Nicole

This is meant to offer some suggestions of what owners might want to purchase kind of like from a one-stop-shop...

- A (hopefully simple) kit to repair cracked hatch lock mechanism (the metal part attached to the hatch). I've been told by another 928 owner that the part from the factory is $370 - is that correct???
- A belly pan replacement that is easier to remove, and/or has an access door for oil changes
- Bracket to mount a (nice looking) halon fire extinguisher to the lower front of the passenger seat
- AC Compressor Clutch Bearings
- Relay Removal Tool
- Flux Capacitor
- Henweigh

Dave H.

what's a ...

okbarnett

whats a flux capacitor?

pewter82

...and why hasn't anyone made a knock off version of the rear splash shields for the 91 and later cars? These things are crazy expensive to the tune of $600 from Porsche.

Jason

91GT
82S

Shane

1. Dunno
2. Thought about making one myself, along with some quick release studs to pull the whole thing down as needed.
3. http://www.stableenergies.com/searchprods.asp
4. Talk to the Professor.
5. Hens don't like to be weighed.

Nicole

Very good one! I have no idea what it would take to reverse engineer those, but it should be doable for a fraction of the Porsche-cost - no?

The originals are made of a soft rubbery plastic, but one of mine is super thin around the wheel arch, and cracked in a few other places...

tuk_928

Good post Nicole....particularly the request for belly pans with an easy-access panel (aka the "deu ex machina" for the 928). Re: the fire extinguisher request...add to that a less expensive halon alternative. I hate that dry powder shiite...a real PITA to clean-up afterwards. Please define...henweigh

ColinB

Shame on you Nicole! Halon is 'persona non grata' (or whatever) nowadays. It's a chloroflouorocarbon. Go for the CO2.

Colin

Nicole

I wasn't aware of this - thanks for bringing it up! I'd go for everything that extinguishes flames well without the powder residue. The latter is - as we saw in Wichita - a royal PITA to clean up. Something I would not wish my worst enemy.

dr bob

The belly pan issue is covered by using Nutserts or Timesert threaded fittings instead of the tinnerman nuts that the factory seems to love. Use either a phillips pan head bolt or a socket-head capscrew with these fittings, and you can use the power screwdriver to speed the process along.

If you want to get real fancy, you could make new tabs for the front edge, and install some fancy Dzus-type fasteners for a quarter-turn-to-drop on each bolt.

But this oil change thing only happens a couple times a year, right? It will take years to recover the time spent re-engineering the bolts and screws.

SharkSkin

Hey Nicole, maybe I should have showed you my fire extinguisher setup yesterday.

I have a mounting bracket like you describe and a chromed Halotron extinguisher, both from Stable Energies. This stuff is the current EPA-accepted substitute for Halon, and has FAA & UL approval as well. Better yet, it's still being produced. The price is high, but ask anyone who's sprayed dry chem inside their car or under their hood. It's worth $100 to not have to clean that up.

Stable Energies seems to be out of the mounting bracket for power seats, but I'm sure if enough people pester them they will gladly make up a batch.

Here's how it looks... don't mind the leather.

Nicole

Thanks for showing this, Dave! I wasn't aware that this is available. I have to say, though that the fire extinguishers shown on this site are
a. butt ugly
b. have a design where you can get caught up easily with cuffed pants, or the straps of a purse while the extinguisher is mounted in front of the seat (yep, Porsche even improved the parking brake handle to avoid such issues)
c. will do a lot of damage if it ever comes lose, due to its sharp and hard edges

I don't quite understand - my fire extinguishers here at the house have a much more modern and functional handle. Why can't they do this for car extinguishers?

I guess the answer must be: Because they are still selling this outdated design well enough...

99% of the time you just look at your fire extinguisher. Only 1% you actually use it. Why not improve the look and keep the functionality?

Sorry for being so European...

Nicole

Have you done this? If so, can we see some pics? Or get a live demo next Saturday? I'll bring my stopwatch...

A couple of times per year? Well, only if you blatantly disregard the factory recommended change intervals and do it every 3k miles.

But that's not so much the point. There are people who don't do their oil changes at home and don't want to pay a shop $150 because of all the time involved in dealing with the belly pan. PLUS all the worries, if they might screw the thing up...

SharkSkin

It's utilitarian. It's built with ruggedness and ease of use in mind. I think it's beautiful. I'll think it's 1,000 times more beautiful if I ever need it. Maybe it's a "guy" fire extinguisher.

I could have paid much much more... double or triple... and had a machined super-duper unit having half the capacity, a fiddly operating mechanism and no gauge. At least, that pretty well sums up the alternatives I was able to find. However, I want this to be something that ANYBODY could understand and use if the need arises, though if the need arises it's a million to one I'll have the extinguisher in my hand before they have any idea that there is a need.

Personally, I have no cuffed pants except in mothballs, nor do I have a purse strap to worry about... besides, ladies would be well-advised to put their purse on the floor behind the seat so it doesn't fly around.

All kidding aside, all of the aesthetic & clothing issues you mentioned could be solved by laying a piece of carpet over the top of it. And, it's pretty unlikely that the unit would come loose except in an already horrific accident.

Ron_H

Lemme into this! I thought FM 200 was the best thing on the market, despite its $200 + price for a hand held unit. Is that the same as Halotron? (too lazy to do my own research)? If it isn't, check this out: http://www.sea-fire.com/

I want to devise a support bracket directly behind the handbrake. Guess I'd better hop to it. Mine currently just rolls around behind the seat.

Dave: what's wrong with your leather? It is softer than mine.