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I have been following the forum for a while now, but this is my first post. I am a new Porsche owner- 1982 911sc - but not new to the Porsche world.
This car has been in my family since 1990, but I purchased from my father this year since he was ready to sell in his advanced age. The car has been in storage since 2011 and was just driven for the first time this year. Engine was in perfect order since he would start and run at least 1-2 times per month, but brakes needed a rebuild as they froze.
Al little bit of background, my father was a mechanic for Porsche Manhattan in the 60s, and the car is good working condition - rebuilt transmission in 2009 and new piston rings in 2011.
I dont have all the skills of my father, but am comfortable working on cars and am willing to learn as long as I have reasonable instructions.
I am looking for suggestions on upgrades I can do ( not looking to do major engine rebuild) to improve the car, but not break the bank.
so far I added a Fabspeed cat bypass and muffler bypass pipes. I am extremely pleased with the new sound of the exhaust, but can not notice any performance difference.
next on my list is to get a Momo prototipo wheel and replace Hirschman antenna, since the old one is frozen.
On a side note. I recently went through some old photo albums from my dad. He always told stories of having first rights to purchase trade-ins. He would fix them up and resell to earn extra money to start his own shop.
while I appreciate the hustle, seeing some of these cars wishes he never sold. I know he has owned over a dozen during this time. I will try to locate some of the pics next time I visit.
Welcome to Rennlist! Great story, and really like those vintage photos as well. How many miles on the car, and where are you located now?
Those heat exchangers are looking pretty crusty, but as long as the exhaust piping inside the outer box is intact, you should be OK. A common upgrade would be to convert to SSI heat exchangers, but taking the old ones off can be a challenge, and you would need a new muffler with dual inlets. This is how the most HP gains from the exhaust are realized. But leave things alone for now.
The rubber suspension bushings front and rear are probably shot, so changing those should be on your list. And likely shocks as well. Did you replace the tires? If from 2011, then you need to replace those - too old.
Oil leaks? All the electrical working properly?
Do you have repair manuals? The Bentley manual is a must-have (
). Also 101 Projects (https://www.pelicanparts.com/catalog/shopcart/BOOK/POR_BOOK_PORBK1_pg2.htm). I wouldn't bother with the Haynes manual. Next step up would be the factory manuals, but they are a few hundred dollars.
Looking forward to reading more about your car and the work you have planned.
Welcome! What a great story.
Mark’s purchase suggestions are a must. Getting into the frozen brakes will provide you the opportunity to assess suspension etc.
more pics! 👍👍👍
Great suggestions. Heat exchanger has definitely seen better days. They had rusted out years ago and rather than replace my father repaired with some welding. I def will look into replacing down the road.
car has 98k miles. I am located just outside DC in Maryland.
struts were replaced in early 2000s. They seem to be in great shape. I was considering coil over conversion but have read mixed reviews on the forum.
struts were replaced in early 2000s. They seem to be in great shape. I was considering coil over conversion but have read mixed reviews on the forum.
I thought you wanted to avoid breaking the bank? You would need to weld in reinforcements for the rear shock towers. What problems are you thinking coil-overs would fix? I think there is a lot you can do to improve handling before going to this extreme. And then you would need the driving skill to extract the most benefit, likely on the track.
Conventional options would include replacing the rubber bushings, Turbo tie rods, increasing the size of the torsion bars front and rear, and also larger sway bars. New digressive-valved shocks to match the torsion bars would give you a better ride and also better handling - they don't cost that much more than off-the-shelf.
Great story! An 83 SC was my first Porsche 25 years ago - I have learned a lot from that car and quite a few other Porsches have come and gone for me but I still love everything about driving that car. I never did any suspension work except replaced shocks and upgraded to the turbo tie -rods. Depending on where you live and how often you drive the car you may end up looking at A/C upgrade - significant improvement and made my car drivable in Charlotte, NC in summer. May also consider added oil-cooler to help engine temps. I have Billy Boat fender mount which was nicely made and had straight-forward installation but many products out there. As above - the SSI heat exchangers are nice upgrade but definite $$ there but does give nice torque / HP bump.
As often repeated on this forum - chasing HP increases in these older cars has diminishing returns and significantly more satisfying has been DE instruction / seat time for driving improvement at least for me personally. That may end up being its own rabbit hole but what a blast. My car now has about 150,000 miles and look forward to the next 100,000 or so more.
Have fun, great car!
Great story! An 83 SC was my first Porsche 25 years ago - I have learned a lot from that car and quite a few other Porsches have come and gone for me but I still love everything about driving that car. I never did any suspension work except replaced shocks and upgraded to the turbo tie -rods. Depending on where you live and how often you drive the car you may end up looking at A/C upgrade - significant improvement and made my car drivable in Charlotte, NC in summer. May also consider added oil-cooler to help engine temps. I have Billy Boat fender mount which was nicely made and had straight-forward installation but many products out there. As above - the SSI heat exchangers are nice upgrade but definite $$ there but does give nice torque / HP bump.
As often repeated on this forum - chasing HP increases in these older cars has diminishing returns and significantly more satisfying has been DE instruction / seat time for driving improvement at least for me personally. That may end up being its own rabbit hole but what a blast. My car now has about 150,000 miles and look forward to the next 100,000 or so more.
Have fun, great car!
great advice. I did remove the AC, front spare tire, and muffler and cat bypass. I estimate it saved about 70lbs. (Nothing major, but figure everything helps). Summer was fine with the windows down and sunroof open. Also gives me an excuse to really enjoy the new fab speed exhaust. I know some people have complained, but I really enjoy the sound and the quality seems great.
One big benefit of removing the cat is lower temperture. Cats get hot. The downside is emissions, but I suspect that by now the original cat was not doing much.
I have grown to like my Fabspeed cup exhaust. The plus is it has kept me from buying a new head unit.
One big benefit of removing the cat is lower temperture. Cats get hot. The downside is emissions, but I suspect that by now the original cat was not doing much.
I have grown to like my Fabspeed cup exhaust. The plus is it has kept me from buying a new head unit.
In Maryland if you have vintage car tags you do not need to pass emission inspection. Downside is your are limited in how much you can drive, but that does not seem to be enforced as far as I can tell
I totally agree. You basically summed up everything I read on this and other forums, not to mention breaking the bank.
any suggestions on where to purchase the bushings?
The usual source for suspension pieces is Elephant Racing. For a street car you should be fine with their rubber bushings front and rear. Pelican Parts has a good tutorial on how to change the bushings, check out this group (I think Elephant has videos too): https://www.pelicanparts.com/911/911...htm#suspension
12-31-2019, 11:00 PM
New Porsche owner- 911sc project car
You would need to weld in reinforcements for the rear shock towers. What problems are you thinking coil-overs would fix? I think there is a lot you can do to improve handling before going to this extreme. And then you would need the driving skill to extract the most benefit, likely on the track.
