Noobies

Trying to figure out if I should go for X73 SS for the better drivability (and looks) or stick with PASM for the (potentially?) better practicality.

Reading other threads it seems most people tend to prefer the X73 SS, with quotes such as "you will regret not getting the SS" but most discussions talk from the perspective of comfort, stiffness and cornering performance. I am equally interested in the practicality since I would eventually use the car as a daily driver too. So specifically the ground clearance issues, scraping, going over inclines.

I am not really a long trip person, and being in the bay area most roads aren't that bad (at least not the ones I go on regularly) but getting into certain parking lots / gas stations etc can be treacherous. My own driveway has about a 10-15 deg incline. Having the car lowered by another 10mm can make a difference but is it substantial enough to the PASM that it would cause considerably more issues?

What kind of incline can people go on safely with their suspensions? Specially if you are not driving onto it from an angle? Thanks!

Marine Blue

Does PSM actually change the ride height with the different settings or only the rebound and damping?

Having recently driven a C2S with PSM I can say that the difference in ride quality is significant between the softest and sport settings. The hardest setting is similar to a sport suspension if not a littler harsher.

The Pope

PASM. The answer is no. PASM is a fixed 10 mm lower (981 & 981S) and X73 is a fixed 20 mm lower from a base 981 & 981S (all models). GTS models come with PASM as standard.

orthojoe

I found the ride on the x73 suspension to be perfect. More compliant than the boxster spyder suspension, which seems rougher in comparison.

The Pope

Joe, how many miles on your Spyder? If you have more than 10k miles, I'd have the shocks checked out. Believe it or not, OEM dampers start going downhill pretty quickly, especially if you drive on track frequently.

orthojoe

I have about 16k miles. Suspension feels the same as it did from day one. My buddy has 80 track days and 30k+ miles on his spyder and feels the suspension is still fine (running 1:38 at laguna with that original stock suspension). I'll admit I'm surprised that his suspension is still doing fine.

zedcat

Comments from the 987.2 platform but maybe useful. I had an 09 with PASM and now a 12 Cayman R. For a mostly street car, with weekend spirited drives, occasional track day I would go PASM. I liked the ability to change the feel of the car with just a button. Put it in normal mode on the freeway, then sport mode on twisty roads, back to normal for the run home. But for frequent tracking I would go X73. Either way you'll probably scrape up the underside of the front bumper. Worse with X73, but bet you'll find plenty of obstacles to scrape with PASM too. That was my experience. Best of luck, you really can't go too far wrong on the choice.

Noobies

Thanks, yeah thats going to be my use case too mostly - "street car, with weekend spirited drives, occasional track day"

SmokinGTS

X73, you cannot beat this set up for daily driving and track use.

BGB Motorsports

Just out of curiosity, as we were talking about this. What about getting X73 springs and bars and installing them on the factory PASM shocks? Would this work? Why can't the 981 have Sport PASM?

Noobies

According to suncoast parts website, it is not suitable to install the X73 kit on cars with PASM.
Here is the link for the cayman S, http://www.suncoastparts.com/product//C981CSS.html
They dont have a link for the GTS yet, probably would never since the car comes with PASM as standard.

The Pope

Yes, that's correct. It's either PASM or X73. However, there are some aftermarket components designed to retrofit on PASM casrs if that's your desire.

GentlemanRacer

I would like to second John's enquiry as to why one couldn't add beefier or stiffer sway bays to the PASMset up? Would not really change the shocks etc just add to the cornering ability.
If any one knows how the previous 911 SPASM worked, that may shed some light on this.

Thanks
Vince

The Pope

Who says you can't? On another forum, there is plenty discussion about replacing the rear hollow PASM bar with a solid X73 bar and replacing the front one with a GT3 bar. There is a company that is selling those bars, but I am sure they are not alone.

SteveInNj

I spoke with TPC racing yesterday. They offer a SS that is integrated with existing PASM setups. May want to check it out.