Peteinjp

I’ve been building my car for a few years now and collecting parts all along for this project in particular. A little background on the car;

1990 C2 ROW now with 140,000km (87,000 miles) I’ve personally put 40,000km on my self with both local mountain romps and some trips to Tokyo and Osaka etc. The car came with PSS10’s but otherwise pretty much stock.I have had some stuff done by a mechanic but I quickly realized that I’m just way too particular to have anyone else work on the car other than oil changes. But- I’m time challenged so mods are very slow.

Aside from regular mainanence (which was lacking as usual in japan) This that I’ve done so far:

-Replaced the engine with a temp unit while I rebuild a Motec 3.8- in progress but not a priority
-Had a 6 speed re-geared by Bill Rader Motorsports- basically a 3.154 1st gear and 0.857 6th. Basically I geared it for lower top speeds allowed in Japan and lower bottom gears as general traffic here is very slow. The original 2nd was almost 2 high to pass a slower car. It’s basically geared for tight mountain twisties.
- Single mass flywheel.
-Sportster seats with shims to adjust to my liking.
-Conti radio
-Wevo engine mounts and reinforced engine carrier
- full rebuild of the suitcase
-RS sway bars
-ERP rear spring plates

Basic RS alignment but with a bit more negative camber. 2 sets of wheels- 18’s with A050’s and 17’s with AD008r’s

So- in the years I’ve been driving I’ve come to realize that aside from the occasional trip to Suzuka circuit the car is going to be a street car. The basic idea lean towards utility not luxury. Not interested in fancy seat patterns or leather interior stuff. I means comfortable, purposeful, usable i.e. easy and stress free to use and maintain. Touring on the edge-

6 speed is great. The 3.8 will be fun- but the real heart of a real driving car is the suspension and brakes…

I’ve been collecting the parts for years as after adding a lift to the garage I was able to start the project late last year.

Elephant sealed monoballs
MCS 3 ways with 392 and 616 springs
Tarett/ERP tie rods, added caster top hats
Brembo 332mm Gt kit
The Machine Shop manual rack

In my case I went with the 3 way MCS coil overs because the roads are rough but the track is smooth. Being able to adjust the gas pressure effectively adjusts the spring rates. The added caster top hats will allow me to keep a little less camber in a straight line during preserving the front tires a bit with more camber increase as the wheel gets turned. The Brembo 332’s fit under 17’s which I prefer for the local roads with the more forgiving sidewall height) are lighter than any other brake combo that I could find, use the same size pistons as stock so the master etc. is all good. The larger 332x32 rotors will give more leverage and provide more heat dissipation than big reds etc. Rears have 328x28 rotors and again same as stock pistons. Overall I’m hoping this will result in a fun and flexible setup.

I may have over stepped with the manual rack…..

Peteinjp

Have to start with the Tarett/ERP uprights because they are just beautiful:


A rough measurement show about 10-15mm raised spindle/brake mount over the 993RS mounts. With that in mind I plan to run about 10mm below RS.



Obvious a big difference is the 6 bolt bearing retainer.


Another difference is the non tapered mount for the tie rod.



Pete

Peteinjp

Here’s the stuff that’s on the car already. The manual rack with a 3d printed cover for the shaft.








Went with the 993 longs as I will only be running 225’s so a bit more turning radius and a bit more track.


Elephant sealed bearings:

Peteinjp

One set of front stuff to go on the car:



Notice the rear pivot bolt is between the mount bolts for the top hat adding more caster. Added bonus is enough room to run the canister hose though the top hat and avoiding the need to grind the body.


Mocked up:





Pete

jeff33702

All you guys with these suspension builds! I have the RSA and a project 964...I'm fighting the urge to have 2 cars in pieces at the same time but I might just sort the RSA first and do what you guys are doing.....

Let's be realistic - I'm going to take both of these cars apart now, thanks!

Peteinjp

Not sure I’m helping- haha! I try to keep one car together at a time. I have a 914-6 conversion with an MFI 2.7- super fun but it needs paint and I’ll have to take it apart by June. So the 964 has to be on the road by then for sure.

Pete

Foxman

This looks to be a very thoughtful build, Pete, and should be a blast to drive on the street or the track. The MCS 3 ways will make the 400/600 coils feel remarkably smooth on the street. More details on the 6 speed gearing, please. The 993 longitudinals appear to suit your needs. As we’ve discussed, I may be going back to the 964 longitudes for my C2. The car seems to prefer 245’s up front on the track.

Peteinjp

Sure- basically I liked the 5th gear of the 5 speed for highway so I stuck with a similar gear for 6th. The stock 6 speed first and particularly 2nd was too tall for me as I mentioned above 2nd being my passing gear on 2 lane roads with slow drivers- I wanted to be right at the beginning of the power curve- not lugging the engine. The mainshaft available was the RS 3.154. Steel synchros on 2-5 but otherwise stock forks etc. Bill had a case with a billet side cover with provisions for cooling so I can add that if needed but I doubt I will. I love having the extra gear and with the closer ratios there is always the right gear for a corner. If i were building a track car I might stay with the lighter 5 speed and a lower top gear (depending n the track of course.)

Chart is my box vs the stock 5 speed

Peteinjp

Thats what I’m hoping with the MCS. I’m really looking forward to seeing how this all balances out.

lThe jury is still out on the 993 longs. With my stock cup1’s and 225 I was already rubbing a bit where the fender meets the bumper. A trimmed it and all was good but with the extra track it may be an issue. Aside from having to readjust the toe, changing the long is pretty straightforward and a quick job.

In fact on that note, I’m pretty impressed at how simply and easily the car can be disassembled and assembled in general.

Foxman

Your box seems very similar to the 993 cup, but your 2nd and 3rd gears are both a bit shorter. The 6th gear in the cup is similar at .886 compared to your .857. The cup 2nd gear is 2.000 compared to your 2.176. Your 2nd gear must have some real pop for passing.

Tomfun

Pete, I'm literally in the process of tearing all the old stuff out of my car to put in RS uprights along with all the associated upgrades and then you post these beautiful ERP uprights.... looks great!

Tom

Peteinjp

I actually already had the 993rs units on the car when I discovered them. I hadn’t seen them before and thought it my responsibility to try them out and introduce them to the group.

Pete

Peteinjp

Thsts exactly right. I choose the shorter gears because the roads here are like this::


I spent a lot of time with the 5speed on these roads thinking about what I wanted. I have a 3.5 hour loop that I do regularly in the warmer seasons that also have some longer sweeping curves as well. I alternate this car with a short geared 2.7 MFI 914-6 conversion depending on which car has a project going on and also how hot it is- 964 is my first car with A/C.

Tomfun

That's very kind of you! My car is in pieces and nothing has gone back on yet....if you right too favorable of a review I might have to join you.

Tom

Peteinjp

So- one reason I have not ever started threads like this is because it takes so long to do updates- because it takes so long to make progress. One reason for that is that I'm kinda picky and have taken a deep dive into the CAD/3d printing world. Anyway in going to the MCS with canisters I needed to find a place to put the canisters which for a car with a full interior is order that I imagined. I already had the manual rack and one option for the canisters (which I may use int eh future) was on top of the frame rails on either side of the engine. To do that I needed to take out the power steering pump and since I was wanting to try manual steering anyway I thought- why not???

So the resulting issue is this:




prototyping ensues:




Do we have a winner??


It's hard to describe the moment when I can say Yes! Just a little filling and the PLA test print snaps =right into place- almost month after stating this post.....

To be fair its not the only progeree I've made but- this pice has to go in before the rear shocks etc. just due to the working space needed to make it easy. BTW the final piece will be a carbon infused filament capable of high temp of course.

The irony is that ultimately I decided to put the rear canisters in a different spot- another 3d printer project......


Pete