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Just wanted to start a thread to document my journey with my Speed Yellow 1995 968 Coupe. I got the coupe back in October and have been doing little things here and there to return the car nearly 100% back to how it originally rolled off the lot. It won't be 100% original, but the changes I am making are worth it and totally reversible. When I got the coupe, it showed a little over 8200 miles on the odo. As she sits now, I've got 8271 miles. The car is amazing and I couldn't be happier!
Here are the things I've done so far:
Added SY Bumper Plugs to the front - damn California front license plate! Gotta love PA!!!
Installed a battery tender connector cable to the car's battery for winter battery maintaining. Previous owner put an Optima Red Top in it and I'll keep that for the time being. It handled this past winter extremely well.
Adjusted the hood a little at the front where it meets the bumper. One side is was closer to the bumper than the other. I still need to work on this a little more and may have to have a look at the hinge as well. That particular point where the hood meets the bumper does have a little paint wear due to how low the hood sat.
Installed Euro 968 front turn signals - front bumperettes suck!
Removed the late style exhaust tip in favor of the early style, "rolled" tip - sooooo much better!
Installed period-correct 993/late 968 soft back sport seats. Car came with a set of original Porsche / Recaro CS seats with SY backs. I didn't fit in them. The original seats were removed by a previous owner and did not come with the car. Thanks to Steven from Canada for the seats! They are awesome! The CS seats are spoken for.
Installed a set of 993 SY front seat belts. They look fantastic! For those interested, you can also get red and blue 993 seat belts! Damn near plug-n-play!
Installed a set of new, correct 17" CupII wheels. Car came with a set of original 18" Speedlines. While the Speedlines are amazing, they wouldn't have lasted on the roads here. Rumor has it that another SY coupe may now be wearing those Speedlines.... Also installed a set of titanium lug nuts. I know, I'm crazy. But they are beautiful and won't have cosmetic issues like the OEM aluminum alloy nuts.
Installed a new Woody Peck rear luggage cover - original did not come with the car. Very happy with the quality of this product and it looks great. The black is not very "dark," but they do a great job with making it damn near 100% factory in look and feel.
Replaced the rear hatch struts - originals were dead.
Adjusted the gas cap cover as it was badly off center.
Installed an F9T solid state DME relay - should never have a DME relay issue!!
Coerced the current owner of the original SY shift **** & boot to part with it and now it's back in #9! Thanks Jeff!
I also changed out the two rubber bushings in/under the shift **** for new polyurethane ones. They'll last longer, won't deteriorate as quickly from the heat coming up from the trans tube.
Made and installed some heavy-duty custom floor and trunk mats to protect the carpets. Hate carpeted mats!
Removed radar detector wiring from the previous owner.
Installed the 944 full cubby. I like having the bigger cubby and the 968 cubby/clock just helps to drain the battery in the winter.
Installed the 968 CS coin tray. Looks nicer than the cassette box thing and I get to keep my cassette box cover/guts in pristine shape.
Installed the 944 black hazard switch.
Installed the 944 rear wiper delete plug. My car is infinitely faster now due to the extreme weight loss!!
Installed a better set of door vent grills. My driver's side had started to wear from time and lack of use believe it or not. Found a pristine set on the 'bay, nourished the gasket / seal and replaced the existing ones. I believe these vent grills are NLA from Porsche. I plan to Gummipfledge the seal on these regularly.
Purchased a yellow, indoor car cover from Gert at Carnewal. I already said I'm crazy!
Had to get a new right sill plate cover as I damaged the original during the seat belt install.
Will be installing a new temp sensor rosette, HVAC faceplate and HVAC slider ***** - I damaged these during removal of the radar detector wiring and installation of the black hazard switch. I was shocked at just how brittle some of the plastic pieces were/are. The rosette was totally my fault as I had forgotten it rotates for removal...!
I installed a small helper spring to the glove box light switch as well as added some lubricant. When you would open the glove box, the switch would not make as it was stuck and weak. The spring and lube remedied that! Now I have lovely 1990's incandescent lighting in my glove box!!!
Registered the car as a classic car in PA - no more emission inspections and no more yearly registrations! 1 time fee and the reg is permanent. Can convert it to Antique status in 2 years if I want...
Things that I still need to do:
Install the period correct CR1 radio
Install Window Express in both windows. Love these!
Clutch pedal linkage is squeaky for a second on engagement. Need to investigate and remedy.
I also damaged the right kick panel carpet fabric edging. Need to fix that with some new fabric. I believe black carpet kick panels are NLA from Porsche. Another case of age brittleness, in the thread.
Considering Ceramic Pro and Llumar PPF.
Need to order & install Xpel headlight and fog light kit.
Will probably try to swap out all the incandescent festoon bulbs with LED versions. Those damn festoons generate such heat and are a nuisance - especially in the engine compartment.
I'll keep updates here as I go, and will share more pics along the way. Happy to be in the 968 fold again - I had forgotten just how much I love these cars!!!
I'm like you Jim constantly restoring my cars and doing subtle upgrades with the aim of keeping them close to original as possible. Sport seats or CS Sport seats are on my wish list. Just picked up a black coupe a few months ago with LSD, My latest project. I will add the M030 struts etc.
As Raj mentioned, you do not have to remove the windows to access the front seat belts. Start by removing the plastic window trim from the inside (just pops out), then remove the screws holding the trim panel in. Be mindful of any washers / spacers and of course, the fragile plastic screw caps!! You'll have to pull back the door weather stripping as that holds the vinyl edging of the trim panel in place at the rear of the door. If I recall correctly, there is one trim panel clip/pin that will need to be popped - use a trim panel tool - please!!! *IF* your trim panel is in good condition, you will be able to pull it back and access the seat belt mechanism easily for removal / installation. If the panel is brittle or damaged, then you should probably remove it completely so as to not cause further damage. That means more screws, bolts, etc. that need to be removed. Take your time - lots of stuff on our cars are worn and/or brittle/broken down due to age. It is extremely easy to damage stuff and, as you know, more and more items become NLA as time goes on. BTW - the rear seat backs create a little interference as the trim panel goes all the way past them to the rear hatch area. Also note that some portions of the trim panel may have adhesive holding edges to the edges of other pieces, so proceed with caution on removal to prevent any unwanted damage!!! Patience and finesse are keys to dealing with 968 interiors!!!! Last but not least - the 993 belts were NOT plug and play. It's close, but there is some modification required. The mechanism itself does not require modification - so the seat belt function is never compromised.
Yes - slick top, no sunroof. Will get some pics and post them probably over the weekend.
I really dislike carpeted floor mats - all weather mats (like WeatherTech / Husky / etc.) are a 1000x better at protecting what's beneath them. You can keep a set of carpeted mats in trunk for shows and whatnot. The Rubbertite stuff is awesome. Hard to cut, but gives me peace of mind! No affiliation with Lloyds / Rubbertite / etc, Just a happy customer!
To me, the car is damn near perfect. I'll hate the CR1 radio, but it's what should be in it. I wish it had come with the original seats, but what's in there now is correct for the time period. And the new seats have heat! The other small changes are all enhancements in my eye, and can easily be changed back to stock without much effort.
Next step - convince the wife to let me get a cab to keep the coupe company. She's totally against it at the moment, but I'm really turning on the charm (it isn't working!)!
Jim is a true 968 fan and it is great that he ended up with this special car as he'll take great care of it. I'm looking forward to getting SY coupe #8 together with #9. Hershey next year? We could invite Mike who owns #5 to join us. Wouldn't that be a site! Here's a couple of shot of his unique roof.
You might consider putting in one of the Porsche Navigation Radios, instead of the CR-1. It looks totally natural in the space, the sound is good, offers BT and iPhone/iPod/Android Connectivity with a nice interface, and, oh yeah, almost useless navigation (due to the tiny screen). One additional feature that is not always present on new head units, but one I particularly like, is a real volume ****. I have had one in my car for over a year now, and really love it
I pulled the Alpine aftermarket unit from my 968 and installed a CDR220. Looks period correct and on top of that, added a Bluetooth connector. Here is a link to the connector. Easy install and I can stream music from my phone through the car’s speakers.
Thought about doing a CDR220 (did one in a previous 968), but you need to get the faceplate angle mod or it's very difficult to see the screen. The Nav units from Porsche are nice, but they are serious overkill for me. This car won't be driven a lot, so I'm ok with going back to the original cassette radio! As strange as that may seem!
The 968 was available with two styles of soft back sport seats:
- The early version, identical to those found in late 944's. These would have typically been found in 92-93, and perhaps some early 94 cars? These seats have the horizontal bars/stitching just like in any late 944 / early 968.
- The late version, identical to those found in early 993's. These were in 94-95 cars. These seats have the arching stitching as found in any 993 and late 968. Somewhere during the life cycle of the 993, Porsche switched to hard back sport seats. These will fit in a 968 too if you want a hard back that can be painted to match your exterior...
Either version of the soft back sport seat will fit in any 968. If you have an early 968 with normal 944 style seats, I'd hold out for a set of matching sports. They're out there - a little patience and a little luck, and you'll find a pair. My coupe is a 95 (re-VIN'd 94 I believe) and it originally came with the 993 style sport seats. I got lucky and found another Rennlister who had pulled his original sports out of his 993 track car. Damn near perfect condition with the added bonus of being heated.
The bolts that hold our seats in are notorious for getting the allen recess stripped and/or the threads stripped. I'd recommend having a spare set of the correct bolts on hand if you are swapping or removing the seats. If any show wear, replace them. Small bit of insurance to make future removal easier. Buy the correct bolts - the head is shorter in height so as to not interfere with the seat rail operation. If you just use any old bolt found at HD/Lowes/etc., you'll be sorry later.
One word of caution regarding the sport seats - if you're a sturdy gentleman like myself, your use of the seats will quickly wear the bolsters! Clean and condition often to keep the leather as supple and pliable as possible, and try not to drag yourself across the bolster to get in. Easier said than done!!!! They are fantastic seats though!
If you are looking for sport seats, Lart usually has a pair or can get them and he has them professionally recovered, they look amazing and are really a pretty good deal. You get perfect seats that look OEM for about $2K as I recall.
07-25-2018, 04:19 PM
SY Coupe #9 - The Slick Top
