Robby

I'm posting this for Ahmet- he's seriously considering selling his 1989 944 Turbo- it's black w/a burgundy interior... excellent condition- I was in Raleigh over Christmas & got to meet him & another fellow 951 owner... I've had a lot of negative things happen w/my Turbo S over the years & have posted a few things about these cars & their "overrated" handling- after having ridden w/Ahmet & Nick, I got to see first-hand, how well these cars really can handle. It's renewed my interest in my own car, thankfully... What was most impressive was that both cars were bone-stock, suspensionwise...

Ahmet's car has ~57k miles... The dash is the 2nd best I've seen in the 6yrs Ive been into these cars- 2nd only to his friend, Nick's, which is actually perfect... I think Ahmet's had two VERY SMALL cracks in it... Factory Turbo S stereo w/factory CD player, EQ, etc. It's a well-preserved Turbo S w/only mods being Vitesse chips & mild exhaust work- Ahmet says it will inch by M5's & I definately believe it, having driven several myself... I was most impressed by it's part-throttle response at lower rpms...

I have some pictures I can e-mail to anyone interested, but, have never been able to post pics here.... PM me if at all interested... I think he'll be asking somewhere in the $15k range... Probably starting at $15,900- I think it's more than worth it, considering what I've seen some of these cars going for... He's in Germany right now, but, can answer more technical questions in a few days, when he gets back...

josephsc

Whew! Robby, I saw the title and I thought you were selling your car. I think you're in it too deep to walk away at this point....

Robby

Yeah, you're right about that...! I've been seeing Ahmet around the list for the last 6yrs or so- was visiting relatives in Raleigh for Christmas, so decided to look him up- glad I did... That was the coolest part of the trip, meeting up w/him & Nick... I've been wanting to ride in one of these cars that was in really good condition for YEARS! Also helped that these guys were really good drivers too... Now I know I need to get some track time in to learn my car better... if nothing else though, it's definately restored my faith in these cars... that's always nice... helps to justify my large expenses here...

Ahmet

Yeap, I just advertised it at craigslist a few hours ago. Had 2 people e-mail me so far. I'm asking $15,9k obo. Here's a picture (the one same picture I show every one):



If you're seriously interested, please contact me directly.

Robbie, I e-mailed you back, and passed Nick's e-mail to you as well. You should come out with me to VIR this month, I think I can arrange a few laps for you to ride a long. I'm not sure what car I'll be taking there, but you'll get a kick out of it none the less.
Ahmet

Robby

Ahmet- sounds great.... Are you talking about February, or, more towards the end of January? Also, what all would it take to be able to run my own car for a few laps? Would I need a helmet, etc...? I just got the Borla XR1 I was talking about, welded into the diagonal section of my 3" SFR- it's definately quieter, but, I ALSO found a prob.... I've got a damn leak up under there somewhere in the exhaust manifold- need to get to my mechanic's now & see how bad it's going to be- it's letting in a LOT of noise... I'll e-mail you soon...

For anyone here who's interested... I DO have pics of Ahmet's car & would be glad to e-mail... I've already sent them out to one person... If anyone here is really good at posting pics here, let me know & I'll e-mail them to you & you can put them in this thread... I've never been able to post pics here for some reason...

Ahmet- you shouldn't have any trouble getting rid of that car for what you're asking... Hey, who's M3 is that in the pic above? Is that a lightweight??? E36???

TRWright

Is that a real LTW?

Ahmet

The m3 is my roommates, and no it's not a real ltw, but it does have some cool factory extras as ordered w/the car (2nd owner, very clean car). I may post another picture at some point.

Robby, the track event I speak of is in January. You could drive if you sign up, but I suggest you do a number of auto-xes first. Yes, you will need a helmet, and you need your car to pass tech inspection as well. E-mail me for more info!

If anybody's interested in the car, feel free to drop me a line @ ahmete@gmail.com.
Thanks
Ahmet

Ahmet

Here's the M3 next to my turbo S:


and here it is @rockingham:


I love how they look and most of the feel, but it just doesn't have enough power getting out of a 944 turbo...
Ahmet

Robby

Cool... yeah, I love the suspension feel on those cars w/stiffer shocks/springs.. mutli-link is a great thing... I do not like the short-*** gearing &/or the interior very much- orange illumination & tilt-towards-driver console... Always wanted E36 4-dr w/Audi interior (earlier TT OR V6TT S4) w/modded Supra TT engine... Would settle for Infinity is300 w/Supra TT engine...? Oh well... After seeing what a stock 951S will do, I think I'll stay w/mine awhile longer...

Ahmet

I really like e36 M3s overall, but after driving my turbo S for a while two things really bother me about the e36, number 1 is lack of torque, and 2 is the steering wheel position, I just couldn't warm up to it, feels like driving a bus. This is odd because when I took a break from 951s a few months ago and lived w/the e36, it was fine but driving it back to back really brings out the flaws...

About staying w/your 951S, they're great cars and I don't think it's a mistake per say to stick with yours but let me point out two things, first off my car's probably not like most if any you're likely to come across, I haven't seen one that drives that well before. Also remember that cars always seem better and faster from the passanger seat!
Ahmet

2zeroes

Ahmet said:

"the steering wheel position, I just couldn't warm up to it, feels like driving a bus."


I hear ya. I was all set to order an 06 with Competition Package, until I test drove one. I couldn't get use to the feel of it. Felt real awkward, like you are driving a bus.

DDP

I can also say this car is worth every penny. The body looks great. Cleanest 951 I have ever seen. The color combo is the best.

Robby

Ahmet- steering wheel position...? Can you elaborate a tiny bit? Don't they have adj steering columns, or, does this have nothing to do w/it...? I've always wished I could lower the 951 wheel a tiny bit... As for lack of TQ, I assume you mean by comparison to a chipped 951 & not stock vs stock??? And yes, you're 100% right- it DOES feel faster from the passenger seat- ESPECIALLY on roads you've never been on before... But, it's not like I haven't done my share of ***-hauling either... more-so in FWD cars, but still... I've slid around a lot of corners & thrown a few cars somewhat sideways... What really impressed me about your car was not just the handling, but the fact you were so reserved about how much further you COULD have pushed it... as if you were just running at a relaxed clip... THEN, the couple of times when you were cornering & braking at same time w/out breaking loose... Not to mention, hanging the back end out in short powerslides w/that much TQ underneath us when MY car would have reacted differently... Which brings us back to the specific car.. Would like to have you drive mine for comparison... Still, I would think that by going through my car well enough, I SHOULD be able to get my car to handle as well, or better...? I'm planning on shocks, springs, new t-bars, A-arms, tie rods, & all bushings I can get to... Do you think your car would honestly feel better during handling than any other 951 w/all of the above done correctly, assuming spring/shock rates were matched correctly, etc...???


2zeros- '06 w/competition package? What is the competition package? Also, Ahmet was referring to the E36 M3's w/the steering feel thing... do you think the newer M3's have this same feel? I KNOW they have adj steering colums b/c I've driven one of them recently... So if that has nothing to do w/it, then, please let me know... I'm just curious here... I DO notice that BOTH style M3's are more of an upright seating position... I kind of like that a little... I actually made pedal spacers for my 951 w/Momo steering wheel spacer, to get further back in car AND sit slightly more upright... still haven't worked it out perfectly, but am getting closer to how I want it... I have the steering wheel @ 20mm & pedals are 2" & 2.25" but need to back off a hair on the pedals... Would rather space the wheel a touch more, but, the turn signal would be too far away... Not sure what to do here...

2zeroes

Robby:

The Competition Package consists of:

Large compound brakes with cross-drilled rotors (13.6" front)

More direct steering ratio (14.5:1)

Forged lightweight alloy wheels, 19 x 8.0 front, 19 x 9.5 rear; 225/40R-19 front and 255/35R-19 rear performance tires

Competition Package Aluminum interior trim

Alcantara-covered steering wheel with M Track Mode (for DSC) button

Alcantara-covered handbrake grip

Dynamic Stability Control (DSC), including All Season Traction M Track Mode

Large cross-drilled compound brakes with (13.6" front rotors, up from 12.8")

*taken from the BMW USA website.

The E46 M3 has the same feel, in my opinion. The steering wheel has a tilt/telescopic adjustment but you can't adjust the rake. I like the steering wheel to be closer to a 80-85 degree angle, whereas the M3 seems to be in a 70-75 degree angle.

I really like the seating position in my 944turbo. Everything from the rake of the steering wheel and the windshield, the sport seats, position of pedals, the dash and center console. It definitely feels a lot more modern than any 911 up to 1998. The only thing that would make it better is a short throw manual transmission.

My lease is almost up on my A4 and I was going to replace it with an M3, but now I'm looking at an RS4, depending on the final price of the base model.

Robby

Thanks for the info... I never noticed that about the rake of the wheel, etc, but I'll definately check it out the next time I'm in one- shouldn't be too terribly long... I just don't have that much seat time in any of the M3's actually... I have driven a couple of M5's several times, but they are really completely different... I like them, but they really feel much larger & the car's so different that I've never really thought of how the seating compared to the 951- the interior's too busy, the car feels bigger than it is, it carries more than 2 tons of weight (although it's masked fairly well by it's suspension & engine)- it almost feels like I'm trying to drive a space shuttle or a high-powered cruise boat or something... The M3's have always felt much more nimble... Either way, there's a lot to be said for out cars... Just wish they had a nice multi-link like the M3's....