Edward Kay

Hello Guys,

What do you think about the presence of wood in the full leather tan interior of a 993 Cab?
Woodtrim.com makes some really nice flat pieces. I could, for example, just do around the instrument cluster with a real burlwood piece. The 993, unlike the 996, is fortunate in that the less expensive flat piece would look much better on the dash. You really would need molded pieces to follow the curves on a 996. I would also consider a wood gear shift ****. Is the tacky? Does it rob the car's interior of its sports character? Opinions?

Thank you,
Edward

David in LA

My white cab has a dark blue interior; it has the dark rootwood (looks like walnut or mahoghany) option on the ebrake, shifter, and portions of the wheel. Looks good on my car as it is subtle and goes with the color scheme. I think it really depends on the color of the car, the color of the interior, and the color of the wood. Also, it would probably not look good if you have aluminum or CF accents elsewhere. I also think a dash surround might be too much.

My $0.02.

Sputnik

911 is THE sport car with speed and sound of revving motor in mind...and smell of exhausts of course!
The wood trims are for luxury cars with comfort in first place..large Jaguars, MB. 7th BMWs. Rolls and etc.
Why to try to make of real sport car fake luxury one?
Some people actually go in the opposite direction - they remove EVERYTHING from an interior..leaving just basic things..like non-airbag steering wheel and shift ****...they do add some staff in there...like fire extinguisher and roll bar... This "decorating" attempts look to me more appropriate for this KIND of car!

Mark in Baltimore

If you install the wood, how well will the stuff wear? I've seen some aftermarket wood kits (not in a P-car) that looked cloudy and downright cheap in the higher mileage cars they were occupying.

I don't think wood belongs in a Porsche, except for maybe the steering wheel of a 356, RS Spyder or something of an older vintage.

I agree with Sputnik. Wood belongs in a Rolls, a Bentley, a Jag, (okay, I'll throw in a Mercedes to represent the Germans) but you can see where I'm going with this.

I'm also a minimalist when it comes to the 911 interior and am not very fond of aluminum/engine-turned dash panels, silver trim bits, white-faced guages, etc. Even though it's not my thing at all, lots of others love the look. I guess that's why I'm really happy with my black interior and black-faced guages; it fits my idea of what a Porsche should be. All business.

My $.02 and just MHO. If the wood gives you, well, wood, go for it.

Caveman

Hi Edward,

I have to be completely honest and say that wood and recent Porsches should not mix. A wooden steering wheel on an old 911 or 356 looks fine and "in-period" but, in my opinion, might look a little tacky, especially with your light colour interior. You might want to consider the resale angle as well as, like myself, not everyone likes wood trim.

Cheers,

David
<img border="0" alt="[cherrsagai]" title="" src="graemlins/drink.gif" />

DJF1

If you fancy wood and it is of high quality and standard go for it. Wood does go with the tan interior more so than any other color.
The point is to make YOU happy the way your interior will look. I think wood if it is done tastefully ala factory specs will look nice.
Try to find pictures of cars with this type of interior to see the outcome. Probably TechArt and other German tuners have pictures.
I would also go so far to contact the Exclusive department at the Factory and ask them to send you pictures of cars they have done in wood.
Good luck and keep us posted on the project!
<img border="0" alt="[cheers]" title="" src="graemlins/beerchug.gif" />

RJT

My 1966 911, that I bought in 1967, came from the factory with a wooden steering wheel and a beautiful strip of real teak across the lower dash. In the early years of 911's there weren't 20+ cars on dealership lots like today's inventories, but I remember every car I looked at had the wood dash! Present day Porsches with wood in the interior looks a little Lexusish to me. Of course the bottum line is, it's your car and you can do whatever you want, but if you decide to sell the car in the future your customer base would be much smaller than a stock interior.
Just my opinion.......
Robert, 97 C2S, 65 356 euro C

amfp

It is very objective, obviously. I personally think it it is too much, and takes away from the Porsche sports car look. What I prefer is just the rootwood gearshift. Just a nice simple touch.

KC993

</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Helvetica">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Helvetica">Originally posted by Mark in Baltimore:
<strong> I agree with Sputnik. Wood belongs in a Rolls, a Bentley, a Jag, (okay, I'll throw in a Mercedes to represent the Germans) .</strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Helvetica">Mark,

Rolls and Bentley are also Germans now....

Mark in Baltimore

KC993,

Yeah, you're right. But does that make Chrysler German, too?

max911

I have wood in my 993.....if you know what I mean <img border="0" title="" alt="[Wink]" src="wink.gif" />

Speedraser

I'd do only the gear **** and handbrake handle. They are subtle, and fit with the sports car tradition IMO. Wood on the dash of a 911 looks out of place to me, unless it's a very early car with the factory teak.

cmoss

It's not what we think, it's what YOU think.

SkipSauls

I had aftermarket wood-kits in a couple of SUvs that I used to own, and I have to say that I'll never do that again! Don't believe the hype about vendor XYZ having a great kit, and definitely don't believe the pictures. You need to see these things and touch them to know that they are nothing but trouble. For instance:

- The edges of the pieces are never quite flush, and you are almost guaranteed to have at least one edge that will never look quite right. You (and others) may not notice this at a glance, but in time you will, and you'll never be able to get it out of your head.

- The feel of the edges is never quite "stock". As with the look, you may find yourself constantly touching the edges as they just don't feel like they're part of the rest of the car.

- The finish on many of these kits makes them look and feel like fake wood. Lighter colors and woods with strongly contrasting grains are especially bad.

I'm in the camp that believes that wood has no place in modern Porsches, but to each his own. Just be very careful if you do add some wood as these kits can be a real PITA to live with.

PeanutinCA

I have a dark wood **** from a tan interior if your looking? Was going to put it on Ebay. I think it may have one little scratch? I mad a semi track car with RSCS shifter.

Dylan.