The first boxer motor. Had a nice on-cam rush. A simple car that handled well. Also has an Alfa 33 work car. Not nearly as much character.

BTW: off to Pirongia on Friday to get my seat and harness bar fitted. Anything you want photographed etc for your project?

Harness bar? Are you getting a 4-6 point harness fitted John? If so we expect to see a couple of daves and a few maccas improvement by next time out at HD with the new seats and harness LOL! - no pressure then...

History = 16 cars + 2 bikes. Excludes wife cars...

Highlights-

205 gti
968 6spd
993
993RS
996.1 GT3
991 GT3 new
BMW M5
Ducati 996
WRX 1998 New
Audi Porsche RS2 avant
Suzuki DRZ 400

Lowlights-

Holden Barina (back from OE broke)
Commer van (at Uni started my first business, painting houses, needed van once I had a team)
Celica (first sports car, was 3 years old hwen bought and the same model as teh WRC car but without turbo ST101?)
Prelude VVTI new (was in sales got a car allowance and blew it after Celica - was first and only V-tec car - was wedge shaped model, nice but uninspiring).
Subaru legacy RSK B4 (big mistake was auto/tipo and crap transmission - b ought it to fight traffic regretted it later)
Audio 100 (university purchase before commer van, was $400 on the side of the road as it had cracked head gasket came with sheaf of bills - should have guessed why! Ran it in overheating mode till engine was seized and shopped it to the wrecker for what I paid for it. It was 1980 model, auto too, real lux barge in its day and cool shape).
Holden Rodeo twin cab Vanuatu auto - enough said!

Yes, Steve has fabricated a bar to meet my needs (seat back is well behind B Pillar). After my ride in his race car it's clear that confidence and comfort when pedalling harder will require more than comfort seats and 3 point seat belts. Not sure whether it will be a 4 or 6 point harness, i'll let Steve decide. I already know there will be drilling for lap belt anchor points, just not sure whether the anti-sub belt is part of the plan. The seats are quite narrow so there will be ample room for fittings.

We will also talk about future plans i.e. suspension and engine chip, however as I wrote recently, the car is reaching an interim development plateau. In 9 months I've taken a roughish ugly duckling, and created my swan. The seats and harness bar will push the total 'investment' to twice the purchase price, but I'm very happy with where I'm at with it.

Go forward say three years and it will be the only Porsche in my garage, the Turbo 3.6 will be in the UK or HK and the 996TT will be some else's DD. By then I may have started on the next journey which is a backdate. The core car has had so much sorted I'd be crazy to start with a new base.

For others reading and posterity this is what the car has had done before and after my ownership, as of 31/12/13

Fitted before purchase:

RUF HD Bilstein shocks and springs
RUF front and rear ARBs
RUF primary muffler bypass and split tail pipe
RUF strut brace
Lightweight flywheel and RS Clutch
Gembella pedal covers
Porsche exclusive gear knob and handbrake
High level brake light
Aero mirrors

Fitted/fixed in last 9 months (excluding consumables) that have doubled the purchase price:

Full engine rebuild
New clutch
New clutch primary and master cylinders
New clutch hydraulic hose
Replace pedal set (clutch engagement too early)
New oil lines (big 3 and 4 small ones)
Fix front and rear diff actuators (rear was seized)
Fit new fan belt sensor
Reconditioned starter motor
New hydraulic pressure switch
Replace hydraulic accumulator
Repair cracked planetary gear and weld in pins
Fix stripped odometer gear wheel
Fit right rear light ex Turbo 3.6
Momo Mod07 steering wheel
RSR seats
Harness Belts
17" Fuchs with 6mm rear spacers
Brake ducts
Ducktail
Engine mounts
2x gearshift bushes

What a journey so far. Really just suspension, windscreen and backdate to come, then it will be good for another 20 years. I'll take this car to the end of my days....

Great to se the passion in this project John and I have no doubt you will hold it for a long while (you have good history to support this notion and your name isnt Pete or David LOL!). Once you have your seating sorted and your brakes/suspension (Im guessing your brakes may need a review as you get below 1.20 as others have found) you will have a perfect platform for a panel strip down and full remodel and repaint to backdating status. Like the 993 I have found this process of constant refinement and improvement very satisfying over the years always with the benefit of knowing exactly what has been done before and therefore having the confidence of a reliable platform on which to base further changes. For me 2014 brings only a brake and wheel upgrade (OZ HLT). Unfortunately although I have the Big Red brakes discs, ancillaries, rear RS capipers etc in my possession the plan has been thwarted temporarily by Porsche being "out of stock awaiting manufacturer) for the big red front calipers even though they are paid for and were understood to be on there way! I even have the MX72 endless pads on the shelf awaiting installation so remains to be seen if the front calipers arrive in time for SITT (I hope so as the current set up will only likely just make it through such an event). For the 993, thats pretty much it for 2014. I have in my sights getting the engine rebuilt by a specialist in the USA for 2015 but its a big ticket proposition (380-400 bhp, 997 Cup centre exhaust and custom race headers with M82 Motec) so it will likely need a financial windfall or a full engine melt down to make this happen! The car budegt in 2014 looks like its mostly gone already on SITT, NITT & targa events!!

In the meantime the 991 GT3 continues to thrill, and luckily I still have around 1200km of European roads to enjoy it. Dodging rain and wind today and yesterday so not much to update in that regard, although I have a few more photos on the way and will capture some decent footage before she gets shipped to godszone. 16 C in St Tropez and wet today.

John, have you thought about converting to a 2WD to pull out 70-od kg's. This is an easy second at HD,

This is quite understandable Macca, as participating in these 3 events will cost you $20K alone...never mind car maintenance or upgrades.........

It has been in the back of my mind since Scott let slip he has a 993 6sp box under his house. That said I would likely look at that when I'm under 1:20 and out of ideas, plus it would make sense while it's being backdated and out of action for a while. Just as I found during the rebuild, it's frustrating being out of action while work's being done.

One rider to the above is the real world C2 vs C4 performance difference. I seem to get better drive out of the slow corners with the C4 than Dave does on the C2 (big assumption based on a limited observations) and it helps on wet track days. As a potential car for life it may be a step too far.

This is awesome John - I feel especially lucky to end up relatively down the road from someone working to turn another white C4 into his keeper. I recall seeing your first posts at acquisition trying to make out what the previous wheels and ducts were all about.

I've taken notes from your other thread upgrades/fixes and have added them to my ToDo list. I've been through a number of the same deferred & neglected items and next hope to do more perf/track related mods. Me so far:
Rebuilt A/C sans compressor
Heater blower motor bypass
H4 lenses (us DOT is bleh)
Aero mirrors
All exterior lights are LED.
5-light rear brake light conversion
Cup intake
Fabspeed eurocat & dual exit exhaust (fvd bumper section)
Actuator seal :)
Bilstein HD & H&R springs
Drilled rotors
OZ allegeritas
Solid motor mounts
New plug wires
aluminum valve covers
Front strut bar
Rennline pedals & board
Rebuilt shifter
GT3 road seats
RS door panels
RAID airbag steering wheel
Windshield

Real trick will be how soon I'll be following you into an engine rebuild, as I'm at 144k miles with a reseal done at 60k miles. Valves were in good shape at last adjustment (3 months ago) & I burn average oil. I'm optimistic but realistic that after a few sessions at the track I may be catching a trailer down to Dan & Steve...

Only one way to find out, right? :)

C

John, really interesting reading about your progress with the 964 development. I agree with Macca about your vision for the car with the end game making it a lifer. And while making it quick on the track is nice, its more important to make it what you want, eg keeping the 4wd and it's weight because it suits your long term use of the car. If it was just about the track we'd be buying cars like Petes or Steve's race cars.

Looking forward to following more of your journey.

That's some list and had given me a few more ideas. I'll be doing a Dave ninja inspection when I see it. I think I have the 5 light brake conversion as well. Are you planning to be there on the 11th and go out on your own for the first time? Going out an empty track is a bit daunting but quickly becomes like a second home.

Weight is certainly a factor in speed around the track but so are cojones and skill. I'll get there.

As for development it's the part I enjoy, not just the end result. I'm not as confident as Chris in working on my mechanicals but I do electronics and DIY. If you think Porsches are fun, try getting the 'sound' right on the Water Feature you built from scratch! Five iterations to get it right. Happy wife, happy life!!

Been reading a 964 backdate thread and came across this German company who now have a 964 backdate kit

http://germancarscene.com/2013/04/15...-back-in-time/

The 5-light made me feel less likely to get rear ended by a Ford F350 or SUV.

Odds are I'll just be out part day to spectate, too many variables piling up against me. Certification should be done week of the 6th unless repairs needed, sort Prestigio, household goods delivery and MIL 70th bday on the 11th.

I wish I had a cage so I could take an experienced person with me first time out, but I may just need to make up a sticker as below. :)

<--- PASS ME --->

Love the water feature -- it is a bit of work to get it from annoying dribbling sound to relaxing water experience, isn't it? I can still recall installing a shower basin and learning why the trap should be immediately below the basin, and not even a mere 6" lower ... sorry -- x2.54 = ~15cm! (I'm working on it...)

It's a lot of trial and error. Water falling directly into water sounds like a bath filling up. Not relaxing. You can change the depth of the fall, but it's still the same base sound. The secret is to have the water fall on to a solid surface. If you get the fall on to a perfectly spherical object there is no noise unless you upset the flow. Then you adjust the noise level wanted and hope the pump pressure stays the same. We had fountains in Indonesia so it was on my wife's wish list to have one in NZ. Sorted, now I can get back to my man cave and plot the next car improvement.