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It all started about two years ago. I finalized a nasty divorce, after a 22 year relationship, and found myself back living by myself, with a lot of free time on my hands. My first car was a 1962 VW Bug and I had always dreamt of owning a 911 but never pulled the trigger. Typical story, Porsche poster on the wall as a kid, grew up too fast, college, joined the work force, climbed the corporate ladder, started a family and abandoned thoughts of building my dream car. Fast forward into my early forties, suddenly I had some free time and available funds. Together, they triggered the slide down the proverbial ‘slippery slope’. I think I’ve finally hit the bottom.
Rennlist has been a wealth of knowledge and occasionally somewhat of a bad influence. Daily, I scoured the forums looking for advice and seeing what others had done to their cars. As a thank you, I’d like to share my journey of the build and results.
I bought a 1996 993 C4 off Ebay sight unseen w/ 65k miles I had a PPI done , but it turned out they weren’t very comprehensive (more on this later). A good friend and I flew from DFW to Palm Springs, FL and drove the car straight back to DFW. 1300 miles. The AC quit working 100 miles into the trip. The suspension wasn’t what I would call ‘tight’ and the stereo didn’t work, but I fell absolutely in love with the machine on the way home.
I did what any reasonable car guy would do upon arriving home, I scheduled a 2 day DE Track session. After 2 days at MSR in Cresson TX, I was hooked. The car performed OK, but I learned a few things along the way. The suspension was tired and didn’t inspire confidence. The seats failed to keep me even remotely planted. And worst of all, 2nd gear popped out under load and deceleration. The writing was on the wall. The transmission had issues and probably needed a rebuild.
So began the slide down the slippery slope.
The transmission came out (engine attached as it was a C4) and it became obvious that I had more to do than just a transmission rebuild. The top of the engine was covered in oil and leaked from multiple places The car must have spent some time outdoors, as I found a collection of nuts stored under the intake. Suspension components were worn, and covered in grime. The car wasn’t maintained well and it showed.
I’ve always followed the motto: ‘Anything worth doing is worth doing well’, so I decided to just bite the bullet and tear the car apart piece by piece and restore/upgrade along the way until I ended up with my dream car. ‘While you’re in there’ became a laughable phrase. Any bolt or part that was touched was inspected, replaced or restored. 100s of hours of personal labor and more money than I expected or will admit has gone into the build. I’ve learned so much along the way and feel I ‘know’ the car inside and out. It has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life and I look forward to driving her until I physically can’t.
Here’s the build list in somewhat of a chronological order:
Suspension:
1.) Bilstein PSS10 Coilovers
2.) Rennline Solid Subframe Mounts
3.) RS Adjustable Sway bars
4.) Elephant Racing adjustable swaybar links – Front
5.) Tarrett Engineering adjustable swaybar links – Rear
6.) Walrod Front A-Arm Bushings
7.) Rennline Toe, Camber and Kinematic Control Arms
8.) Rennline Eccentric Lock Kit
9.) Rennline Adjustable Front Camber Plates
10.) Rennline Rear Monoball Strut Mount
11.) Rennline Camber Advantage 3 Point Strut Brace
12.) Rennline Steering Rack Bushings
13.) Elephant Racing Bump Steer Correcting Tie Rods
Brakes:
1.) Refinished C4 Brakes in Guards Red w/ Brembo Logo
2.) New Porsche Pads
3.) Techna Fit Stainless Brakelines
4.) FVD Brake Cooling Ducts and hoses
Transmission:
1.) Rebuilt and Regeared Transmission – Built by California Motorsports
a. CMS Billet Shift Forks
b. CMS Billet Side Cover
c. Plumbed for future transmission cooler setup
d. All Steel Synchros
e. Steel Cage Bearings
f. Rebuilt LSD using 45/65 Cup Ramps
g. Regeared 3-6 to near RS Spec Ratios
2.) FD Motorsports Transmission Mount
3.) CAE Motorsports Shifter
a. Modified Center Console to fit shifter and recovered in leather
4.) RS Lightweight Fly Wheel
5.) RS Clutch
6.) MPL Billet Master Cylinder
7.) Stainless Steel Clutch Slave Cylinder line
Interior:
1.) Recaro SPG XL Seats on Recaro Sliders
2.) Schroth 6-point Harnesses
3.) Appbiz RS Door Panels
4.) Rennline Track Mats
5.) Rennline Driver and Passenger Floor Boards
6.) Rennline Pedals with Dead Pedal
7.) Rennline Door sills
8.) DAS Roll bar
9.) Porsche Cup Steering Wheel – Momo
10.) AIM Solo DL w/ Smarty Cam
11.) Memphis Audio Front and Rear Speakers
12.) Continental TRD7412UB-OR Stereo
Engine:
1.) 3.8L RS Spec Engine – Built by Rothsport Racing – Top and Bottom Build
a. ~317HP on Dyno
b. Mahle Piston Cylinders 102mm RSR w/ 109mm spigot
c. 993RS Sport Cams
d. Converted to adjustable style cam drive components
e. ARP Rod Bolts and Clevite Bearings
f. All new Bearings and Seals
g. 97 ECU – Reprogrammed – Immobilizer disabled
h. All Exhaust Ceramic Coated – Titanium Finish – Fister Stage III
i. Intake, Fan and Fan housing Ceramic Coated
j. Carbon Heater Bypass pipe
k. Clewitt Serpentine Belt Setup
l. Rennline Tubular Engine Carrier
m. Rennline Tunable Engine Mounts
n. Rennline Billet Valve Covers
o. Eliminated SAI System
p. New Plugs, Wires, Gaskets, and anything else needed
Other:
1.) BBS LM Wheels w/ Bridgestone Pole Position Tires
2.) RS Washer Bottle system w/ headlight washer delete
3.) Custom Frunk Floor covered in vinyl
4.) Rennline Folding Tow hook
5.) Blacked out Carrera Script and Monochrome Front Badge
6.) Shaved Front Bumperettes and license plate mounting holes
a. Clear EURO front turn signals
b. Red rear turn signal housings
7.) ToreB – HID Headlights
8.) GT Secondary Oil Cooler w/ cable mod
9.) Converted from AWD to 2WD
10.) Rear Seat Delete
No issues at all with the ebrake and CAE. I did have to modify the center console by shortening the tray under the ebrake by 1.75", moving the divider section between the shifter hole and the ebrake tray towards the rear by 1.75". I used ABS glue and roughly followed a thread I found on Rennlist. After shaping, I had it covered with leather.
The CAE shifter is by far the best shifter feel I have every felt in my life. Slightly notchy, super short, very positive mechanical feel. The height is really convenient. I knew I was going to convert to 2WD and utilizing the CAE shifter saved the trouble of mounting the 2wd shifter box.
Wow dude. I don't have anything to add except (1) WOW, and (2) your 993 seats will fit really well on your Playseat gaming station and you can even hook up 12V to it. Just sayin'.
10-24-2019, 03:28 PM
Thanks - 96 Build - Bottom of my slippery slope
