Jtans

Here are my options

944 - 1992 944 S2 (which I am being pressured to get, but dont really have a passion for), Insurance costs will be lower.

968 - Any variant, apparently my car-dealer freind says 968's are hard to find in 6 speed. Looking at just a 968 coupe, 6 speed.

951 - Looking at an early, non S, as the S's are over a power restriction imposed on probationary liscence holders, such as myself) here in Melbourne.
(All Australian drivers are on probationary liscence until they are over the age of 21)

I intend to hit the circuit alot, no matter which car I get. The 951 and 968 can be raced competivley in a number of classes here. A 2.5 litre sohc 944 could be used for our Porsche 944 Challenge, which is something I would really like to do as they hold race meetings very often and also many practice days, etc.. and the racing is also very good, close, clean and competitive and the drivers have a good attitude.... However this car also has to serve as a daily driver, so a 944 Challenge car wont be the best in that respect. (minimum weight is 1100kg with fuel and driver (2425lbs for you odd folk) for 944 Cup.

Cost is not one of the major issues between the cars, however my budget will be stretched to get anything more expensive than a 968.

Comments, suggestions and feedback?

Thanks

NeedPorscheSpeed

Welcome to the list. I hope soon that you will be posting pictures of your new Porsche!

Because I own all three of the models you are considering, I feel well-qualified to chime in. I love all three of these models, and they each possess unique personalities, with the 968 and S2 being the most similar, of course.

Although I could post several pages worth extolling the various virtues of each car, I will get to the business of giving you my recommendation. If you were going to be racing strictly, I would recommend the 951. There are so many nicely priced modifications out there for the 951, and it makes a great racer! If you strictly wanted a daily driver, I would recommend the 968. It is beautiful, nice and refined, and it makes for a very nice daily driver. I hear it is great on the track, too, but parts are more expensive and harder to find relative to the S2. However, since you are going to be racing your car often (good for you!) AND use it as a daily driver, I recommend the S2. This way, you can use the money that you save vs. buying the 968 and put it towards maintenance (increased by racing), and you will have a nice torquey engine for around town driving. I think it is a very happy medium! Good luck!

sweanders

On the track all three cars will do just as good, the 951 will take slightly but not much more driver skill to compensate for the lag that the other two cars don't have due to being naturally aspirated.

If you won't be racing against anyone but yourself I'd say get the S2 since it is cheaper to run and give just as much fun as the other two. Prepare to spend money not only on maintenance but also proper track tires and suspension.

Also, I don't know about the AU 968 market but here in Europe manual 968 far outnumber the tiptronics.

adrian_jaye

in order

968 cab
944 turbo cab
944 cab
951

tifosiman

I say go for the 968. It's the latest version that you can afford, plus it is very refined and the last of the 924/944 non-turbo series. The 968 will be rewarding to drive, and have the power readily available at low-rpms. Plus, you will be less likely to get caught up in the desire to spend crazy money upgrading, like you would with the turbo.

sweanders

Cabs will never do as well on a track since they are not as rigid as the coupe - there is a reason why Porsche didn't offer the M030 on the convertibles.

Jay Gratton

If you want to go fast for a low price the 951 is the way to go. I would say for $15K you could have a very fast track car! Best wishes and welcome to Rennlist - Jay Gratton

Fishey

Not really.

http://bonedaddy.net/Fishey/Carscan.jpg

The cabriolet has many advantage over the coupe in proformance the most obvious is it pulls higher G's on the skidpad, Faster slalom speed and stops in shorter distances (most likely due to its lower center of gravity)

tifosiman

Please do not call me a "****" again for disagreeing with you Fishey, but............

I must respectfully disagree. That link you posted has no definitive proof that the cab pulls higher G's or stops faster. I would like to see some data.

86-51

Where do they allow any Cab on track without a roll cage?

sweanders

I am not convinced, how many G's a car can pull on a skidpad doesn't say much about real world performance - it is only something that is often used in US magazines.. Never seen in a European specifications list.

If skidpads would say something important about a cars performance a corvette would outhandle most Porsches.

joseph mitro

hmm.....interesting concept. did he have a rollbar for protection?

ian

What is the weight difference between the cab and coupe?

But regardless of that I'd have to say that if you are racing stay away from the Cabs. If starting with the cab was the way to go to get those faster laptimes you would see a lot more 944 Cabs in the PCA club racing arena, but you do not. Maybe the club rules don't allow it, or maybe its just a bad idea.

Fishey

Well.. fine if you dont belive me here you go...

http://bonedaddy.net/Fishey/Pic1.jpg

Fishey

The diffrence is around 123lbs (I just read it out of an artical when looking for more datasheets from cab vs coupe)