Aw, thanks David.

Do you mind if we sleep on it for a while?

 

Opportunities like this don't come up very often...

 

And, Colin, if you need an over-priced salesman with a big expense account, I'm your man! I could sell alot of them at that new low price. We'd lose money on each set, but make up for it in volume! Now, where are my no-charge salesman's samples?....

Jim

 

Colin

On a more serious note.

Have you considered running your engine on an engine dyno and mapping out a DME for North America with 91RON+ROM/2 or 95 ROZ. This would allow for a true bolt on packacge that any competent engine builder could put togetthe rmuich like a factory 3.8 but better.

It would also be interesting to see what the output would be like on a a MAHA dyno or a simalr unit.
LAT

 

August 06 issue of Total 911 magazine
http://www.total911.co.uk/proddetail...911%5FAugust06
Available from Borders and B&N in the USA, or direct from our website & we'll send airmail.

 

Yes, I have considered this option on many occasions. As you say the engine is a true assembly job, there are no special requirements and any decent engine builder could assembly any one of our engines, the problem always comes down to mapping and from what I have observed is that there are not many who can remap this ecu. We could do it in theory, but in practise it is not easy since this particular Motronic ecu needs circuit board modifications to access the maps, much like the early 993 turbo that you know well. A better solution would probably be to sell an alternative direct fit ecu that comes pre-mapped for the engine and this is the way that we are looking at currently - two versions are in the pipeline, one basic unit with wideband Lambda control and a higher level unit with knock control which is probably more suitable for a modified 993TT.

No offense LAT but I did wonder how long it would take for someone to doubt our dyno figures (again), even though we openly tested the cars for acceleration using the "Rennlist Standard" AX22 datalogger. Can I just state for the record that personally I have no interest in pursuing a dyno comparison and I do not hold with the theory that a Maha dyno is any more accurate than the Bosch/Dynostar unit that we have. In the case of these cars the most comparable vehicle is the 996GT3 mk2 which weighs in at 380-385 bhp on our rollers, both of these 993's posted more than the GT3 up to 6500rpm and there is precious little between them on track so I am comfortable with the numbers. I'll post a comparison to the GT3 as soon as I can.

 

Can anybody tell us how much the 9M products cost?

 

Thanks Rob. I'm in Hong Kong so will see if it is available at a bookstore here, if not I will order from your website. Thanks

 

Great magazine I have all issues, back issues are worth getting.

 

The cylinder head/cam/valve/spring parts package is £5995, the full conversion including 100 cell cats & live remap in the UK is £10,500, excluding taxes.

 

C'mon lottery.. I need a set of these cylinder heads (and associated kit)

 

The supercharger kits all get tarred with the same brush. Some are a lot better than others. The root of the problem is all the blower kits tend to tough installation jobs with a variables, compromises and "two steps forward, one step back" results.. Worse still, in the examples I've seen from 993, 996 and 997 to 928, the given installer is sometimes too quick to fiddle instead of working from first principles -- these kits have undergone at least some R&D but it seems in some cases the given installer is quick to second guess the product and make changes.

That said, any blower is challenge from working in an already cramped engine bay to heat dissipation issues and the parasitic loss versus real power gains. Plus the blower is expensive and heavy. Modern turbos don't have the lag problems of even five years ago and the boxer lends itself to turbo design. A pair of turbos are also relatively light and can be placed advantageously.\

Much as I like a blower for huge power and torque -- I have twin-screw Whipple kit on my trusty old 5.3 Chevy Tahoe 4WD -- I think forced induction on a 911 is nowhere near as appealing as a stout normally aspirated engine.

 

LAT
Here is the dyno comparison of the VR 9m+2 and NVR 9m+2 vs a standard GT3 Mk2, all corrected to DIN standards.

 

I suggest bringing those numbers to US dollars, then get a credible shop as a business partner on the West coast (LA seems logical) and make a killing.

How would you handle warranty, service and support?

Worse still, how would you handle emissions compliance?

Companies like Whipple get the emissions done on relatively low volume sales.

I'd also suggest some marketing information -- you've already made some convincing arguments here, it's just a matter of assembling and consolidating all the useful facts. Information on bang for the buck (hp per dollar) and comparison with factory and other known after-market brands for their n/a kits would help prove the value of the 4.0 conversion.

A core exchange program might be the go. Once you're asking US$20K for the conversion, I'd rather see a complete plug-n-play crate motor with a nice new clutch and pressure plate capable of taking the horses. This might not be cheap, but it would be higher quality, better testing and more reliable. Reliability for enthusiasts will obviously be key -- the first time one of these 4.0 engines grenades at the track, every forum will have threads and photos.

You're boasting big numbers and the US consumer has a natural "show me" reaction to any vendor claims, so there will always be healthy skepticism.

I moved here ten years ago and I've been dismayed by the number of bad shops, bad products and bad vendors. The Porsche market is simply riddled with charletons, so trying to separate the good from the bad and the ugly is a full time challenge for the customer and the vendors.

I say build a car over here (preferably a 993) as multi-part piece for one of the magazines like Excellence preferably. Get that car in a shoot-out with some other conversions and something like the 996 GT3 MkII as a reference and you'll be eating the lunch of the local products.

Easy as that, right?! : )

 

Colin point of clarification, is the GT3 the 380 HP 385 NM model?
LAT