Plus Sized - Rolling with the Phatness
 

For years I was looking for a specific 911 but either I could not find what I was looking for, or I was always too late to the party, or it was out of my price range. Upon my search, I came across some really nice 964s from members here and on Pelican and it got me thinking. I then started researching naturally aspirated coupe widebody 964s but as I quickly discovered, they were all C4s here in the US and I preferred a RWD. After laying off the search for a while, I came across this listing on Pelican, talked to the current owner, tracked down the prior owner and called him, did some research on the car, set up a PPI, and made a deal to purchase the car... all in 4 days. While it is not exactly what I was looking for and perhaps a little impulsive on my part, I am really happy with my choice and more importantly... I'll be driving a 964 instead of letting more years go by wishing I were.

Here is some history about the car...

It started life as a Wimbledon Green Targa in VA and sometime between 1996 and 2000, the owner who had too much money had it converted to a Roadster and spent the dough doing it. OEM front Turbo fenders of course and instead of butt welding rear flares, the entire rear skin was removed from door jamb to door jamb and a Turbo one was welded in its place, and new Glacier White paint job throughout. The car spent several years in NC before being sold to a guy named Alexander Hatzopoulos who listed it on eBay and this is where it gets interesting. The eBay listing represented the car as a true America Roadster and a gentleman named Tom bought it as such in February 2001 and paid good money for it. The car was then shipped from GA to OH and Tom quickly realized that it was not a true Roadster and tracked down Alex, build a case against him, turned the file over to the FBI, and watched the scammer go to jail. While this was unfortunate for Tom financially, it had no bearing on the quality of the vehicle and he kept it for the next 11.5 years, maintaining it, upgrading it, and most importantly, enjoying driving it. Then, Tom sold the 964 in May 2012 to the current owner, Michael who lives in SC and owns a high end detailing business, so he of course couldn't help himself when he received the 964 and he detailed the car on a weekly basis. Michael put a whopping 483 miles on it during his ownership, as it mainly sat in his air conditioned and heated garage so he decided to put it up for sale after realizing it was foolish to keep it sitting like a trophy.

After seeing the listing and talking to Michael, I tracked Tom down, found his number, and called him out of the blue. Tom turned out to be a great guy, we talked for a long time about some information I had found, and he added a lot to the history I wrote above after doing his own research and getting help from his local Porsche dealership. He also gave me the name of his mechanic (Denny @ Layland Motors in Canton, OH) who serviced the car for 11.5 years and encouraged me to call him if I needed more information. Tom wanted to buy the car back, but he was not in a financial position to do so at this time and he asked me to let him know if I ever wanted to part with it in the future. It also turns out that his wife is from MN and I told him to let me know next time he is in the area. I did some research here on RL and noticed that one of the shops folks recommended in the Charleston, SC area was Rennsport. I called Stan and Brad @ Rennsport and asked them to do a PPI and to be my eyes since I had not seen the car in person, and following their report, I decided to go through with the purchase.

Michael has been great to deal with through the process and the 964 was obviously cared for and it appears to be in great condition. However, I think it may need a little de-blinging and I'll be able to tell a little more when it shows up. The transport company just picked it up this morning, so the wait begins.

I feel like a fish out of water and I will be tapping the knowledge of this board, but I also hope to learn and to someday contribute.

EDIT: Uploading a picture for posterity and the rest can be viewed by clicking on my sig.

Wow, that's quite a story. Congratulations on the purchase, I think it looks great from the pictures.

You're going to love summer driving with the top down!

Enjoy the ride! Beautiful car

Congrats on the purchase. It looks to be a stunning example, and hopefully your getting to exercise the top these next couple months. Enjoy :thumbsup:

Congratulations! Looks like a great car. Love the story. You definitely did your homework. What are your plans for the car? Keeping it as is or any mods?

Crazy story but a great car! How do you feel about the shiny wheels?

Welcome to the forum.

Thanks all for the comments.

As far as mods, the car already has a B&M short shift kit, some kind of chip but not sure which, B&B headers, B&B exhaust, H&R springs (I think) and Bilstein shocks, and a few other interior/exterior enhancements. First mod will be to find an OEM airbox to replace the CAI currently in place, never been a big fan of those. I will do some research for future mods, although right now I am tempted by the Cult-Werk splitters and RS style air ducts some folks have recently mentioned on this board.

Yes, the wheels are really shiny and apparently the biggest pain in the butt to keep that way. I'm not too crazy about the bling factor and I may put them up for sale depending on how it looks in person. However, I am not sure what I would go with as a replacement at this time and I'll most likely start a thread on that. I have always been partial to Fuchs and I'd love a set of Zuffenhaus ones in RSR finish, something along those lines https://rennlist.com/forums/10224987-post286.html but other ideas may come up.

Lovely car - and a hell of a story! Drive and enjoy her in good health. The Fuchs would look fabulous, IMO.

You can get a new air filter box w/filter from Porsche for about $230 plus shipping from your favorite Porsche parts supplier. Get a new gasket for the AFM while you're at it. Ordered mine from Gaudin Porsche in Las Vegas about a month ago. It had to be sourced from Germany and took it about 3 weeks to get here, but well worth it to clean up the engine bay.

Great story on car... Where in MN are you located?

Thanks. I'm in the Minneapolis western suburbs, Orono

Nice. I'm from the Excelsior area, heading back there this weekend to see the folks. Maybe I'll see your car out for a drive around the lake. Enjoy!

Sweet, the weather is gorgeous right now. It left SC this morning and unless the transporter drives straight to my house, I don't think you'll see me tooling around the lake with the 964 this weekend.

I hate the wait...

I waited almost a month for mine... Brutal. Just got it last Sunday.

Beautiful 964 LPMM! The lines look really good on it as white is a very telling color when it comes to straight panels!

Enjoy it!

I think I miss my ex sometimes, but I know I miss my 964..Never had a car that at the two year mark I got a kick driving it. Made excuses to still take it places. Every day I felt lucky to drive it. My 500 Benz wagon has more punch, still I crave my black Peggy..

Beautiful car and I think the wheels look great... maybe take out those rear winglets though..

It finally showed up earlier this afternoon... It was in good company with a Saleen S7 being delivered a few miles away and a 1 of 1 'Cuda Convertible on its way to Utah. Passport Transport was outstanding, very professional throughout. I'm so excited, let the fun begin!

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(edited by John D. to insert working links ;) )

Congrats! I know that feeling! :cheers:

You are really going to enjoy this one !!

Great pic! Love delivery pictures!

It’s been about a year and a half since I bought my fat bottomed 964 and I figured it was time to consolidate everything into one thread, so that I can remember what has been done and plan for future mods.

Cliff Notes:

At the time of purchase, the prior owner warned me that it had a loud exhaust and that it sometimes had hot start issues and you could easily stall it. On the exhaust side, the car has B&B headers and a 2in-2out muffler and while the noise level is much higher than stock, the main issue was the drone. At ~2,500 rpms, the drone was insane and making for a pretty miserable driving experience. I called B&B to see if anything could be done and all they tried to do was to sell me some more stuff, thanks but no thanks. :rolleyes: Anyway, I noticed that the PO had put a K&N style filter and I’ve never been a fanboy, so I sourced a nearly new OEM box and filter from Rothsport. On the intermittent hot start issue, it was also running pretty rich and upon doing some reading, I attributed this to the FPR going bad.

So shortly after receiving the 964, I dropped it off at a local air cooled specialist and asked them to do a once over to figure out anything that may need attention/replacing, to listen for a ticking noise I could sometimes hear (more on this later), to do a valve adjustment and to replace the FPR, and to install the OEM airbox when done instead of putting the K&N back on.

The shop had poured the oil too fast and it spilled everywhere so the ride home was entertaining with everyone staring and pointing to the smoke, and I then spent a few hours cleaning up the mess once home. On the plus side, I noticed that the drone was still present but much more subdued with the OEM airbox in place. However, the shop completely missed a couple of items that were obvious had they actually spent the time to look around like I asked them to do (they had the car for 3 days).

After some more reading, I noticed that a common item to check were the engine mounts and sure enough mine were shot. So much for the shop catching this.

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I ordered a pair of Wevo Blacks and RLer HalV came over so we could meet and to offer moral support while I was turning a few wrenches.
Not much to add to this mod, fairly straightforward process as long as you properly support the engine before removing anything. :D End result.

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Then, I removed the carpet from the frunk and took the 964 to an audio guy to rework the stereo by removing the CD changer, removing an redundant amp, relocating the crossovers, and cleaning up everything. Shiny!

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Next will be to remove the Alpine alarm and spaghetti wiring seen to the right of the tank, to get new hood struts to get rid of my ghetto hood prop, and to do a RS style carpet to dress up the frunk area.

I then made a few purchases such as a mint set of tail lights and center reflector, a set of Cup 1s just because they were local and a screaming deal, Cult-Werk splitter and air ducts, Rennline carrier reinforcement, and OEM 997 GT2 carbon buckets.

I did not do much over last winter while the car was in storage mode except for replacing the missing door safety clips and taking the pedal cluster out so that a friend could compare with his. The bonus is that I did not have to do anything and Jon checked all the plastic bushings, lubricated as necessary, and reinstalled the cluster. As Spring approached, I decided to give the car a good once over to make sure it was ready to go. This is when I found the cause of the ticking noise I told the shop about and who said they could not hear/find anything. It turned out that my engine fan was delaminating, got off balance, and was hitting the shroud.

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A call to Sunset and EBS Racing to order some parts, lots of reading on RL on how to do it, and then I took the plunge (full thread here). Pic before starting the work.

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I figured I'd also replace the voltage regulator and alternator/fan belts for good measure. The Bosch version was not available, so a Hella voltage regulator went in.

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A few hours later the job was complete. New fan, bearing, belts, and voltage regulator.

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With the new fan in, I was able to get the car out of winter storage and take it to my friend Don who owns a PDR shop. I had a couple of dents with one being right under the passenger headlight, and since Don has a lift, it was a good excuse to remove the front bumper, to clean the gunk off the oil cooler, and to install the Cult-Werk air ducts while Don was working on the dents. We also noticed that the brake lights were no longer working, so I ordered a new pedal switch from Sunset.

Fog light on the left, air duct on the right.

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All done

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Due to unrelated reasons I was not able to drive the 964 as often as I had hoped and before I knew it, winter was right around the corner once again. I took it back to the local shop for an oil change before putting the car away in hopes that it would be done right this time, but they unfortunately spilled oil all over again. :banghead: Another smoky ride home and more cleaning before I put it away and with no activity over the winter, here we are today.

The first order is to get new tires since the current ones are way too old. For reference, the car currently sits on Bridgestone SO2s 225/40 and 285/30 on 18x8 and 18x10. I don’t mind keeping the same tire dimensions but I am also exploring different sizing, especially up front where a slightly narrower tire may help since I rub the fender liner when turning (rubbed all the way through). Here are my options based on diameter closest to OEM and current availability.

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I know the PS2s are a great tire but I don’t want to blow my budget on them and the Sumis are out just because I don’t feel like taking a gamble on quality, although several 993 folks seem to be happy with them. With the outliers out, I am leaning toward the Conti DWs in 215/40 & 285/30 sizing but I wanted to run it past the tire gurus to see if there was a compelling reason to go with different sizing and/or brand that I have not considered. Thoughts?

FWIW, I have sold and driven on any of these tires for a couple years and can speak on a couple of them. All of them perform good and I don't think you'd be unhappy with any, although I do have preferences. The Michelin's are by-far the best of the bunch, and the technology that goes into them is reflected in the price. Much like you, I rather not blow my budget on tires that expensive. I have never been crazy about ANY bridgestone tire I have every driven on, including the SO4. I loved my Dunlop Star-Specs, but I found them to be extremely loud. The HTRZ Sumi's would probably be my pick of the bunch, despite being the cheapest.

Thanks for the feedback Andrew and interesting that you would lean toward the Sumis. Might have to do some more reading but I like their price for sure.

Great looking car. Seriously though, two overfills? Time to find a new shop

totally agree!

I would consider the Sumitomo HTR Z III in the same 225/285 sizing. They run just a bit skinny, so it may be what you need in order to keep the fronts from rubbing. You may consider throwing a 7mm spacer on the front wheels if you think you have the extra room on the outboard side. Call me if I can help.:burnout:

+2 :D. I went there because they are considered to be air cooled specialists and they maintain a lot of the local PCA members track cars. The owner himself is a big 964 fan and successfully raced one for years. I am sure they know what they are doing, however I have not been impressed with the quality of their work due to them rushing through and/or their lack of attention to details. I have a couple other possibilities lined up the next time I need something.

Thanks Damon. I exchanged a few PMs with Andrew and I'll most likely give the Sumi's a try, I am not taking a huge risk given the price and I also read some more favorable reviews from the 993 guys. My setup is not typical, it is a WB with NB suspension and the current wheels dimensions are:

18x8, ET 38, 6.5" barrel, 1.5" lip + 21mm spacer.
18x10, ET 24, 6.5" barrel, 3.5" lip + 28mm spacer.

The 225 SO2s rubbed all the way through the front part of the fender liner, so a skinnier tire would definitely help but I don't know if the 225 Sumi's would be skinny enough to eliminate rubbing. Andrew mentioned that a proper alignment/setup (which I desperately need) would also help resolve the issue but I am thinking of going with 215s instead so not to take any chances. I'll take some pics as soon as I can, perhaps it may help with the decision.

nice progress Laurent .. nice clean workshop too and car looks to appreciate the attention.
Paint looks great too.

And 944 posts ... are you hinting at your next project ;)


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Hi Laurent,

Your car looks absolutely fab.

Sorry to hear about the oil spill, yet again. I wonder if they spill much beer :confused: Probably not, maybe they'd take much better car of that :cheers:

Never mind, you'll have all summer to burn it off :burnout:

Cheers,
Paul

Laurent,

The oil thing is unacceptable. Better to be your own expert because you'll do a better job than they did the first time you try. And you'll be even better the second. This is not rocket science but this story is told over and over and over again.

Looking forward to the Cup I's on this car! Seriously. Going to be great with the ducts and what not.

Also, good choice on the mounts. So many people go through gyrations on choosing motor mounts. I have the Wevos and love them, their simplicity and their durability. Really tightens the feel. Done and done.

Thanks Matt. The paint is not perfect but very decent for its age, it was repainted at the time of the conversion, sometime in the mid to late '90s. LOL @ the post count but not hinting at a 944, going for 20 more to hopefully get into another 964 project. :D I've been looking high and low for a Targa Tip for my wife, however no luck thus far. I know it is a tough find but I came across a couple, one I was too late for and had just sold, the other is ridiculously priced for the condition. I would prefer a Targa to leave the door open to eventually find a Coupe for me and have all 3 body styles but if I strike out, I may consider an interesting color 964 Cab Tip or even... wait for it... a '95 993 Cab Tip. :icon501: A totally insane idea would be to get a Cab for my wife and then turn mine back into a Targa. I can dream, can't I? But a WB Targa would be cool. :corn:

Thanks Paul, much appreciated. If my car turns out 1/10th as nice as yours, I'll be a happy camper. So true about not spilling beer.

Thanks and totally agree on the oil thing. First time was due to the car being new to me and needing a valve adjustment, second time was that I was pressed for time before putting it away for winter and I never dreamt they would do it again after I warned them! :rolleyes: Lesson learned.

I'm not going to put the Cup1s on this car or else I'd have to change the trailing arms or run ridiculous spacers (NB suspension on WB). I simply bought them because the deal was too good to pass up and you can never have too many wheels. :D

Agreed on the mounts, I was leaning toward the 993 ones but fellow RLer HalV convinced me to go with the Wevo instead and I am glad I did. Awesome engine mounts.

I have Sumi's on my '02 WRX and have been very happy with them. They don't have the stick of some of the ones on your list but are quiet and ride very nicely.

This would make for a better project, this time in a Coupe or Targa flavor. :cool:

Love this pic!!

Serious Pipes & Great rear:bowdown:

Thanks man, it is loud and wide. :D

Last weekend, I spoke with Damon @ Tire Rack and I ordered a set of Sumitomo HTRZIII. I figured that I was not risking much in trying them out given the wallet friendly pricing, and Damon's customer service was outstanding. Since he mentioned that the Sumi's run a little on the narrow side, I decided to stick with the 225/40 up front in hopes that my rubbing issues will be diminished or eliminated, and I moved to 295/30 in the rear. The tires shipped on Monday and by Wednesday, they were at my doorstep ready to replace the 10 year old Bridgestone's. :eek:

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So this morning, I took the 964 out for the first time since I put it away for winter and I drove to Porsche Minneapolis to have the new tires mounted and balanced. It turns out they service quite a few air-cooled, they have 2 mechanics dedicated to them, and they did a fantastic job taking care of everything. Upon talking to them, the really nice thing is that they will service your car while allowing you to bring your own parts if you find them cheaper somewhere else. Definitely an outstanding dealer and my new place of choice for service going forward --> no more oil spills! :banghead:. It is hard to see in these pics, but in person you could really tell that the Sumi's are narrower than the SO2's they replaced and that the 295 Sumi's are just about the same size as the 285 SO2's.

Fronts

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Rears

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All done

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Next is for me to fiddle a little with the ride height and then to bring it back to Porsche Minneapolis for an alignment.

A little over a year ago, I purchased a set of 997 GT2 carbon buckets. These are incredibly good looking, insanely comfortable, but crazy expensive. They were sitting in my house while I was pondering what to do with them but with their value going up, I started feeling guilty about having such expensive seats so I sold them to a local RLer earlier this year. While my bank account got a little fatter, I instantly knew I had made a mistake so I told Gregg to drop me a note if he ever considered selling the seats. Two months later, Gregg emailed me that he wanted to free some cash for a Cup car he had his eye on, and just like that I had my seats back. Obligatory pictures.

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The seats are Perlon and the material has a great feel, however black does not really match my interior and since the cobalt interior has multiple shades of blue, I figured I'll have to get a little creative with the inserts.

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After much thinking I decided on two options, one was to do RS style inserts and the other was to go retro style. Having a cab and not really wanting leather on the seating surfaces, I decided to go with the latter. I’ve always been a fan of tartan (wore my share as a youth) and I was really excited about doing something different but then, with so many great choices it started to get downright confusing. I finally settled on 3 shades and the great folks at Lochcarron of Scotland sent me the samples below.

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My wife voted for the more subdued Patriot Modern, but my daughter and I preferred to go all out and selected the Help for Heroes. Life got in the way, a year passed and when I finally emailed Neil from Lochcarron, he informed me that they had to remove the Help for Heroes fabric by the meter as technically this tartan is only available in official finished products. Huge disappointment but this is where their customer service really shines. Neil checked with his manager and they agreed to sell me the fabric since it was available at the time I originally enquired about it. I promptly placed my order and 10 days later, I received the fabric which is absolutely stunning and I really like the fact that a donation went straight to a great charity.

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I have no affiliations with them but given my experience, if anyone is looking for some of the finest fabric available with outstanding customer service to boot, I highly recommend you contact Neil or anyone else at Lochcarron of Scotland. More to come…

great pics as ever ... i think that is the right route re inserts and those seats are stellar!
How much lighter are they than the stock seats? I recon about 15kg!

You've been busy too .. that thread counts broke 1000 and didnt look back ;)

I'd love to have one of those seats as my office chair!

What's a set go for?

Those seats look the business and I love the Tartan fabric - awesome that they were able to honor your order. Definately want to see how those seats turn out in what is looking to be an amazing car.

Hi Laurent,

Those seats look fab! If your re-trimming them make sure you get that tartan central ha!

Cheers,
Paul

Thanks Matt. I am not sure how much the stock seats weigh, but the GT2 buckets come in at 35lbs with rails and mounts. They're the folding buckets so they are a bit on the heavy side with the side airbag and the fact that the shell is fiberglass that is then covered with carbon.

Thanks and Lochcarron of Scotland has been stellar to deal with, definitely a class outfit. I plan to also do additional bits in tartan and I am still on the fence about 2-3 different possibilities. I am waiting for additional samples for the non tartan parts and then Ill post my ideas and the eventual progress once I get with the trimmer.

Thanks Paul, yep 45 degrees. ;) :p

i think maybe just do the 3 upright cusions ie the whole back inside piece

I did some red inserts on my 6RS .. have a look at the album .. didnt look great in pics but did in person somehow .. anyways a little less is usually more .. your interior is stellar with the right combo of dark CF and bright metal

Sidebar... I've never been happy with the spaceship look of the newer stereos and while searching for old-er school options, I stumbled upon the Clarion FZ102E. I could not locate this unit in the US, however I found it at a major retailer in France for dirt cheap during a flash sale (49,90 € shipped) and since Darty's site won't allow you to put a US address, I made a quick call to my dad to rectify the situation. I like the matte finish and amber illumination to match the interior, along with the USB and AUX IN to connect my phone for music playback and it will be 10x nicer looking than the ugly Kenwood Excelon currently in place. I'll post pics of the actual unit once my dad receives it and ships it to me.

Very nice ... Keen to see pics fitted ;)

Long time since my last update, but first a little...

[Dealer Rant]
My 964 would sometimes backfire when letting off the throttle but then it started sputtering and not running right under load and also backfire at idle. Since I had family visiting from Europe and I was looking for a new shop after the oil change fiasco, I decided to let Porsche Minneapolis get a crack at it. I dropped the car off, told the SA to make sure and call me before they got in too deep with the diagnosis, and I gave him all the maintenance history to rule out the obvious. A few days went by and I received a call that the tech “thought” it was a bad injector and that the bill was at $650, that it would take another $630 or so to fix, plus an additional $210 for a new fuel filter. More back and forth ensued and I called BS on the pricing because it seemed that they were double dipping on the labor when I asked for a cost breakdown, but since it was an outrageous situation I told the SA I was coming over to take the 964 back. That was when he told me it would increase the bill because they would have to put it back together, to which I called BS again, picked up the 964 and drove it home. To his credit, the SA reduced the fee to $450 but WAIT... There's more!

A couple of weeks went by so I could enjoy some much needed family time, and then after everyone had left, I decided to tackle the injectors. First task was to remove the blower but I noticed that the bottom bolt would spin freely but not come out. I found this strange since I had the blower off many times and I knew it usually comes out easy. It was after I removed the top bolt and got the blower assembly out that I realized the bolt was torqued so hard it broke the rivnut loose from the manifold, and it was now fused with the bolt. Bollocks and more on torque values later, especially when trying to disconnect the fuel rails.

Next was to remove the air box, so I put my hand towards the back to undo the rear clips but to my surprise the rear clips were non-existent, and there was a gap wide enough for me to put my fingers between the two halves of the air box. I took the cover and the air filter off, took all the nuts off, realized that some washers were missing, and then took the rest of the airbox off. I then found that the tabs on the rear of the box were broken as was one in the front, I found one of the rear clips (other one is still MIA) and some of the missing washers laying on the engine tin, and realized that the tech had relocated my throttle cable in a way that it was now pinched between the airbox and the TB. WTF! :banghead:

I emailed the SA and asked him to replace the air box. I also mentioned the incorrect rerouting of the throttle cable, the broken rivnut and a broken sensor clip, but I did not ask him to fix this as I was not keen on having the tech touch the 964 again. The Service Manager emailed me back mentioning he was doubtful that his tech was responsible but I told him I was 100% sure since I had addressed the blower myself, and I bought a new airbox to replace the stupid K&N when I purchased the 964. The whole experience was complete crap and I really feel bad for those who have their air cooled serviced there. In the end, it was a blessing that I chose to take the car back or else I would have never known how badly they botched the job until much later. Too bad it cost me $450 for Porsche Minneapolis to F' things up, but lesson learned.

The interesting thing is that Porsche Minneapolis turned away all the air cooled business years ago and now that it is under new ownership, they are trying to get it back. Obviously, they have a very long road ahead of them.
[/Dealer Rant]

Back to our regular programming... Now that I had the blower and airbox out of the way, it was time to disconnect the fuel lines from the rails. Hot damn, the torque setting was out of this world. The tech had these connections apart since he switched the injectors around, but he must have set his torque wrench to the “Superman tight” setting because it took a huge amount of force to disconnect. Same with the bolts holding the rails to the manifold, crazy tight. :rolleyes: With everything disconnected, the injectors came out and here is what they looked like after 112K miles:

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I then packaged them neatly and sent them to WitchHunter Performance for some refurbishing. They replaced everything (even returned the old parts), they gave me a printout with before and after values, and they numbered the bags to match the printout so that I could place the injectors accordingly. The only downside is that WitchHunter is a very popular outfit so it took a couple weeks from the time I mailed the injectors to when I got them back, so they may not be the best source if you are in a rush. Here is how the injectors came back to me:

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Then it was time for a little paint to keep the injectors from corroding and here is the end result:

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While they were drying I took the opportunity to install the fuel filter I ordered from Sunset. I followed Ricardo’s excellent writeup but used flare nut wrenches instead since I had them. Super easy job, just a little annoying with the power steering hose in the way.

Out with the old

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In with the new

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The airbox went back on, so did the blower (minus the bottom bolt :mad:), and then it was time to fire the 964. Success! A quick visual check to make sure there were no leaks and I went for a drive. It is amazing how much smoother it runs and goes through the rpms, fantastic. Because I had not driven the 964 much and the gas left in the tank was a bit old, I went straight to my local BP and filled up on the good stuff.

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I’m glad I did this, I saved some money (well almost :surr:), I learnt something new and most importantly, I know the job was done right. The 964 runs really well now and I hope that we have a few nice driving days left in the season so that I can put some miles on before I put it away for the winter. Then, I'll focus my attention to the interior retrim over the winter.

Hi Laurent,

Those are great results! Your car looks fantastic I hope you can squeeze as many miles out as the weather allows!

Enjoy,
Paul

Nice write up Laurent. There's great satisfaction in doing stuff like this yourself. I wish I had the space and knowledge to work on my car but I have a great air cooled shop who takes care of things for me.

Hi Laurent,

Those are great results! Your car looks fantastic I hope you can squeeze as many miles out as the weather allows!

Enjoy,
Paul

interesting & scientific detail thanks Laurent! Invites a few questions if you don't mind ;)

So it was just 2 & 3 - also didn't realise you could paint the lower part like that .. any specific paint or priming needed? Any reason not to paint the top too?

In your first three pics of the injectors is that corrosion or carbon build up? And the one injector with all the cracks around the jet - was that one of the problem ones?

Thanks Paul, really appreciate it. I will be out of town this week but the weather looks promising for Friday and next weekend. :cool:

I have the space but I am definitely lacking in the knowledge department. I read a lot online, talked to some friends, and then had a mechanic friend come over and check things to make sure I did not screw up. I agree though, the satisfaction is immense and I hope to be able to do a few more projects.

Hi Matt - I really like the printout WitchHunter provides, it's neat to see the before and after.

Yes, 2 and 3 were the problem injectors, with 3 being the worse. Interestingly enough, 3 is the one that ended up with the best flow after the cleaning was performed. Some places will paint the injectors for you and WitchHunter recommends doing so to eliminate any potential rusting issues, and they also mention that any engine paint will do the job. Since I had a can of Rustoleum Satin Black, that is what I used and I did not do any special prep, I just cleaned the body and applied a couple coats of paint, that's it really. I assume my injectors were original and it looks like the factory did not bother taping anything and painted the top plastic part along with the body. I did not see the need to do so and it was easier to tape off where I did rather than closer to the o-ring.

My before pics show all the buildup from 112K miles of driving, they were not corroded, just nasty looking. As for the cracks in the cap, I don't know if that had a negative effect on the spray pattern but I am sure someone smarter than me can confirm if it does or does not.

^ appreciate that thanks

Laurent, Nice work on the injectors. I'm shocked by the practice of our local Porsche dealer! I certainly wont be bringing my car by their shop any time soon.

Laurent, this has been a great right-up! It shows how even with limited knowledge or the fear of the unknown. When pushed and not satisfied with "Alleged " reputable businesses you can do it yourself ( With some guidance of course ) Similar but worse situation happened to me during my ownership of my 74 Targa ( engine rebuild x2 ) Total disaster. Sites like Renn help us to help ourselves and fellow enthusiast. Keep it up!

Thanks Hal. I was really hoping Porsche Minneapolis would become my new go to shop, especially since they are so close to me, but this experience turned out into a huge disappointment. We all have good days and bad days and things happen from time to time however, it is all in the way we rectify the situation and the SM definitely screwed the pooch on this one.

Thank you and I agree, sites like Rennlist and the help local enthusiasts often offer are definitely an invaluable resource to help folks like me get out of their comfort zone and learn new things.

Today, I decided to go for a drive with no real destination in mind and about 100 miles into it, I stumbled onto these guys. Just as I was about to take off, they came out of the restaurant, we chatted and they invited me to tag along as they were meeting up with a F430 and 997TT. Altogether, 160 miles of fun and a very smooth running 964.

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It was a sunny and brisk day with temps around 50*F and with the top down, I was enjoying every bit of it. However as the clouds rolled in, it started to get a bit colder so I turned the heat on which is when I noticed that the clock, tach, and oil gauge were getting foggy inside. Strangely enough, the speedo and fuel gauge were totally fine. Have any of you experienced this? Is this is something I should look into or is it a normal occurrence?

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The other thing was that with temps getting colder and a threat of rain, I decided to put the top up before heading back home. This is when I found out my power windows motors will need some attention over the winter. The windows were fairly slow to come up and the driver's one stopped halfway, and then was creeping up slower than molasses. :(

Sorry I missed you yesterday. It looks like you found some good cars to drive with. I intended to get the p-car out yesterday but ended up doing household chores most of the day. I'm taking it in for storage next Saturday so I'm basically done driving it until next April. :(

I have not seen my gauges fog up like shown in your picture.

The Cayman was Bob Viau, Jr and we talked quite a bit, nice guy. The ACR Viper, F430, and 997TT all got popped by MN finest for showboating. :rolleyes: Weird about the gauges but it got really cold between WBL and Taylor Falls and with the heat on, it created some fog on the glass except for the speedo and gas gauge. I may pull the vents this winter to make sure everything is connected the way it should.

I've been able to put a few more miles given the great weather these past few days, and with mid 50's anticipated for this weekend I'll be able to squeeze a few more before putting it away for good. :(

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Bob's a great guy and I highly recommend their shop if it is something that you decide not to do yourself. They definitely stand behind their work.

Last pic of the year in the wild, it is now in hibernation mode until Springtime. :(

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Looks good...mine went down for the winter two Saturday's ago. :(

These past two weekends have been perfect weather-wise, now it's time to put the winter projects list together.

The car looks stunning as always Laurent!

I wish I could find a group like that around here to go cruising with, I always seem to attract the racer boy subaru's that want to give it a run when I take the car out for a ride :(

Very weird about the lenses, especially with it just being a few and not all of them. Have you replaced the glass in them before or maybe the clear "coating" on them are failing? I've never taken a good look at the ducting behind the dash, maybe something has come loose? Were you still getting air flow out of the vents also?

Thanks Dan and yours with the color change looks fantastic. LOL about the Subies, better than the garden variety Camry or Civic that always want to race me at the light.

I think I was still getting good flow out of the vents but maybe there's just enough seepage that the temperature difference made them fog up. Also good call about the glass being replaced which was not the case but a PO changed the faces to silver, perhaps there a seal between the gauge and the glass that was not put back properly?

Wiper arms inverted left/right.
Great looking car!

Long time no update...

Not much happened at first, a third ankle surgery kept me from driving it for a while, but then I decided to tackle the ignition. Someone had forced the locks including the ignition at some point, and the key could be removed with the engine still running. Not an ideal solution as you might imagine, especially when cruising down the freeway and having the key fall out... Mad scramble to find it and put it back in so that the steering does not lock. Given the outrageous price of a new OEM ignition switch, I decided to experiment with a Keyless Go system. The reasoning was to be different and it was not a huge risk given the reasonable price point. After some research, I settled on the Advanced Keys system which seemed to be the most reliable and had great customer service

Installation was a bit daunting at first, but Brian @ Advanced Keys was always quick to respond when I hit a snag and needed confirmation on installation. I first installed the units under the passenger seat and extended the wires accordingly. It worked fine, however I was never 100% happy with the location. I left it as-is since I did not want to tear into it while we were trying to secure a job relocation which took some time but ultimately landed us in TX. After moving into our new home, I started thinking about it again and since I had always wanted to remove the airbags, I took the opportunity to relocate the Advanced Keys system under the dash where the passenger airbag used to reside. So, here we went with wiring part deux!


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The system is not for everyone, and although I sometimes miss the mechanical feel of turning a key, it has worked flawlessly thus far. So after a successful rewiring and relocation of the ignition unit, I decided to change the dash lights to LEDs. After popping the gauges off, I noticed that at some point in the life of the 964, a mouse must have made itself a cozy little nest and decided to chew on the wiring. I have no idea how nothing ever shorted over the years, but it was time to address things. I carefully fixed every strand and then covered all the looms with 3M friction tape, just like I did with the ignition system, to give everything that OEM finish.

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After all the wiring was finally done, it was time to pop in the LEDs and give them a try. Superbright LEDs sent me the wrong shade of white, but they were exceptional with their customer service and overnighted a new set of LEDs. I bought a bunch of 8.4D LEDs and chose to go with the Cool White for the illumination instead of the OEM looking Warm White.

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Those LEDs are plug and play, you just need to slightly bend the metal ears with your thumb so that they fit snugly in the back of the gauges, and they are also dimmable just like the OEM. Below is a picture of the Cool White vs. the Warm White.

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You can see the Cool White in the Speedo compared to the Warm White in the other gauges. I subsequently changed everything back to Cool White.

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The last interior mod for this go round was to remove the airbag steering wheel and install the Vintage Momo Prototipo to go with the old school stacked MoMo horn button. I really love the look and feel of the Prototipo, although the gauges are now harder to see compared to the prior steering wheel. The airbag plug and horn contact lever completed the install.

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With all the interior mods out of the way, it was time to pay attention the the exterior. The front struts were original to the car and completely shot and they needed to be replaced badly. Unfortunately, Bilstein HDs have been on back order since forever and Tire Rack told me it would be at least another 3 months or so before they would have them in stock. I placed a call to KW to discuss the V1 and Sarah @ KW gave me a price I could not turn down, so I promptly gave her my cc number. I also decided to replace both front and rear top hats and a call to Roger @ Porsche Plano took care of that. Then, I thought why not replace the control arms bushings as well, so a call to Rennline and new HD bushings and ball joints were ordered. I had Rennline send the bushings directly to Andreas (AOW162435) who had a set of newly refurbished 964 control arms with my name on it. He did an amazing job with the refurb and installation of the bushings, and shipped the control arms to me in no time. Two thumbs up, thank you Andreas! Lastly, since I also had a set of rear 993 C2S calipers, they went on to replace the OEM 2 pots, along with new parking brake shoes plus a complete brake system and clutch flush.

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The transformation is amazing, the car feels so planted and rides beautifully. I am really happy with the changes.
Next is to replace the wheels with something that fits the 964 style a bit better. There is nothing wrong with the HREs the PO put on, but I am not fond of them. I am about 2 to 3 weeks away from receiving my new wheels... To be continued.

Wow! Lots done ! Looks great...

Laurent,
You are a brave man diving into the wiring! So many great changes. Can't wait to see the stance on the new wheels.

Looking great. You're a braver man than I for jumping in on the wiring.

I am now back this side of the Atlantic and I want to thank you guys for the kind words. I am sure I will forget some folks but I have to thank Rob, Tom, and Nick for their time and feedback on suspension component choices. I really appreciate the willingness to share your experiences and it has helped me tremendously in my decision. As mentioned in my prior post, the other logical step was to find some new wheels to replace the HREs that were on the car when I purchased it. Nothing wrong with them, I just don't think they complement the 964 well. So, another round of thanks goes to Anthony and Bill for their expertise on wheels/tires setups/widths/ETs and much more, and especially to Bill for answering my many PMs and always providing great technical information. A couple of weeks of waiting turned into many more but I finally received them last week, and I am going to the shop tomorrow to trial fit one of the fronts to see if I can keep the current tire size. If all goes well, the 964 will be sporting new shoes tomorrow and if not, I will be ordering a new set of tires. More to come later but in the meantime, here is a sneak pic...

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This wheel looks great. Maybe I missed it somewhere, what wheel is this? Who makes it?

Wow, these are beautiful wheels! Looking forward to seeing them on your car.

+1. Let's see them on the car. Looks hot!

Love the subtle colors of the finish, plus totally jealous of the dish of those rear rims.
It's going to look mega, and totally change the look of the car. Nice tie together with the black mirrors and brake ducts!

What an amazing project. I love the idea of you one day converting it back to a Targa. A wide body targa would be absolutely stunning.

Is it Christmas yet? New toy arrived on Friday, UPS guy was awesome by dropping it in my garage and taking the pallets and cardboard back with him. New Contis ExtremeContact Sport also arrived and I will have them mounted to the Fuchs on Wednesday.

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What size tire is that on the front? It looks rather large.

Also, sounds like you did the test fit and added the 3mm in offset but not the .5" in wheel width.

I run an 18 x 8.5 et39 in the front, seems like this should be an easy fit at your ride height and on a WB.

Crazy, I never would have guessed that as 225/40. Good luck, I hope the new tires work out for you!

The wheels are on! :burnout: I am very happy with the results although I have some fine tuning to do on the fronts due to the aggressive offset. I have not driven it like that yet, so the next few days will be telling when I get a closer look at the front clearance (or lack thereof). The wheel are from Augment Wheel Company and my experience with Dan was beyond my expectations. He answered all of my questions, took my phone calls even after hours, and delivered a beautiful product. I was really nervous about the color based on the pictures Dan sent me, but he told me to trust him and I am glad I did. The color is very hard to capture as the hue changes based on lighting, but I think it really works. Lastly, when the shop I used to do some fitting gave me grief about fitment and also said they would not cut down my studs to use my aluminum lug nuts, Dan promptly took his titanium open end lug nuts off his own car and mailed them to me at no charge. Now, that is what I call customer service. For anyone looking to have a custom set of wheels done, Augment Wheel can help and they do some cool stuff. Also kudos to Tire Rack for the excellent customer service and discount on the Contis, and to Audi Grapevine for the great care taken to mount and balance the tires. They use the same machines as the local Porsche dealer but without the P-car markup and with a friendlier attitude.

Cell phone pics before it got too dark...

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Thank you.

So, I ordered the 10mm steering stops Porsche recommended for 17" wheels, along with new tie rod boots and since I was replacing just about everything, new outer tie rods went in as well. Big difference between the 2 steering stops and just what was needed.

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The steering stops and tie rods went in with no issues but that was not the case for the boots, no matter how much I pulled/pushed/ and swore, they would not go on the rack. I have a small metal hook that I thought about using but I did not want to take a chance of poking a hole in the boot, so I went to REI and bought a set of bicycle tire levers.

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Best $3.50 I spent, I used two of them by the hook side and the boots were fitted over the steering rack in 5 minutes. Now the front end is all buttoned up, the only thing left will be to install the poly bushings I just ordered for the steering rack.

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The prior shop really screwed up the coilover setup and alignment, so next was to redo everything correctly. So over the past weekend, I measured and put the car up and down what it felt like a million times while I carefully set the coilovers (front first, then rear). I settled on RS-1 (124mm) for the front and RS+8 (231mm at the control arm boss) for the rear, although I may bring the rear down 4 or 5 mm. I also home brewed the alignment and to my surprise it drove pretty well when I took it down to Mayo Performance today. We put it on the alignment rack and all the parameters were good, except for a little too much toe on the front.

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From the new coilovers, to the refreshed suspension and steering bushings, to the much better tires, the car is totally transformed and rides so much nicer. Also, the 10mm steering stops did the trick, the tires now hardly rub the front wheel liners and a little heat to massage them will definitely cure things.

Looking good! Keep it up. Fantastic car...

If you don't mind a little less steering radius, you could add another 1-2mm spacer to the steering stop to stop the rub...if the massaging doesn't cure that. Or if it just rubs on the fender liner...you can cut that section out and add some space behind and plastic weld a dimple into it...

If your car wasn't originally shipped with the wider steering stops, check to see the tsb was done for the 45 degree cut out on the area where the bumper cover meets the fender. I can't imagine on that year car that it wasn't done...but you don't need that point cutting your tire if it wasn't done.

lovely!

just finished the whole thread so far! Love all the posts and photos, Laurent!