The greatest mod for my 997.2
05-25-2010, 02:34 AM
#1
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The greatest mod for my 997.2
I did not realize that many of my mentors/members (who meant a lot to me) on this thread did not know that I own two 911's. Here is my story that only cements the saying: Porsche...there is no substitute. Hopefully you would find it enjoyable as that is my goal.
HOW IT ALL STARTED: My passion for car started after I bought my wife a car of her dreams...the MINI convertible. Driving that car: it's raw handling, the bone jarring go-kart ride exposed me to a whole new experience. Since then I wanted to get into a real sports car. After going to medical school, residency, fellowship (from 1988 through 2003...yah all those years), I (and my wife and kids) felt that I deserved to get into what would make me truly happy. Hence although the M3 would have made the most sense (with two real backseats), it was a 997.2 that I eventually got into back in November '09. What really made it happen was the great deal (with 20% off MSRP and a 3.2% financing rate). I, all my life have helped others, been frugal when it comes to myself...no expensive hobbies, gambling, travel to exotic places. So it was a big deal to own a 100K car.
After I got my feet wet in 911 ownership I spent quite a bit of time learning about the history of 911's and logged onto the air-cooled section of 911's on RL. Somehow the mystique of air-cooled 911's started to seep into my central nervous system's grey matter. When I went to San Juan islands for the spring break with my family and friends, I saw this 964 in the parking lot. See picture enclosed. The car spoke to me in many ways. I tracked down the owner who happened to be a maintenance guy at the lodge we stayed in. He was a Porsche afficionado who took the time to show me around the car, it's engine bay and interior. The car's condition was a far cry from being pristine. However, the straight lines on the exterior and the knobby interior controls had my psyche all conjured up and the image of that car complemented all the mental activity that was going on up until that point. Right at that moment I decided to own an air-cooled 911.
GETTING DOWN TO BUSINESS: I equipped myself with about half a dozen buyer's guides, magazines, collector's guides that had excellent photographs along with detailed specs of year by year 911's since it's inception. The antiques (early 911's up to '73) have driving experience that is something from another age. They are great long term investments but there were doubt's in my mind regarding it's allround usability for daily driving. To raise one of them would also jeopardize my hopes of funding for my kids' college expenses and I was not up for it. The third group, the 964 (89 through 93) had so much of a modern feel to it with the ABS, power steering, coil spring suspension and AWD which was not what I was looking for. The fourth generation (993) was not even in consideration for several reasons: Out of my budget range, too modern of a car with the smoothened lines just too 997'ish.
The second generation 911's ( theSC's/Carrera 3.2) was by far the best option for me in the late classic era of 911's....and the rest you all know is history. In my heart, I felt that the 3.2 was the last 911 to display the classic appeal that could be traced back to 1963 and at the same time remain as one of the easiest 911's to own. I pictured and knew the exact car I wanted. A Carrera 3.2 (non-Euro car) with a 915 gearbox, original Fuch's wheels, original paint, clean interior, no-mods (I was so particular that I did not even want cars with an aftermarket CD player), H4 headlights, immaculate service history and an engine/gearbox in pristine, original condition without any rebuild history. Ed (Ivangene) saw one of my early posts here when I was in search for a 3.2 and was kind enough to let me ride his '86 coupe (even though it had been a good 20 yrs since I drove a manual gearbox car...not sure how many would have let me do that) and then he drove my PDK equipped car and was totally blown off and suggested that I should take the time to enjoy my 997.2 and not worry about another 911. Just not enough time left in a day, week or month to do justice to two Porsches was his argument.
The next few days I spent looking at 4-door sporty sedans (budget was 20K or less) and Mazda-3 hatch, GTI, even a very well cared for BMW E-39 was in the mix. Reason here was 997.2 is not a walmart, costco car, real attention grabber (and I did not want people to think that I am flaunting my wealth...which is really far from reality) and my/wife and I felt bad shoehorning the kids into the MINI's rear seat. But I just could not take the aura of the 3.2 away from my mind and spent several sleepless nights. My family could not bear the agony that I was going through. Then with the full support of my wife/kids I started my search for a 3.2 and the rest of my story is well known to you all.
THE EXECUTION: My 911 Carrera 3.2 took me exactly 23 days to find. Each and every member who responded to my earlier threads played a monumental role in my life. I owe my story to you all who have made such a difference to my life. My wife and kids have been so supportive and have put up with all my craziness and hours of research through RL and book/magazines and I am also teary eyed when I think of the sacrifices they have made for me during this time. the 997.2 (picture enclosed) may be (and is) my first love (I am thankful to it since that is the reason)....through which I discovered my real love (911 3.2).......as impractical, irrational and unnecessary as it maybe.
Goodnight.
HOW IT ALL STARTED: My passion for car started after I bought my wife a car of her dreams...the MINI convertible. Driving that car: it's raw handling, the bone jarring go-kart ride exposed me to a whole new experience. Since then I wanted to get into a real sports car. After going to medical school, residency, fellowship (from 1988 through 2003...yah all those years), I (and my wife and kids) felt that I deserved to get into what would make me truly happy. Hence although the M3 would have made the most sense (with two real backseats), it was a 997.2 that I eventually got into back in November '09. What really made it happen was the great deal (with 20% off MSRP and a 3.2% financing rate). I, all my life have helped others, been frugal when it comes to myself...no expensive hobbies, gambling, travel to exotic places. So it was a big deal to own a 100K car.
After I got my feet wet in 911 ownership I spent quite a bit of time learning about the history of 911's and logged onto the air-cooled section of 911's on RL. Somehow the mystique of air-cooled 911's started to seep into my central nervous system's grey matter. When I went to San Juan islands for the spring break with my family and friends, I saw this 964 in the parking lot. See picture enclosed. The car spoke to me in many ways. I tracked down the owner who happened to be a maintenance guy at the lodge we stayed in. He was a Porsche afficionado who took the time to show me around the car, it's engine bay and interior. The car's condition was a far cry from being pristine. However, the straight lines on the exterior and the knobby interior controls had my psyche all conjured up and the image of that car complemented all the mental activity that was going on up until that point. Right at that moment I decided to own an air-cooled 911.
GETTING DOWN TO BUSINESS: I equipped myself with about half a dozen buyer's guides, magazines, collector's guides that had excellent photographs along with detailed specs of year by year 911's since it's inception. The antiques (early 911's up to '73) have driving experience that is something from another age. They are great long term investments but there were doubt's in my mind regarding it's allround usability for daily driving. To raise one of them would also jeopardize my hopes of funding for my kids' college expenses and I was not up for it. The third group, the 964 (89 through 93) had so much of a modern feel to it with the ABS, power steering, coil spring suspension and AWD which was not what I was looking for. The fourth generation (993) was not even in consideration for several reasons: Out of my budget range, too modern of a car with the smoothened lines just too 997'ish.
The second generation 911's ( theSC's/Carrera 3.2) was by far the best option for me in the late classic era of 911's....and the rest you all know is history. In my heart, I felt that the 3.2 was the last 911 to display the classic appeal that could be traced back to 1963 and at the same time remain as one of the easiest 911's to own. I pictured and knew the exact car I wanted. A Carrera 3.2 (non-Euro car) with a 915 gearbox, original Fuch's wheels, original paint, clean interior, no-mods (I was so particular that I did not even want cars with an aftermarket CD player), H4 headlights, immaculate service history and an engine/gearbox in pristine, original condition without any rebuild history. Ed (Ivangene) saw one of my early posts here when I was in search for a 3.2 and was kind enough to let me ride his '86 coupe (even though it had been a good 20 yrs since I drove a manual gearbox car...not sure how many would have let me do that) and then he drove my PDK equipped car and was totally blown off and suggested that I should take the time to enjoy my 997.2 and not worry about another 911. Just not enough time left in a day, week or month to do justice to two Porsches was his argument.
The next few days I spent looking at 4-door sporty sedans (budget was 20K or less) and Mazda-3 hatch, GTI, even a very well cared for BMW E-39 was in the mix. Reason here was 997.2 is not a walmart, costco car, real attention grabber (and I did not want people to think that I am flaunting my wealth...which is really far from reality) and my/wife and I felt bad shoehorning the kids into the MINI's rear seat. But I just could not take the aura of the 3.2 away from my mind and spent several sleepless nights. My family could not bear the agony that I was going through. Then with the full support of my wife/kids I started my search for a 3.2 and the rest of my story is well known to you all.
THE EXECUTION: My 911 Carrera 3.2 took me exactly 23 days to find. Each and every member who responded to my earlier threads played a monumental role in my life. I owe my story to you all who have made such a difference to my life. My wife and kids have been so supportive and have put up with all my craziness and hours of research through RL and book/magazines and I am also teary eyed when I think of the sacrifices they have made for me during this time. the 997.2 (picture enclosed) may be (and is) my first love (I am thankful to it since that is the reason)....through which I discovered my real love (911 3.2).......as impractical, irrational and unnecessary as it maybe.
Goodnight.
05-25-2010, 11:25 AM
#4
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Great story. I also am looking for another 3.2. I had a 00 C4 cab for about 3 years, traded it for a 07 CLK 550 Merc. but I still have an itch for an aircooled. I'm now just trying to decide whether to get an 85-86 with 915 gearbox or the G50. I had an 87 3.2 cab that I miss very much. What are your take on driving the 915 Gearbox, heard different stories. Not trying to car-jack your thread, just trying to get your take on the gearbox.
05-25-2010, 11:46 AM
#5
That 997 is gorgeous! So it's a Carrera S with PDK?
Beautiful ride.
Beautiful ride.
05-25-2010, 01:02 PM
#6
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05-25-2010, 06:24 PM
#8
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Yes Helios, it is a '09 C4S with PDK with the sports chrono option. It's the number one must have option on a 997.2 with PDK. It adds a sports and (even more fun)sports plus button which remaps the engine to give such an aggressive response and let's you have that much more fun shifting gears in the manual over-ride mode. It holds lower gears as long as possible only changing up when the revs hit 7200 rpm. Gear shifts on the sport plus mode is like 0.2 seconds ..just ask Ed (Ivangene). It has to be experienced atleast once in one's lifetime. Just play with one and then you will know what I am talking about.
Whalebird, I totally echo your statement. I hope I did not alienate my 3.2 friends with this post. As you can see I live and breathe in the 911 section and every once in a while will take a peek at the 997 section to advice new members on how to preserve their car for a longtime. That is my real passion (and challenge)...to keeep things looking factory fresh...(or even better) for as long as possible.
BCR4d: I just love the old school feel of the cable operated clutch and the two-part/long throw gear notchy shifting of the 915 transmission. I have never driven a G-50. If you like a more "numb" clutch plate and a buttery smooth fast shifting gearbox then I don't think you will like the 915. As for me I have never driven a G-50 so I cannot tell you how it compares to it. My car met all the criteria I cared for and I loved the way the well-cared for 915 shifted...hence did not look any further. No regrets. What you do not want to drive is a car with a 915 gearbox that is not in good shape. It will certainly be painful to operate.
Whalebird, I totally echo your statement. I hope I did not alienate my 3.2 friends with this post. As you can see I live and breathe in the 911 section and every once in a while will take a peek at the 997 section to advice new members on how to preserve their car for a longtime. That is my real passion (and challenge)...to keeep things looking factory fresh...(or even better) for as long as possible.
BCR4d: I just love the old school feel of the cable operated clutch and the two-part/long throw gear notchy shifting of the 915 transmission. I have never driven a G-50. If you like a more "numb" clutch plate and a buttery smooth fast shifting gearbox then I don't think you will like the 915. As for me I have never driven a G-50 so I cannot tell you how it compares to it. My car met all the criteria I cared for and I loved the way the well-cared for 915 shifted...hence did not look any further. No regrets. What you do not want to drive is a car with a 915 gearbox that is not in good shape. It will certainly be painful to operate.
Last edited by w00tPORSCHE; 05-25-2010 at 06:33 PM. Reason: Add info.
05-25-2010, 07:32 PM
#10
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05-25-2010, 08:36 PM
#11
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Ahh, now I remember when the other Ed was meeting to do the drives trade. I never realized it was you, or if I did, my feeble mind purged. You do have a couple of bookends.
I'm still on the fence about joining you. A GT3 is calling out to me, but I don't want to spend the $120K and have to extend my waning work career. Now, I gotta decide if I want to even pop for $60K for a 996version. Having more than one P-car in the garage is a good thing. I had a spectacular 928 when I last had Ruby offline for several months, it made the time palatable. They also served different purposes, which in my mind may be why I'm hesitating on the GT3-the two cars would be "somewhat" similar. I should go for a nice Carrera or S, for weekend trips.
I'm still on the fence about joining you. A GT3 is calling out to me, but I don't want to spend the $120K and have to extend my waning work career. Now, I gotta decide if I want to even pop for $60K for a 996version. Having more than one P-car in the garage is a good thing. I had a spectacular 928 when I last had Ruby offline for several months, it made the time palatable. They also served different purposes, which in my mind may be why I'm hesitating on the GT3-the two cars would be "somewhat" similar. I should go for a nice Carrera or S, for weekend trips.
05-25-2010, 09:10 PM
#12
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05-25-2010, 09:13 PM
#13
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Ed, don't do it! I too heard the 997 siren's call and went out and blew 100k, thinking it would be nirvana and I wouldn't need my '86 911 anymore. Boy, was I in for a straightening out. Two years later, I just sold my 997 because it had completely lost its appeal. It's just not nearly as involving and rewarding a driving experience as the older Carrera. It looks nice, no doubt, and it'll drive circles around my 911, but that just didn't do it for me. After a few months you'll start thinking about what else you could have had for that same money, and wishing you hadn't done it. How about a GTS 5-speed for half the cost of a new 997? How about a '94 3.6 Turbo? How about a fully restored '69 911S? All of these can be had for FAR less than a new 997. In fact, you could have any 2 of those for the cost of a new GT3. Oh, and after 2 years of ownership I sold my $100k 997 S for $55,000. Think about what you could do to Ruby for that kind of dough.
Woot - you sound like you may be headed down the same road I went down. Welcome to air-cooled nirvana! The 997 is a great car but it has no passion, no heritage, no soul. At least mine didn't.
Woot - you sound like you may be headed down the same road I went down. Welcome to air-cooled nirvana! The 997 is a great car but it has no passion, no heritage, no soul. At least mine didn't.
05-25-2010, 09:42 PM
#14
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Dave- Ruby won't be going anywhere.....I'm just feeling the need for a bit more civilized car for road trips or such with my wife. Funny that I think a GT3 would be posh. I loved the 928 for the long hauls in comfort, but the first choice for a fun drive was the ol' girl.
10-30-2010, 02:52 PM
#15
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Whalebird, PDK is something that has to be experienced. How I wish I were closer to you. I would love to have you drive my 997.2 (denotes the second generation of the 997 from '09 onwards equipped with DFI engines and PDK equipped gearbox) and be witness to the lightning fast gearshifts.
http://www.porsche.com/microsite/tec...lectedVariant=
http://www.porsche.com/microsite/tec...lectedVariant=