Van Larson

hf1

hf1

Anyone has the f/r spring-rates for the base and x73 suspensions?

MidEngineRules

We all know Porsche options add up quick when pricing as a new car. X73 sport suspension was more expensive than PASM so that's one reason why it wouldn't have been ordered as much. Plus with PASM you got another button for your near empty console! Base cars usually had little options to begin with to keep the cost down to an entry level. Adding X73 will transform your car as written above by Okie981. X73 also includes new sway bars and the whole package is very balanced. I've had KW coilovers and KW springs on different cars when I lived in Germany. Springs only will add additional harshness to the ride for only a change in aesthetics. Coilovers can be good but they are way more expensive and you still need sway bars to balance out the package. At that point you're engineering the change. With X73, Porsche did it and based on my last 3 cars (987 Spyder, Cayman R, 981 Spyder) Porsche knows what they're doing. My guess is the discarded suspension parts would be hard to sell.

Archimedes

I did the X73 conversion on my '14 Cayman S and, while I felt it was well worth the money (~$3k IIRC), it makes the ride a LOT firmer. So if you like the soft, supple ride of the standard suspension, the X73 is not for you. But if you want a more responsive car, flatter cornering and a much nicer stance, it's a great option. Note, if you do have it done, make sure to remind the tech to reconnect the PDLS wiring before they reinstall the front sub-frame. Easy to forget apparently, and the entire subframe needs to be dropped again to reconnect them.

Van Larson

MidEngineRules

Valid point. It's easy to think most Porsche owners, especially those using this forum, are like minded in wanting the cars to corner as well as can be but still deliver excellent road manners. One reason I chose the 981 Spyder over the Cayman GT4 was that I didn't want a track car for the street. Nor the attention of the GT4 but that's off point. I have a history of owning sporty cars and sports cars since my first BMW 2002 in 1976. I'm very used to taut suspensions but I definitely don't like crashy suspensions which are jolting and loud over both low and high frequency bumps. I owned many cars which were so crashy that you had to modify the suspension just to live with it. That's no fun. The Cayman and Boxsters are so brilliant at what they're engineered to do that you simply can't lose with any suspension option. Luckily Porsche saw fit to give owners choices.

hf1

I hear you. I get my dose of stiffness in my Moton-ed, monoball-ed 6gt3 and my SPB race car -- I have a feeling that the x73 would feel "cushy" in comparison. The more I track/race the less I seek HP and stiffness for the backroads. It's more fun to make a low-power, "cushy" car fly through the turns without losing momentum. Even the 380hp in my 6gt3 is way too much for that -- not to speak of 500 or 700hp(?!). And Porsches, even with base suspension, could hardly be described as "cushy".

Any (long-term) issues with body rigidity (creaks, squeaks) with the stiffer x73 on a convertible?

MidEngineRules

Zero for me in my '11 Spyder which would count as my long-term convertible w/X73. My Cayman R was the same and I owned both at the same time. Traded both in '16. I don't recall ever hearing a creak in either car no matter the circumstance. X73 is firm but extremely quiet over bumps. Of course I can say the same from my '08 RS60 Boxster Spyder with PASM set to normal. I guess credit goes to the chassis. Porsche knows how to build a solid roadster.

MidEngineRules

Post #12

https://rennlist.com/forums/987-981-...need-help.html

Dom991.1

I installed the x73 suspension on a 981 base and it is fantastic!!! Both how the car sits and how it handles. We (my wife and I) do NOT find it too harsh (and our Cayman came with the factory option of 20 inch rims). On the contrary, I found the base suspension (which i believe is the same suspension as the BASE suspension on the S) too compliant when pushed. A couple of things to think about:

• Clearance does change when you drop the car 20mm, but I have NOT had an issue with scraping.
• We live in Florida (relatively flat roads with minimal potholes)
• Keep an eye on classifieds - I found an x73 suspension that had been taken off a GTS for $450, including shipping. Needed to buy the sway bars ($250 for both from Sunset + shipping) - so less than half, all in, than from Suncoast.
• Install was about 7-8 hours, and they will need to do an alignment, obviously

Best of luck! -Dom

hf1

Thx! The OP got a great deal on that x73 Boxster S.

CornerOffice

Marine Blue

Archimedes