Minke Posted 14June Report Share Posted 14June Hi Everyone, Very soon to be a first time Porsche owner. I've just had a PPI report and there's nothing that's stopping it going forward. PPI has listed a few areas of interest that can be addressed over time (weeping drive shaft seal, v. minor hydraulic leak from the hose connection and will likely get that done first ) One that has come up is there's some knocking from the front/rear suspension when driving. Rear bump stops have ghosted the car (gone). While talking to the team that did the PPI they recommended to do a full suspension replacement at some point down the road. Bring it back to new. Don't do bits here/there as it costs to get in/out each time. I think they were talking about everything being replaced. Dampers strut tops Swaybar links arms bushes etc.. It currently sporting have Koni sports in the rear (10 years old) but their recomendation was Bilstein B4 all around (and post phone call with them have discovered that they are a reseller) So, as one does, I started researching. B4... hmm.. B6? Pelican parts have the B6 cheaper than the B4s The car is going to rarely hit the track (once a year? if that?) It will mainly do country km on that classic back roads that no one uses. So I want a good ride and not one that will shake the car to bits. What have others done to keep the car very near the original or slightly outside of original without ending up being bone jarringly stiff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomo Posted 14June Report Share Posted 14June I have had 3 Porka's with modified suspension and 1 standard, I would have the standard setup every time, But if your a track rat your needs may be different. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwoHeadsTas Posted 15June Report Share Posted 15June As per my reply to your FB post, H & R lowering springs (or other brand) lowering 30mm + standard everything else is an easy do, and juts makes it sit nicely without degrading the ride quality.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Russ Posted 15June Report Share Posted 15June 3 hours ago, TwoHeadsTas said: As per my reply to your FB post, H & R lowering springs (or other brand) lowering 30mm + standard everything else is an easy do, and juts makes it sit nicely without degrading the ride quality.... Bilstein makes B8 shocks specifically designed for lowering springs too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndrewM Posted 15June Report Share Posted 15June I went through this about 2 years ago. As this was my first Porsche, I decided to stay as standard as possible to get a better of understanding how it was designed to handle. Replaced all the control arms, engine and gearbox mounts, and the shocks were replaced with B6s. Autohaus did all the work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrera28 Posted 15June Report Share Posted 15June If you decide to go with lower than stock and your car has the enlarged sump I would highly recommend getting one of the L&N Engineering sump guards. https://lnengineering.com/bilt-racing-911-2-quart-deep-sump-stainless-steel-guard-plate.html The enlarged sump is quite vulnerable with lowered ride height and can easily hit as you go over a speed hump. I have cracked my enlarged sump twice and ended up getting the stainless steel guard. Of course the guard makes the lowest point of the car even lower so it scrapes more easily but at least its now scraping on the guard as opposed to the sump. Also check out your drive way to make sure that you can get the car in and out comfortably. My drive way is steepish and it means I have to be very careful getting in and out to avoid scraping both the front and the back, luckily my driveway is wide enough to come in and out on an angle as I would not clear it going straight. Plus petrol stations take judgement and you quickly learn what sort of driveways you can and cannot use. A good set of coilovers will be stiff, but well engineered and they manage rebound nicely so it will not crash too much. My car is lowered and fitted with stiffer coilovers and spends its life doing country and highway drives and lowered stiffer suspension is great fun and provides a comfortable drive when doing highway drives and is amazing on tight twisty corners and sweeping corners. It is a Sunday car and I like the car having a slight touch of drama. Of course I daily drive an old Type R with Recaros which is stiff and unforgiving, interestingly my 996 is actually stiffer but the suspension is much better tuned and better manages rebound and is less skittish across mildly bumpy roads, so despite being stiffer it provides a more comfortable ride in most circumstances. However, when the road is potholed, broken up or corrugated from trucks the ride on my 996 is miserable and I have drive like an old man to avoid bottoming out and it is most unpleasant. I cannot recall a passenger complaining about the ride quality or not wanting to come for a drive in the country in my 996. Personally I think passenger comfort is paramount in a car like the 996, I love being able to use it for a weekend away in the country or a driving holiday and would hate to be doing some great country roads in a boring SUV because my significant other hates riding in or driving my 996. I bought the car set up this way, if I was to start from scratch I would still go for stiffer than stock coilovers, that are road biased, but I would consider not going too low and would ideally like height adjustable so that I could get it to a level that removes most of the hassle but also does not look like a 4x4. Personally if starting from scratch I would ask myself these questions: i) The comfort preferences of your significant other ii) Steepness of your drive way iii) Quality of the roads you expect to drive iv) Frequency that you drive the car Your answers to these questions will hopefully help you to make the right choice for your circumstances regarding ideal stiffness and ride height. So long as you don't go for something crazy, I don't think it is possible to ruin your car if you do the suspension with a specialist, who will hopefully steer you away from crazy choices, whatever option you select it will be noticeably better than your current set up, which sounds tired, and you will have a nicely set up car to enjoy for many years. crsedge, JWM and Russ 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomo Posted 17June Report Share Posted 17June Plus 1 on the sump guard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
911CSR Posted 18June Report Share Posted 18June I have fully redone the suspension on my 996.2 C4S Tried Bilsteins w/ H&R's as well as AST coilovers. Both good but not great. Running Ohlins now and WOW!!! Totally changed the car. Added Eibach sway bars and its what I think is perfect. Ohlins come with Elephant Racing strut tops, which are well worth it. Coilover's allow you to properly dial in the heights etc. Replaced the old bushes with Powerflex or new Meyle parts. Does increase NVH but I don't mind it, your milage may vary. Definitely replace engine mounts, this solved a weight transfer issue on cornering as the old ones were SHOT!!! Sump guard, I have one but took it off and am thinking of replicating in kevlar/carbon as the aluminium one resonates like HELL!!! JWM 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JWM Posted 18June Report Share Posted 18June Interesting that you'd been able to try all three setups, that's great info. 9 minutes ago, 911CSR said: Definitely replace engine mounts, this solved a weight transfer issue on cornering as the old ones were SHOT!!! Second this very much ... I did the engine and gearbox mounts on my 996 prior to refreshing the suspension and it made a huge difference to the handling and NVH ... was like a new car (more so after the suspension of course). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joz Posted 18June Report Share Posted 18June Which Ohlin setup? I assume there is more than one? oh and what is NVH? 😊 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrera28 Posted 18June Report Share Posted 18June NVH = Noise, Vibration and Harshness. Noise: the sound propagation caused by a specific object, such as the hum of an opening sunroof, an engine, a door being slammed, an HVAC system, or seat belt buckle clicks. Vibration: the oscillations that occur at a certain frequency. In a car, vibrations can be felt at different speeds through the steering wheel, seat, armrests, floor, and pedals. Harshness: the subjective quality associated with noise and vibration. While both noise and vibration are quantifiable measurements, harshness deals with the discomfort of hearing unpleasant sounds. What is harsh to one person may not be harsh to another. Joz 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smit2100 Posted 19June Report Share Posted 19June On 18/06/2024 at 15:45, Joz said: Which Ohlin setup? I assume there is more than one? oh and what is NVH? 😊 I have Ohlins road and track on my 996 turbo. Car did a whopping 25m on the first set and then got a worldwide defect recall on the front coilovers. Ohlins tracked my workshop down and supplied new front replacement coilovers , paid for installation and as part of the engineered solution to address the defect they supplied elephant racing top mounts. That all said, I wouldn't just put coilovers on and drop the ride height without being able to adjust camber and toe. Tyres just get premature wear. I went down the rabbit hole of gt3 lower adjustable control arms with shims, tarret adjustable rear toe links, gt3 rear sway bar. tarret front sway bar links. i wouldn't go tarret again as the front clearance is bugger all needs a set install procedure to prevent binding. I am considering replacing the front stock stock 996 turbo sway bar with a gt3 adjustable and elephant racing sway bar links Bit of a difference between the above setup and factory setup. Like others have posted , changeout of 20 plus year old engine and tranny mounts make a difference particularly if you have a left pedal. You are missing that key part no. on your 996 aren't you. Front splitter on my 996 I always considered as a consumable even with stock suspension, but lets just say with the ohlins setup I have, the downside is that part needs replacing more regularly as driveways in particular lack consistency when it comes to build quality and design. TwoHeadsTas 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dan_189 Posted 20June Report Share Posted 20June Go KW they are the best Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woot woot Posted 21June Report Share Posted 21June If you want to go local for coil overs. Try shockworks in Vic. You can tell them what set up you intend to use it for and let you test it before sending you on your way. They have grey reviews and can do all installation, corner weight, alignment and have great reviews. They have done a few from the Porsche range Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minke Posted 2September Author Report Share Posted 2September On 21/06/2024 at 14:40, woot woot said: If you want to go local for coil overs. Try shockworks in Vic. You can tell them what set up you intend to use it for and let you test it before sending you on your way. They have grey reviews and can do all installation, corner weight, alignment and have great reviews. They have done a few from the Porsche range I'm just circling back to this and I've just had a chat with Shockworks. Anyone using them on their 996/997? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minke Posted 7September Author Report Share Posted 7September Well I've decided on Shockworks and replace all the arms. We shall see. Chris @Shockworks needs to build them. 911CSR 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndrewM Posted 20September Report Share Posted 20September Nice! Would love an update when you are done! 911CSR 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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