CurtisRider

Get ready for the rear shocks then I'm modifying some Saab 9-3 rear sport shocks (cos I'm cheap, they are new and I have them knocking about) and adding an assister spring to them to give me the option of stiffening the back end up a touch as my car has a torsion setup. On a less exciting part of my car, the massive jubilee clamp I was using to hold on my back box whilst searching for a proper strap decided to fail within the first few meters of my girlfriend attempting to drive the Porsche (perhaps the cars way of saying no?). I figured I should get bending and make a strap that is actually beefy enough to hold it! I used a rolling jig and then some riv nuts on the top half to secure into. My Dansk exhaust has yet another crack in it and the tip is trying to part way again! Useless things but sound so good!

I'm just making it up as I go along, It's really not that hard! But thanks anyway

Nearly finished building my coilovers! Just some painting and another top collar to turn on the lathe I just have some inserts to make for the shorter dampers, and I'm currently painting the upper mounting. I have some helper springs if I decide I want to go lower, but I don't really want to go super low. These may not end up being what I want but at least it has been fun making them :cool: And my car hanging out at a local meet with a 944 turbo

Does anybody on here know which Op Com to go for? I want to fit cruise control but I don't fancy paying a dealer to activate it if I can buy Op Com for the same price or less. Bought myself some Thule aero bars for the Astra this evening, now I don't have to take the bikes on the Porsche all the time I just need 2 more bike mounts to add to my other 2 and I can take a car load of people riding

That sucks I can only do the August 18th and 24th dates, otherwise i'll be back at school and not able to do weekdays

YES Robin, how much did you spend in the end?

Can't do that right now I was hoping to do that over winter but with uncertainties about where i'll be living and where the car will be stored it leaves me stuck with this one for another year as I can't really be having the car immobile. I'll whack a new cam with adjustable pulley, a larger throttle body and rebuild the last bits of the injection system, should be good for 140+hp going by others experiences which will do for now I'm getting rid of the rear seats which saves a bunch of weight!

Back on the road again! Rebuilt radiator Fresh bobbin for the alternator mount as the old one had fallen apart Engine bay is looking more and more like new Lots more to do though, 1 more week to go and I have 7 weeks off so hopefully I can get some stuff done to this old thing

Lol at not modifying this one I'm back in Suffolk soon dude, need to hook up :kiss:

In that case I may as well just get a longer spring if there is anything to gain from it? It is a weekend car but sometimes I use it to go to work as I get bored of the daily oil burner, and I do 3/6 hour trips in it every so often

Suspension so far, just waiting on my coilover sleeves. Mk2 Golf shocks are an inch shorter and fit comfortably which is a bonus! Headlight intake thingy, needs a quick blob of paint and fitting properly to get a better idea of how it'll look

I need help deciding on springs for my Porsche. Currently I have some FK springs with what appear to be approximately 400lb springs, this is perhaps a touch too hard for my car... bearing in mind my transmission is in the boot and it's hardly a heavy a car anyway. Stock springs are 170lbs from a bit of research, and two people on the Porsche forum have recommended 280lb for smooth road and 300lb+ for track. I don't really encounter smooth roads that often but don't want quite as soft a ride as my current stock springs. Should I go for 225 or 250lb springs? I have FK helper springs too, not sure if that makes any difference though going by stuff I have read on forums. I will have 7"springs with 4" helpers if that information is of any use! I'm not sure if I should just go for 10.5" springs instead?

Refitted some parts, waiting on an alternator bobbin and my radiator to arrive. Cleaned coolant tank and painted mounting New waterpump, painted pulley and thermostat housing Engine bay just keeps getting that little bit neater, fresh belts going on too whilst I'm there

I know folk who would be interested too

Hopefully found a compatible condenser for £50 posted new, then AC charge is £40 so not as bad as I had initially thought but It'll have to wait until the Porsche is back on the road and happily working! Whilst waiting for the refurbished radiator I have been cleaning the Porsches engine bay and tarting up bits and bobs, replacing bolts where possible so it's all nice and fresh. I have also sorted out some wiring and made that all a bit neater. Possibly need a new bobbin on the alternator mount..

I had my radiator flow tested yesterday, it's very blocked The guy will get me a proper quote on Monday but he said to expect it to be between £100-£200, although that should cure my cooling issues and it'll be far superior to what the car would have been fitted with as standard. Whilst I wait I have loads of new parts to fit and I'm cleaning/refurbishing parts as I go so the engine bay is going to look pretty good I hope! I'm surprised by how clean it all is inside on the rest of the system, I guess all the crap must have built up in the radiator? I had my AC checked on the Astra yesterday too, I have a split condensor. So that's another load of money and work to sort, eurgh!

Good stuff Mike! I managed to get an hour spare to pull apart my cooling system on the Porsche. Flushing out the engine has not shown any noticeable poop (as expected really), however flushing the radiator has in the form of limescale looking stuff and ome grime, however it is now running nice and clear after flushing in every hole there is. Is there any reason why I can't fill the rad with white vinegar to break down the crud whilst its off the car and then flush it all out? It certainly looks cleaner inside but I'm guessing those little tubes behind the fins will look like heart diseased arteries. Ideally a radiator recore would happen but I can't afford it right now The rad looks to be in good condition and I think is fairly new (past 10 or so years) so I'd rather try and get it useable ready for a fresh rad when I have the money. I also tested the thermostat and the radiator fan switch using a saucepan, some water and a temp gun, both are working fine it seems. I do have a new thermostat coming along with a fresh waterpump as they are cheap enough that I may as well change them whilst everything is apart.

What's the spring rate for those cheapy MK4 Golf platform coilovers? I have some springs from some which i'll use temporarily but it is handy to know what they are so I have something to gauge from!

I just got a pair of brand new MK2 golf gas shock inserts for my budget coilover build £12 including delivery from GSF! They are shorter than the Porsche ones so hopefully I won't have issues when jacking the car up and they won't die from being half compressed all the time. I will save up for some decent shocks all round over winter

Heat shield is on my starter now, hopefully it'll be ok, it starts after about 15mins of letting it cool if the engine gets super hot like it has been. My car got into the red again today and didn't want get out of it even when moving, the gauge moved back and fourth every so often in tiny increments. Does this suggest the thermostat is being intermittent and therefore faulty? I assumed they either worked or they didn't! I'm going to take the radiator off this weekend and give it a flush out just as a precaution, I was wondering if there is sediment in there and it's not able to keep the engine cool once it gets really hot. I need to replace a coolant pipe as it's corroded heavily on the outside (was fine inside last time I checked) so I may as well clean the rad whilst everything is apart.

How much difference does that stuff really make? My manifold gets rather hot and bakes loads of stuff near it

Car got a little bit hot today....hopefully get to tinker this coming weekend and get fixing the sod! It wouldn't start after i turned the engine off waiting in traffic, the starters very close to the manifold and has no heat shield so I guess I had better get fitting the heat mat stuff I bought bloody ages ago! I have ordered some coilover sleeves and a c spanner ready for converting some spare strut bodies, already got some coils and lock rings from some old golf coilovers that I can use and then start experimenting with spring rates, no idea what I need so I'll investigate that

I'm wondering if I need to remove my fan switch and test it in hot water, I have a temp gun so can see when it actually kicks in. On another note, I have a new insurance policy so this means I can now do more things to my car....yyeeeeeessss!!

Yup fan kicks in, it's pulling air better than the previous one too. Dunno what the stat is rated to, it just sits on the middle marker just like every other car i've owned, always assumed its 90 degrees!