plpete84

Few new things to report on:

Suspension: quite a few folks provided very positive feedback regarding the Ohlins R&T and that's what I've been leaning towards but was hesitant to fully commit before I actually try them out. My hotboi days are way past me so I was not interested in rattling my fillings out! This weekend, I had a chance to meet up with a fellow RL-er that lives in my area and has these installed on a 996 C2 and take the car for a spin. I did part of the test as a passenger and got behind the wheel on the leg back home. I was not sure where the settings were but the car saw a track day recently so was quite sure it was not a softer street setting. Hopped into it blind and was positively surprised...but maybe I should't have been. Although the car did have a firm ride I thought it did a fantastic job taking short but sharp bumps. We hit some small to medium pot holes on purpose and I did not feel any more uncomfortable than in my car with M030 sport suspension. There was no bounciness in the car either which was very welcome. Taking a sharp exit ramp felt quite confident and the car seemed to hold its line very well. I will, however, partially give that to aggressive street tires. Looking later they were 255 in the front on OZ wheels. I don't know if the ride quality changes in those over time but they did have a decent amount of miles on them and have not been serviced. Later on we checked the settings on the rear shocks and found that they were in the upper range of the "winding roads" setting which means they can go even softer, which made me quite happy. Seems like I'll be putting in an order for those sometime next week. I'm heading to Hudson, NY for about a week this Thursday so will probably order them while there so I don't miss the shipment while away.

Used Oil Analysis: During this oil change I decided to do a UOA with SpeeDiagnoistix. As mentioned above, this was my 3rd oil change with DT 5w-40 so there should be zero contamination from any other oils that were used previously. The goal here is to start creating a trend and get a base reading to see if there are any warnings and if something could point to why I'm seeing oil consumption. 1 quart per 800 to 1000 miles is more than I'd like and more than I'm seeing from others. Recently I've the the UAOS as well as new injectors. Dropping the sump has shown zero debris of any kind. I will probably be giving Driven a call to see learn more about their FR 5w-50 oil and see if that would be a suitable replacement and help combat oil consumption. Below is the report:

zbomb

Don't worry bro... not going to say I told you so on the Ohlins I want to, believe me I do, but I need to keep it in....

zbomb

I TOLD YOU SO... Couldn't do it

plpete84

But but but there was no data to back it up! You right, you right though!

I'll be doing a very mild drop with my set up. It sounds like getting adjustable end links is what most folks do or would non-adjustable stock work? I'll be replacing mine either way. Also was curious if the top hats can be used from the stock shocks or if they take enough of a beating to warrant getting all 4 new ones.

zbomb

Hehe... I could point to lap times... but street feel - well, that takes a calibrated ***

My first iteration was stock top mounts and adjustable end links in the front - Worked awesome at the Ohlins recommended ride height settings.

I'm actually still running the stock top mounts in the rear

plpete84

Currently channelling my inner #996roadtrip and racked up about 1200 miles since last Thursday and the car is running peachy. Still burning that oil though! I'll be getting off my vacation *** soon and doing Skip's engine health test to check for blow-by. I recently checked a few values for injectors after watching the Tony Callas video on the topic and everything looks to be well within ranges. UAOS is still providing healthy readings of about -3.6in H2O. Speaking with some folks at Driven and LN I received two suggestions which I may try and report back with findings. I haven't seen anyone take this approach so should be an interesting datapoint. 1, is to try running 2 400 miles cycles of Driven break in oil with filter changes. Goal is to drive the car harder during those periods. Then switch back to the current DT40 oil. 2, is to switch to FR 5w-50. I'll probably do one of the two soon with an early oil change and do another UOA to see if the fuel dilution is lower with the new injectors.

Also, Ohlins are now ordered! Look forward to doing this install soon, just need to figure out if I need to buy new top hats or if the current ones can be reused after 86k miles. I'll probably need new end links and looking at adjustable options. They are all fairly similar and currently considering the Torque Solution units.

Quick photo update. I'm currently staying at my girlfriend's friends house which is basically a definition of what happens when a museum architect builds you a house. Completely sick and a perfect setting for some new shots. Here is two from the morning:





I'd be remiss if I didn't say how much of an amazing road trip car the 996 is. It simply eats up the miles at a healthy pace and returned about 24-25mpg while cruising via country roads. Mix in some city driving and more spirited drives on twisty Catskill area roads and I'm still at almost 22mpg after 1200 miles. Plenty of room for a carry-on bag, overnight bag and 2 backpacks. If you haven't done a long trip in your 996 - DO IT!

De Jeeper

I have a set of front gt3 front upper mounts if u want to upgrade.

barbancourt

Your girlfriend’s house is stunning.

plpete84

Will be passing by you on Sunday so will shoot you a text.

Her friend's house, but yes, it's quite the spot Only 3 bedrooms, surprisingly.

plpete84

Some shiny new bits showed up today! Still need front adjustable end links but really looking forward to getting these installed. Should be a fun project. Goal is to keep the height around GT3 spec - nothing too low as I need to be able to clear my parking spot which is at an angle and those plastic front lips are not cheap. While waiting I might play around and make some rubber covers for the end links to protect them from dirt and grime. If my attempt stinks I think there is ones you can purchase although I don't like the idea of spending around $80 for 8 pieces or rubber







There is also a case of FR50 5w-50 oil sitting near by that will be going in. Lets see if that helps with oil consumption and maybe increase oil pressure a tad. I replaced the pressure switch not too long ago but it's already showing signs of failure. Idle pressure is fine and I hit 5 at cold start but once getting into deeper rpms (above 4k) I have a hard time getting oil pressure higher than 4 bar. Even at 6k rpm. Could be the sender unit again or my car just doesn't like 5w-40. Who knows anymore...

plpete84

Finally had an opportunity to install the new suspension bits: Ohlins R&T + Tarett adjustable end links. Doing this in a 100F heatwave was a questionable decision but with multiple breaks and plenty of liquids I got it all done. Got to love AutoZone and their free tool rental too. I ended up grabbing the spring compressor and ball joint puller which both came in very useful and made the job that much easier. Combine this with quick jacks and an impact gun the install was not hard at all. Everything came apart and went back together quite nicely.



All shocks were dry except for the front driver side one. It was leaking BADLY. The coffin arm was super oily and covered in grime that stuck to the oil. That shock was completely shot. All bump stops were super brittle - not surprised after 17 years.



2 front shocks - the bad and the ugly.



Rear shock with the spring compressor in action. You can see how cracked and brittle the bump stop is. If fell apart once I took it off.



New front coils assembled. Pre adjustment. I ended up finding out that there were some discrepancies between the set-up measurements provided in the box vs what was available on-line. The on-line directions and measurements is what you want.



Front coilovers installed. I marked the upper three mounting points with a marker to get things as close as possible to how things were. Fit and finish on the Ohlins is top notch. I applied a coat of ceramic coating to them to hopefully help from dirt from sticking to them and make it easier to keep them clean.



Front end links installed. I did tighten then lock nuts before lowering the car



Rear coilover installed. The rear was super easy. 3 nuts on the top, 1 bolt on the bottom and the whole thing drops out and installs with zero fuss. For both front and rear you reuse the top hats. Mine were in good shape.



Rear end link installed. The instructions that came in the box had the attachment point on the shock sitting much higher. Right below the Ohlins logo causing the end link to not be able to reach. Following the on-line instructions fixed this.



I was very happy with the height according to the out of the box settings. I know things will settle a little bit so a bit of adjustment may be necessary. I have a bit of an incline going up to my driveway so want to keep things functional but also aesthetically pleasing. Here is what things looked like upon lowering the car:









After a few brief drives around town the rear settled in ever so slightly and I think it will be fine as it sits. The front, however, settled a bit more so it will need to go up a tad before an alignment. The rear wheels sit perfectly flush and love the fitment. The fronts have slightly moved inside the fender so I'm giving 5mm spacers a try.

Initial impressions: I set the dampening somewhere in the street range to start. About 12-13 clicks from full stiff. Despite the springs begin much stiffer than stock the shocks really do a great job absorbing sharp bumps and recessed manhole covers. Don't get me wrong, you still feel them but they are not jarring making you feel like you're about to loose your fillings and call your chiropractor. I haven't driven the car at highway speeds yet so can't comment on how they feel at speed yet. Driving around town, I did feel a bit of a slight bounce at times so I think I may need to give it a few more clicks to soften things up perhaps. I want to get the car aligned first before any more adjustments to dampening. Overall the fit and finish of the coils is wonderful and installation was very easy. Out of the box they felt already more comfortable than my worn M030 sport suspension.

Currently I'm looking at shops in my area to do an alignment and learn more about corner balancing. I may do it now but not necessarily as this will be mostly a street car + back roads fun driving. Is there any preference out there when it comes to aligning these cars: alignment shop vs Porsche dealer? Seems like the price would actually be quite similar.

De Jeeper

R these guys close enough to u?

https://3dmmotorsport.com/

i got my ohlins from them and they know their suspension stuff.

plpete84

Thanks Aaron. I couldn't find their address on their website easily but there was a notice that they are moving from their VA location to a larger warehouse location in North Carolina so that would be a no go. AutoSportSystemsGroup (ASG) is local to me and seems to have a good reputation so may give them a go. Waiting for them to call me back to see what availability looks like.

plpete84

It's been about a month and half since the Ohlins install and everything is great. It's unrealistic to expect a stock level ride from these coilovers but I think they really do live up to their name. I have them set quite soft at this point (15f and 17r) and am quite happy with the ride quality and the level of dampening the shocks provide. I ended up calling a few local shops around but the wait was 2-3 weeks. I ended up giving a local dealership a try and they happened to have an alignement special to boot. I have my fair share of skepticism to dealing with dealers but this was a very positive experience. The waiting area had a shop view through a huge window which was cool but the cooler part was that the tech doing the alignment called me down to hang with him and talk shop. Walked me through all the options and what each setting will do and went out with me for a test drive after. We set things up fairly conservatively to blend tire life and good handling characteristics. Toe it pretty neutral with -5% camber in front and -1.5% in the rear. The rear was maxed out and dialing anything more out would require adjustable dog bone arms but the rear likes a bit of camber so all good. Height wise I'm around GT3ish spec. Form and function, especially as my driveway has a bit of an incline.





Also, a few minor changes to the interior. I like the look of the stock shifter but never been a huge fan of how it felt in my hand. Cue in RaceSeng Circuit 100 shift **** and new alcantara shift boot with silver stitching. This combined with the 997 SSK that was installed by previous owner should make the shifting action just about perfect. The Circuit 100 shift **** has a pretty similar shape to the newer style 991 shift *****, which I always liked.





Oh and this showed up the other day.... 350mm Momo Mod07 should look awesome and stop me from hitting the steering wheel with my left leg every time I shift. Just waiting for the hub and few other bits and pieces to complete the install.



Did a smoke test with my DIY machine and could not see any leaks that would cause the engine to run lean or rich. So, still burning oil at same rate as it has. Will still chase this for a while until I take it to a shop for further diagnostics or just make piece that the motor will just burn that quart per 1000 miles because that's what it does.

Otto Bonn

Nice. I'd like to get my mod 07 in soon.

Speaking of interior, how much of an AE interior is leather?