ltc

Remember, don't ask a question unless you can handle the answer:

Cannoli

LOL ... that picture says it all! Y'all been warned ... don't make me go Monty Python on ya!

JW3

Ya just gotta love this forum ! Very nice CTT.

yetis

Sweet CTT! I really like the wheels! Is your the whole shebang? You would think RUF would throw in a RUF 550 tag on the back in place of the Cayenne Turbo script.

Cannoli

Thanks Guys ... to my knowledge, RUF doesn't have a 550 badge for this conversion (RUF does describe the "Dakara" in three flavors - 530, 550, and 570 HP ratings). I don't know if RUF has a "Dakara" badge for 530/550/570 conversion. For now, I'm considering going badge-less.

Cannoli

I spoke to RUF Auto Centre today and asked how many Dakara conversions they have performed in the States so far ... here's the breakdown:

530 - none

550 - 4 total, in order of conversion
#1 - SF Bay Area
#2 - Cannoli (Me)
#3 - Dallas Metro
#4 - Dallas Metro

570 - 1 total
#1 - SF Bay Area

Considering all the CTTs I see in California (~25% of the Cayennes I see are CTTs), I'm actually surprised (though very happy) there are not as many Dakaras around.

sigs

I am surprised at those low numbers, too. I wonder if they have done some "semi-conversions," though, when I talked to them, it was all (turbos, chips, exhaust, etc.) or nothing.

There are probably some reasons why so few, - some valid, some maybe not. As I recall, they were asking $26k for a reported boost of 100 hp. This was in relation to $19k for the Porsche Powerkit (introduced in early '05), which was only 50 hp, but also included brake and suspension mods, and kept warranty intact (Ruf work obviously would void the PAG warranty and I believe Ruf offered only a one-year warranty). The PowerKit only promised 500hp, but early dyno testers found it to be more like 520-530. This seemed to be verified when the CTTS came out with a reported 521 hp and a few folks apparently broke down the pieces-parts and programming to find it identical to the PowerKit (see other posts on this forum). So then it became an equation of price-power-warranty, and many of us decided to stick with PAG-approved and warrantied versions, while others just wanting more hp and not caring about the warranty had other, cheaper aftermarket options.

Now, as ltc will tell you, PAG sold precious few PowerKits, because folks generally thought it was too expensive, as well. When faced with such an overestimate of demand, PAG did what the new PAG is wont to do, and just incorporated all those leftover parts into the end-of-model-cycle "upgrade" to the CTTS, at a "bargain rate" (compared to the PowerKit).

None of this is to say that Ruf doesn't make a great product, and may be, in some ways, significantly better than the PAG-OEM versions - it just came at a high price back then and few people wanted to take a chance on a one-year warranty. Hopefully, you are getting the advantage of what should be dramatic depreciation and at least some form of a warranty.

It is a beautiful beast. Enjoy the ride.

Marine Blue

Congrats Norm!

Welcome to Porsche ownership. Looking forward to reading some details and getting a few more pics.

Cannoli

Thanks Af ... we went on our first excursion - the Getty Villa. Beautiful day, great venue, and an awesome vehicle. Believe it or not, we averaged 15.7 MPG on the trip with 4 adults! It was SO difficult not to put my foot into it!

I'm sending the CTT to the dealership for a baseline inspection and then will be looking for an AWD dyno in the neighborhood to really see what it can do.

Can anyone recommend a shop in the greater L.A. area (LA/OC/SD) to have it dyno'd?