posts and that it lessens the cringe when you see pictures of the car.

Back on topic....
Check this out...while out testing the lights at night (not sitting at home on the couch), I randomly stopped to play with my camera and take pictures. I know it's blurry (don't say anything Hawk! only had the mini tripod with me), but is that a shooting star just above the trees...or a UFO? I definitely see an alien (resident alien that is) in the second and third shot!

Vandit

This is why I asked what type of projector they are using. Not all projectors are built the same. A halogen projector w/ a HID bulb is only slightly better than a halogen reflector w/ a HID bulb.

A D2S projector (what is found in all cars w/ OEM HID projectors headlights) is designed specifically for HID light output. It will produce a sharp light cutoff w/ a bit of a light prism effect at the cutoff and little light bleed above the cutoff.


This is what you want.

The step-up/flare varies, but being that the USDM is a LHD country, you want the flare to the right since it'll illuminate street signs and not the face of oncoming motorists.

The Stig

A well thought out and reasoned response to sml.

Thank you 911Jetta for being an active member of this community and providing great posts. I look forward to more updates on these lights.

Best,

deutschland-dobson

Another great write up

Its great to see new and innovative products hit the market for our cars. Just need to wait on a price and hope that they're UK compliant...

Chris

Vandit

It's hard for any non-OEM headlight design to be road legal, however, in the US, it'll probably get overlooked during the annual inspection process.

deutschland-dobson

TBH if the price is corect then i'd probably just swap it out come MOT time...

Sorry officer!

I really like the AP Car Design ones, but they're a bleedin fortune

Rocket Rob

Very interesting. I would love a decent HID setup. Keep us posted on how you like them and when more information is available. Thx.

Kuchar

Great job Jetta911.

UncleRemus

911Jetta,

You keep posting pictures of those horrible shoes. Please buy some Nikes or something - I keep vurping in my mouth.

964russ

Ive had a HID kit fitted for the last 2 or 3 years.
A huge improvement over the standard useless candles.

Ive been told there illegal in the uk.
But have never had any issues, pass mot no mither, no pull from a cop?

There no brighter then a new car with em.

warmfuzzies

They are Russ, and the MOT is getting tighter, much tighter, to the extent that if you have a cat on the car, and remove it, thats a fail, the ABS has to be properly working, HID's require self levelling, and washer jets, plus much more, is pretty draconian......

k

sml

I only edited my post to add the link to the tirerack wheels.

Thanks for the interesting reply .. there is some logic to your reply, but why upgrade the lights in preference to the suspension? I didnt read every word in this thread .. perhaps the lights were a freebie from someone.

My 964 with stock suspension & cheap tyres was super-slow:
- slower than my old 924 porsche by 2 seconds
- slower than a Honda Integra Type R by 8 seconds
- slower than a stock WRX by 11 seconds

Cosmos99

The lights do look very Signer like. I like them. If you get a chance to take a picture of the beam pattern/cut off, it would be greatly appreciated.

sturm

HUH??

'93rsa 3.8