My 996 Carrera 4
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Discussion

DanoS4

Original Poster:

869 posts

223 months

Thursday 10th January 2013
quotequote all
Haven't put up a gallery yet, despite owning the car for about 4 months now!! Too busy driving it!

Thought I'd do a running post on it......

When I picked it up...... You all said that that first drive home will be memorable. It was and I still remember it vividly!!


On the drive.






Here's the option codes for it:-


As can be seen, nothing outrageous - a "cooking" Porsche!

First mod was done its soon as I got home. Was politely informed that the bottom line is just to line it up :floor: oops!



Next was to remove the woeful PCM1 system.


I had a great system in my last car, so started to put it in the Porsche. A double-din Pioneer F900bt with modded OS.

Also wanted a cubby hole, so found one. For those that don't know, there are 2 cubby holes, depending on where you want it in the centre console.

Here it is installed -



And with the gratuitous marque-related splash screen! biggrin



I've also put in the Alpine speakers in all 4 grilles. Verdict? Better, but still not quite there, so a sub will be going in soon.

In the meantime, my desire was to address any issues raised in the PPI (conducted by GTOne in Chertsey).
Nothing serious was found (yeh), but I've started documenting the restoration.

Aero-wipers have been installed all round.

The drivers wing mirror wasn't heating up, so a new one was ordered. Wen swapping, I think I've found why it wasn't working.....





Wow.


I've also cleaned up the rear, with changing all bulbs over to led. (Work in progress)

So what's left to do?

Alternator needs replacing
New exhaust(!) -was going to happen anyway wink
Front diff is slightly "wet". Seal will need doing this year.
Wheels need refurbish. Full re spray due to wheel weights tearing off paint.

Service in the summer.

And that's about it (so far!)

Will update as I do stuff smile

DanoC4

Edited by DanoS4 on Thursday 10th January 19:37

spaceship

922 posts

204 months

Thursday 10th January 2013
quotequote all
Very nice. Like that a lot.

Tasteful mods and worthwhile maintenance too.

cool

P.s new gear knob looks like could be a good shout too. wink

Edited by spaceship on Thursday 10th January 19:44

zabba

2,274 posts

244 months

Thursday 10th January 2013
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Lovely car cool

anonymous-user

83 months

Thursday 10th January 2013
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Very nice thumbup

Remagel2507

1,456 posts

221 months

Thursday 10th January 2013
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Lovely car OP hope you enjoy it, I have the same head unit it my car, can I ask how you loaded the modified OS on to it and what are the benefits?

Jamirecluse

465 posts

180 months

Thursday 10th January 2013
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Like the look, wheels and darker lights really suit it.

billzeebub

3,911 posts

228 months

Thursday 10th January 2013
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Beautiful car, looks like you're doing it right. Congrats

DanoS4

Original Poster:

869 posts

223 months

Friday 11th January 2013
quotequote all
Thanks for the positive comments smile

It's my first Porsche (but unlikely to be the last!) - the 996 gets a bad-enough rep without having further dodgy examples on the market! biggrin
It's my intention that it will aid a sale if everything is documented as I do it, so instilling confidence. Plus it might make an interesting read!

I just want it to be a tasteful car.

The F900bt modded OS is available on the AVIC411.com website. They can be a funny lot, but there's some good people on the site. The "Daftia" mod is one of the more popular upgrades. You can't take it to the latest firmware (yet), but there seems to be a lot of modding to get the best bits of each OS. After all, it's only Windows CE.

At the same time, I took my Ipod Video to pieces and ripped out the Hard Drive. I put in a Compact Flash adapter, and a 32gig cf card. It will take a 64gig, but I'll see how I fill this one. The BIG pros are the battery lasts for AGES (no moving parts) and it is SUPER light biggrin

Next is a new front windscreen (spidering chip), and then some LED augmentation for the crappy bulbs.

Dan smile

Neil G60

697 posts

253 months

Friday 11th January 2013
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I did the same to my car, got a nice discrete up-to-date stereo installed and tidied up the exterior (re-sprayed bumpers and wheel refurb). OE is the way forward with a car which looks good from the start.

Altrezia

8,739 posts

240 months

Friday 11th January 2013
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Gorgeous

djdestiny

6,542 posts

207 months

Friday 11th January 2013
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Im guessing you had an Audi S4 in the past?
If so, how does the 996 compare?
Ive had S4's and currently an RS4 which I LOVE, but keep having an itch for one of these....

p4cks

7,479 posts

228 months

Friday 11th January 2013
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Lovely aren't they. Just got one for myself smile

DanoS4

Original Poster:

869 posts

223 months

Friday 11th January 2013
quotequote all
Thanks for the comments.

Yeh had an S4 Avant. Comparison-wise, there is no comparison. 996 blows it out of the water.
Mine was lightly modded, but it was still a glorified barge, with a serious lack of steering feel.

Great car, and much more "useful", but it wasn't a Porsche.

Nearly went for a RS4, but decided against it. Went to VW instead.

Dansmile

zabba

2,274 posts

244 months

Sunday 13th January 2013
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Do you mind if I ask what sort of checks/inspection you got before purchase? I like the idea of the value these offer but the engine issues would always be at the back of my mind.

DanoS4

Original Poster:

869 posts

223 months

Sunday 13th January 2013
quotequote all
Don't mind at allsmile

I got a PPI (Pre Purchase Inspection) done at GT-One in Chertsey, as it was local to my seller. I bought my car long distance (imho, you will have to travel to find the right one - I looked at 9!)
GT-One were fantastic.
They went over the car with a fine tooth-comb and documented everything that they thought was wrong with the car. I had a discussion the guys there, and they advised a "dynamic" approach to the inspection ie if they found concerning stuff, they would dig deeper. I thought this was pretty fair, as it is very easy to fall into Porsche paranoia imho.

The price was about £270 iirc, with an optional boroscope if required/necessary.

After the inspection, the seller was told the findings, and then I spoke to them. Peter told me to get a pad and paper, and then spent the next 1.5 hrs going through all the good and bad. Afterwards, I was pretty pleased with the outcome. A report was posted afterwards too.

The idea was that the report gives you further bargaining power and peace of mind, however, my car was a pretty good deal anyway. It was also known to some people in the Porsche world, and all had said that it was a "good 'un". The report merely backed this up.

It has also given me a "to do" list, which I am working my way through. Nothing serious though, which is nice!

The PPI doesn't guarantee that your IMS won't give out, or you'll suffer from bore-score, but it will let you know if you're buying a nail.
Re ims & bore-score, yeh, they're issues that can affect 996 & 997, but in the grand scheme of things, consider how many of these were made......it's a relatively small % that are affected. It's the same with all cars (Audi's drc and valve issues, BMW with vanos, Ferrari with engine issues) all scary prospects, but every car has a potential issue smile
You'll also notice I haven't said RMS. this isn't an issue: it's an annoyance. That is easily fixed. (Mine was bone dry underneath)

If it's too scary, look at a turbo or Gt car - different engine.

Dan smile

zabba

2,274 posts

244 months

Sunday 13th January 2013
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Many thanks for the detailed response, yes aware than RMS isn't a biggy, just the IMS and bore scoring, but like you say they don't all fail.

Sounds like you got a cracker, how did you know it was "known in the porsche world", presumably 911 forums?

DanoS4

Original Poster:

869 posts

223 months

Sunday 13th January 2013
quotequote all
Yeh, after speaking with the seller, he mentioned a name that rang a bell. After some digging, I found the person on www.911uk.com who confirmed a lot of things too.

It all about asking the right questions and doing homework. Lots of homework. Hopefully it will pay dividends.

That said mine could blow up tomorrow!!!!! biggrin (feckin hope not!)

Dan smile

zabba

2,274 posts

244 months

Sunday 13th January 2013
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well good luck with it, sounds like you've done as much as possible to mitigate the risks! It's certainly a car purchase that needs homework

DanoS4

Original Poster:

869 posts

223 months

Sunday 13th January 2013
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Likewise smile

DanoS4

Original Poster:

869 posts

223 months

Friday 18th January 2013
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This is how to treat a daily driver!! smile