DJF1

the 21 makes a huge difference. It is perfect for a stock 993

Bill Verburg

Lets just say it would be a step in the right direction

TRINITONY

Damm..OMG...

TheOtherEric

Yeah, no kidding, talk about bringing a thread back from the dead.

race911

But is it not relevant? How many times over 30 years now have I had someone ask me "I NEED XX more horsepower", coupled with "I saw this in a catalog (now website)", concluded with "and I only want to spend (low, inflation adjusted) $"?

As we've seen here, nothing changes. Either the proper, level-headed advice will nearly bankrupt you (Steve could cut and paste), or you accept the car for what it is and understand that 10-20-50-100 HP doesn't matter when you're stuck in traffic with a bunch of Accord and Prius, nor help you get it up quicker, stay hard longer, etc etc.

mhm993

Chaos
Some opinionated thoughts on this old and new thread:

Personally, I don't see the point of spending money on mods for street cars. I'm a heretic, clearly. Track cars, that's another story.

Hard to add hp and torque to the car without stupid expense to install and more expense to sort and repair. Call Steve W in Oregon after the car arrives for expert advice. He was terrific with his time and knowledge in 2001 and he's getting better with age!

Light weight flywheel and Steve's chip are the most obvious changes to make the car feel faster. When the time comes for a clutch, the marginal expense for lwf isn't too bad. Of course, lwf cars may make more noise and stall occassionally at idle. Nothing comes without some expense or hassle.

Probably get more enjoyment from upgrading the suspension or getting lighter wheels than from a 5 or 10 hp upgrade.

Tranny upgrades get stupid expensive, and maybe it's just me, but everyone I know with short gears or short pinion seems to end up in the shop with big repair bills. Just saying.

Might have been a bit off topic, but figure that since Chaoscreature is our newest 993 owner, he won't mind some rlist opinions.

Edit: race911 says it all.

Steve Weiner-Rennsport Systems

Ken & Marc really summed this up very effectively.

I'm at a loss for words (and thats rare).

chaoscreature

Thank you all for the (mostly) level headed advice. The wife won't let me strip the car down, nor would I want to since it will be a street driver 95% of the time. Unfortunately it doesn't sound like there has been a lot of progress on low dollar engine improvements.
Please correct me if I am wrong, but from what I can deduce the order of "bang for your buck" improvements is:

shocks and springs
Lighter rims and stickier tires
Steve's chip
punching holes in the airbox (more for fun than anything)
Lighter flywheel (will do when clutch is changed).
Exhaust
Swap the engine for a turbo.

Of course I won't have money for anything but the tires, rims and maybe the springs/shocks when I get the car... but I am way too excited right now and feel like I need to know everything I can about the 993's.
Is there anything to gain from old school tricks like underdrive aluminum pulleys, fancy spark plugs or ignition wires?
Thanks again for the replies.

polaris 993 sport

I am a 100 cell man-and it really does make a difference in response and internal smiles. Even my old mechanic and porsche dealers-said-that car is really dialed in-plus all the other stuff I have done. Just my two bits. I have had my cells for over 13 years!

Monique

BERU (sp) Ignition wires are very good and VERY expensive as the loom must be cut to exact lengths to fit the retainers. Otherwise the wires touch your cylinders and.... pffttt. Gone. Plugs are the same. Dont fluff with what works.

Porsche does not leave much room on the table... unless you are willing to part with some VERY serious cash.

You can get a smaller pulley to drive your generator but it has draw backs: less generating power.

First thing I would do is get rid of AC. It s FAR cheaper to lighten the car to go faster than to try for a HP increase.

IMO of course.

TRINITONY

bluejam

I think Marc said it best. These cars already haul ***. Add some sound to the exhaust for the placebo effect. Maybe add the chip for a dialed-in perfection, which is something I consider for myself.
If the LWF can cause stalls and weird noises, then no thanks.
As for AC, my AC hasn't worked in two years and I don't miss it here in the Northwest so I may delete mine altogether for weight reduction.
And +1 on the advise for the improved handling of a suspension mod.

race911

For everyone who thinks the panacea of A/C removal leads to some magically transformed car: how many times have I been on track WITH A 200 LB PASSENGER, and not really noticed much difference.

Case in point 2 weeks ago. Private track day, full open track, open passing. Queue for rides in the Radical. Best I can manage at Thunderhill on the full track is right at 1:50 flat. 200 lb guy rides with me (bringing the car from probably 1310 to just over 1500 lbs. In traffic I clock a 1:51.8. Later I strap in a friend, she's about 130-135. Best of 1:51.2. Extrapolate that to a 3000 lb car, and let us know (absent being involved in professional/highest level of amateur racing) that anyone can tell the difference.

Edward

"Performance" mods for a DD street-only car is a paradox, IMHO. Marc summed it up best with suspension ...this is the single best bang-for-buck mod for any DD-car, IMHO. Wheels offer more "eye performance" ...no real gain for the street but very real gain if you count looks

But also not to be overlooked (which I find folks all too often doing, especially outside the P-car realm) is focusing on "performance" while neglecting to check for a soundly-tuned car. For example: plugs and wires good? Tires good and inflated properly? Bushings good? Alignment tailored for sharper handling goes a long way. And let's not forget the loose nut behind the wheel: good DE training will solve all sorts of bad-performance habits ...not to mention lighten the car ...through the driver's wallet!!

Edward

Cactus

My 95 non VR has way more capabilities than I as as a driver. Happy with it. Wouldn't mind the re gear though