Francesco944

i love my car, but i wish it had some more horses. i will eventually get into an S2 or turbo when i can get the money, but for now would it even be worth it to do performance upgrades like straightpiping it,(cut cat out),with a resignator and exhaust,(can it be done @ different times??), and headers. or mabey a throttle body and cam, or msd ignition. i've heard so many things, and i need to hear from all you experts as well before i do something foolish. i hate wasting money if need not be wasted. thanks!! ciao.

Skip

Welcome to the Forum!

Luckily you dispelled with the S2/Turbo guys answer to HP in the beginning So, if you really want to make power on the 8v na engine, it's gonna cost... and cost... and cost.

• Straight Pipe - well, not literally, but a gutted-cat or test-pipe and a properly tuned/tuneable muffler (for needed backpressure) will yield a little... especially if the Cat is clogged to begin with.
• Header - heard real good things about the Stahl... MSDS gets okay reviews... Bursch is the most complained about, though the cheapest.
• Throttle - you can push more air thru with a ~5mm more open unit, but then you have to tune the rest of the air/fuel/exhaust to match.
• Not too many choices for 'reliable' cams that work stand-alone... most are designed to be part of an overall upgrade (head, intake, pistons, etc) Very expesive road here!
• MSD ignition - well, I'm about to take this plunge. I got warned against it due to the snake-oil claims they make for power. I'll find out, but my purpose is to gain a steady/strong spark and rev control. Most folks who do this use the MSD6AL (rev control)... though MSD and Crane have higher models available that do more. Profe$$ional engine management is a real good option... but for the money. (MoTeC, Electromotive, etc)

Your last comment about wasting money... well, unless you're looking to shave seconds, or in my case, tenths of seconds, off your lap times... there is no real magic and affordable way to produce 8v na motors that make real power. Better off starting somewhere in the S2/Turbo/968 line. IMHO, FWIW, YMMV,

Good Luck!

Skip@Tech-Session.com

[ 07-04-2001: Message edited by: Skip ]

Tabor

I wouldn't gut my cat. The OEM cat is $800.

Francesco944

yeah, i've known it all along. my car really runs great all things considering..., 212,000km, original paint, and not a major problem ever. the only thing that annoys me a little, (not the horsepower cause i raced an identical 944 and beat the youngster by over a car length with a buddy in mine, you just have to know what your car is capable of), is the roughish idle when coldstart. once the thermo guage gets to the first mark it idles smooth, then hotter and you start to notice slight diff. otherwise i think i have one of the best kept 84'944's out there and when i resell it to upgrade to the turbo or S2 it will have been a treat to have owned and i know it won't loose it's value anytime soon, especially afteer i get my rock chip touch up for free from a friend..., sweet!! i'm not braggin, just very pleased with a great 17yr old vehicle, can you think of any better value, it's a Porche for petes sake!!!

Skip

More than likely your aux air valve needs replacement to correct that low cold idle.

Good Luck!

SGOGT4

Skip can you provide any additional info on the aux air valve replacement and $$?

Thanks as always

Skip

Only early cars had that, yours has a constant-use Idle Stabilizer. It's located under the intake manifold - ~4" long, ~1.5" round, has one elec connection and two hoses - this unit has a air bleed valve inside that is used to control idle when the throttle is closed by bypassing metered air (post-AFM) to the intake. Typical symptom of failure is poor or varying idle. Though it can sometimes be fixed temporarily by cleaning the carbon buildup (it's an ozone thing), these units need to be replaced at ~60-75k mile intervals.

Good Luck!