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The 996 search - The Chronicles of Ken


daveyoul
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  • 3 weeks later...

One job that has been on the list since I purchased Ken was to do the dreaded radiator clean. Have read plenty of stories implying small children could get lost down there, so had to check it for myself. What better thing to do on a stinking hot and smoky day... 

A quick YouTube search, check Pelican... how hard can it be... and I hit the garage. 

Turns out that it is actually pretty easy - bumper came off with relative ease, pulled off the shroud to reveal a significant amount of crud, dirt, leaves etc. Pulled the condenser off to reveal even more muck. A gentle brush and clean up, followed by putting everything back together. No spare parts... so must have done a reasonable job! 

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Bumper came off... to reveal...

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and...

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Each side nearly filled a dustpan. 

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And just to prove it all went back together again! If only it wasn't also now covered in ash... 

Highly recommended for any relatively new 996 owner @JWM@MFX

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1 hour ago, daveyoul said:

Yes, well spotted. It is a Gt3 / aerokit front bar. Thought it might be non genuine, but has a Porsche part number stamped inside. 

If it is plastic then it is most likely genuine. Aftermarket ones I suspect would mostly be fibreglass.

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  • 1 month later...

I had been looking forward to this weekend for a long time. A pilgrimage to "the mountain" to support and cheer for Porsche for the first time AS a Porsche owner! 

A variety of responsibilities, chores etc meant that it was only going to be a whirlwind trip up and back in the day... but no matter, it was going to be fun! Ken had an extra spit and polish ready for an early start Sunday morning. We wouldn't make it for the start, but would be there before 7 to enjoy the majority chunk of the day. 

The run up the Bells road before 5am in the morning reminded me why I've been thinking about trying to install a "stealth" light bar, recessed in the spot for a centre radiator. The lights are shocking, and high beam barely any better. Lower speed limits are still in place for much of the road - 60km/h, so it was a doddle, even at 5am. The most remarkable part of the journey was noticing the air temperature hovering at about 31 degrees at this time. That, and the knuckleheads that would go flying past in a 60 zone, only to then hold me up when we got to the 80. 

About 5km before Lithgow rounding an innocuous right hander, probably about 50 metres behind one of those aforementioned knuckleheads it happened. A dead skippy in the middle of the road, not enough time to react once I'd seen him, so we went straight over the top. Numerous cars had probably already gone over the top without a problem... but not us. Pulling off to the left for a look just after confirmed my worst fears - the thing had made a mess of the bumper skin and front plastics, and worse, there was coolant piddling everywhere. Day over, before it had properly begun. 

To say I was annoyed was an understatement. Nobody to blame but myself. Cruising along, sticking to the speed limit, and just not paying attention well enough. Would better lights have helped? Maybe... but as I keep telling my 10 yo son - when you make a mistake, you've gotta take responsibility, so that's what I'm doing. Five hours sitting on the side of the road waiting for my mate to come and pick us up was plenty of time for reflection - and admiring the car from the rear - couldn't see any damage from there! 

Of course the important part is that we're all ok and at the end of the day the car is just a lump of metal and plastic (albeit very nicely crafted!) that can be fixed and replaced. It is at the panelbeater already and have great confidence that Ken will come back looking better than ever, with a greater awareness of nature's chicanes... and maybe even a hidden lightbar. 

 

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A little while later in daylight, decided to get some pics of location and Skippy for insurance if needed. 

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Some of the damage...

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Nothing to see here... waiting... waiting

Actually highlight of the wait was seeing some of the Group S 911s from the support categories of the 12 hour on trailers heading back to Sydney.

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That's crap Dave, I had a glancing blow with skip a few months back, took the opportunity for a good refresh, car looks a million bucks now.

Re the headlights, I gave them a good polish and put in some Philips 12V H7 55W 130 X-Treme bulbs and they're fine.

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5 hours ago, TINGY996 said:

Agreed the lights on these cars are horrendous, i have been thinking the same as you mate, a nice little led light bar tucked away at the front, good luck with the repairs @daveyoul

Ha ha, I thought you were talking about the shape.  I had a 911S that I drove on low beam.  High beam was useless, had to get out with a torch to see whether they were on 😁

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Thanks all, yes, pristine new bumper coming up... Will look at getting a couple of other bits and pieces touched up while at the panel beater and maybe a ppf after. 

Skip was moved, however the idea of a BBQ never occurred to me... No fresh firewood there though, everything already burnt! Did consider taking home some pre-tenderised fillets though! 

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6 hours ago, DT said:

That's crap Dave, I had a glancing blow with skip a few months back, took the opportunity for a good refresh, car looks a million bucks now.

Re the headlights, I gave them a good polish and put in some Philips 12V H7 55W 130 X-Treme bulbs and they're fine.

I did put some globes/bulbs whatever they are in but it didn't change anything, might have to try this type. 

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  • 11 months later...

Wow, it's been nearly 12 months since I've updated. 

Ken returned from the panel beaters looking brilliant. A large number of cooling system components were also replaced as part of the job - so not all bad. (Still haven't done anything about the lighting situation though)

Since then there's actually been very little to report. Regular maintenance has been done and we've just clocked up some kms. 

Had a fun drive with some mates in November, so put some new Michelin PS4 on before that - really happy with them. We're just over 280000km now - looking forward to seeing that 300k mark tick over - probably sometime around the middle of next year. 

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Absolutely @JWM - hasn't been out of the garage much over the past 7 or 8 weeks, but will ramp up more again now as I've got a 300km round trip once a week for work now. 

I figure that kind of usage will be pretty much perfect for it. Everything gets warmed up nicely, a chance to stretch the legs and just enjoy driving. Certainly makes the work day much easier to face when you're getting up early in the morning and you know what's waiting in the garage. 

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