SkipSauls

I got my 928 back just in time for some cruising on the 4th with new suspension bit and tires from the awesome folks at 928 Specialists. The ride is great, the handling is improved, and the car looks even better. If there is a downside, it's only that the front is easier to scrape, so I have to be a bit more careful. I may see about raising the front just a bit, but I've been driving the lowered Boxster for a while now and don't mind using extra care.

The suspension bits include the Koni/Eibach coilovers, the front drop-links (still waiting for the rears), and the polyurethane front sway-bar bushings. For the tires I went with the Kumho Ecsta 712s, using 225/45-17 on the front and 255/40-17 on the rear. Installation, including balancing, alignment, camber, etc. was done by a local race shop.

After putting some miles on the tires to break them in and making sure the air pressure was good, I took it on some twisty roads, off-ramps, etc. There is much less body roll and bounce, and while it still feels "big", it has great form. It also pitches less during acceleration and hard-braking. Very nice.

For comparison with the previous setup and the other Porsches, I take a particular off-ramp at speeds of 60 MPH or higher. With the stock suspension and tires from the Boxster (205/50-17 and 255-40-17 Michelin Pilot SSX), the 928 could take it at 60 MPH, but the front end felt "light" and the car rolled quite a bit. I'm used to light front-ends with the other cars, but it's an odd sensation in a car with so much up front.

I took the ramp at closer to 80 MPH with the new setup, and while the tires began to protest a bit, the car behaved beautifully. I suspect that the only way to do much better would be to use competition tires. The Boxster has an H&R coilover kit and Kumho Ecsta V700s on it, which are competition tires, and can match that speed. The 993 currently has Michelin Pilot Sports and isn't nearly as confidence-inspiring, despite the AWD and fat tires. It's getting a track suspension and the Kumho V700s soon, so I'll have to retest it. All three cars have been or will be on the track, and I'll be comparing lap times, feel, etc. in a future write-up.

Here's a few pictures of the boys together today:



As someone on the Boxster Board said, it's amazing how well the 928 has aged. For a 14 year old car and a 25 year old design, it looks more like a contemporary of the Boxster than the 993 does.

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Donald

Skip-
Could be because the li'l native americans and their mom have been away too long for a summer holiday, but... what do I have to do to do what you do?
Just a passing jealous moment, NICE stable!
Donald

WallyP

Skip,

A suggestion:

Buy a tire wear gauge (a simple, inexpensive cylindrical device) and use it often. If you measure more tire wear on the inside edges than on the outside edges, then the front end was not properly settled before alighnment.

Cap'n Earl has developed a laser-based alignment system that is very precise. He says that three or four miles of driving is NOT enough to settle the front end after it has been lifted - that he can measure toe changes after up to fifty miles of driving!

John Krawczyk

Skip

You are a lucky man!

SkipSauls

Wally,

Thanks for the tip. I'll check the wear and get it aligned again if it looks like it's a problem.

I'm taking the car to Second Creek Raceway (Denver area) today to try things out. I don't expect to push it quite as hard as I would if it had track tires, but I'll see what it can do.

John & Donald,

Thanks for the compliments. The cars have been great fun, and I try to use them all regularly on the street and track. While fixing up the 928 wasn't cheap, it's been worth it as it is a blast to drive. Today will be it's first track day, and I'm looking forward to it.

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Nicole

Hi Skip:

Did you know that Porsche recently issued a warning for Boxster owners, not to throw glowing cigarette butts out of the side windows - there have been five reported incidents of engine fires, after butts found their way into the intake and ignited the air filter...

Hope you can enjoy your cars without lighting up!

Flint

Hey Nicole, my town must be run by boxter owners then, as we have a specific law against throwing lit cigarettes out car windows.

Though as much as someone may hate my comparison between boxters and 928's, I was behind one tonight and thought that, in the dark, the two cars look eerily alike in terms of silhouette and lights. I mean, they both look kind of like Darth Vader's tie fighter from behind.


C'm on, don't it?

SkipSauls

Nicole,

I don't smoke, and I don't let anyone smoke in my cars, so I'm not overly worried. I have heard of at least one incident where a cigarette butt thrown from another car made its way into a Boxster's air intake, although that sounds a bit like an urban legend being born.

In this area of Colorado people are fairly conscious of an even bigger danger from throwing cigarette butts out of windows, which are forest fires. The only people who do such things are forest service employees and firefighters. (Okay, I know that's a low-blow, but given the two idiots who started some of the worst of these fires, it's hard not to be a bit cynical.)

Flint,

I agree with you on the silhouettes, and I believe that the 989/996 owe a lot more to the 928 in terms of styling than many people think. The rear of the 996, especially when a spoiler is present, is very similar to the 928.

Mike Schmidt

[quote]Originally posted by WallyP:
<strong>Cap'n Earl has developed a laser-based alignment system that is very precise.</strong><hr></blockquote>

Did he ever do a writeup on his alignment setup?

Hoyo

Lucky for me that I only smoke cigars and drive a 928......