Newbie here: 2 questions I hope the veterans can help with

Hi all, I am a Porsche newbie having just (albeit 6 months ago) decided to take the plunge into Porsche ownership :thumbs: . I have always aspired to owning a 911, given that my first car was a Cal-look Beetle, and have owned several fast Golfs and Beemers - I decided last year when prices were so depressed due to the financial crisis, that I would trade in my Golf R32 and found myself a lovely late 2003 Seal Grey Carerra 4S, 996. I think the car is amazing, and delivers more driving feedback than any other car I have owned. It makes the M3 I used to have feel so detached and wooly, I was very very surprised. The car although late 2003, is I reckon pretty low mileage (32000), and has been looked after very well by the previous owner. I have had a couple of questions however, which I hope you may be able to help me with: 1. Although it has most of the options, one of the key ones missing is the switchable Porsche Sports Exhaust. After calling a couple of Porsche dealers and also aftermarket places, it would seem I am looking at around 4-4.5k to get this sourced and fitted, and I'm not sure whether the cost can be justified. I spoke to a friend at work who has owned several different Porsches, and he told me to look into SportArt systems. Essentially as my car is a weekend only car, I am not too bothered about having a switchable system to stop me waking up neighbours early morning, however I also want something that will be sensible on the odd motorway trip, and will also not make me the target of every copper on the block. Any ideas/recommendations would be really appreciated! 2. Stereo - Occasionally the stereo seems to semi cut-out (either no deep bass, or more often no treble). This seems to go away once I start driving, so I suspect this could be a short connection/loose connection, but I'd appreciate any advice on what to look for. 3. Brakes - perhaps it is just not being used to driving a more honed sports car, but the brakes in the C4S seem very stiff (i.e. you have to push hard on the peddle before they hit, and also the handbrake is quite stiff) - is this normal? Many thanks for any help guys!! Cheers, S.

Welcome. 1)most costeffective way to get the PSE sound without the huge cost (but without the switchable element) is to have your existing mufflers modified to PSE spec with a bypass pipe. Hayward and Scott seem to be popular and efficient. There are lots of threads on here if you do a search 2)Cant help with the audio. Not heard that one before. 3) Yes after a normal heavily servoed car the brakes do seem to lack bite and need more pressure. Once you get used to them they have great feel and power. My handbrake is also "stiffer" so I would say perfectly normal. Others may be able to answer your audio issue and will I'm sure have other recommendations re exhausts.

Hi The braking is hard because it is not power assisted. Therefore the pressure you apply is what is added to through the caliper. I have the same on my C4S which has the bigger turbo brakes so it is more noticeable. But, they definately stop the car quickly when you punch them hard! Stereo - I think you have a dodge amp or wiring. I have PSE which is great, neighbours have not mentioned anything... yet :lol: rich

Hi. Agree with the above comments on 1 and 2. I may be way off the mark here but you say that the audio problem seems to right itself when you drive off? Does your radio have the AudioPilot option fitted? Go into the menu on the radio and look for the function called APS (I think) and if it's switched on turn it off and see what you think then. This is a system for increasing and decreasing the vol/bass/treble of the radio to compete with other noises when you're driving (eg. engine and road feedback). For what it's worth I have the Bose system with AudioPilot and the radio (or CD for that matter) have never been great. It just makes me wonder what the 'standard' audio system was like...? :nooo:

Exhaust & Brakes Rich & Mat, Many thanks for getting back so quickly and giving me your advice. TBF - the dealer that I bought the car off told me the brakes would need extra pressure, and one thing I love about the C4S is the Turbo suspension, wheels and brakes (esp. going to work every morning on the way to the miserable tube - seeing the cross-drilled discs and red calipers brings a welcome smile to the face Mat - thanks for the heads-up on the replacement back box system... I've never heard of these guys before, but will read up in the forums and see what I can learn... Cheers :thumb: As for the audio, I guess I will bite the bullet and take the car to the local high-end audio outfitter. Whilst there, are there any obvious upgrades to the in-car system that I could make without it being super expensive? Thanks again, S. :worship:

1) Haywood & Scott (approx £250) See thread for sound files etc http://911uk.com/viewtopic.php?t=51776 2) Sounds like the sound processor or amp has poor connection. Do you have BOSE? 3) Normal! Brakes are servo assisted (how else would the ABS/PSM assist?), just very stiff. (they are four or six pots remember) That is probably being cruel. Modern cars, since AUDI went mad with over-assistance a decade or so ago, require almost ballerina delicacy not to go through the windscreen. We have got used to these. The "stiff" pedal will ironically give you more feel, better linearity and most importantly a decent platform to perfom heal-and-toe :thumb: The handbrake is just German granite, I think "two-clicks" fully on is the workshop guidelines! It is also very sensitive (as the two-click range would imply), I pulled it up last weekend at a junction as a would my "soft" daily driver. Expecting to coast the last foot or so (ie gentle retardation to stop and then *just* hold on slight incline), but instead locked the back wheels to a skid

Re: Exhaust & Brakes You may have problems with the system being MOST (Media Oriented Systems Transport) fibre optic based car-wide signal bus. This means the individual parts expect to talk to each other (not just pass though audio signal). Even removing a system component may cause problems if the other components aren't reprogrammed to "forget" it. A high end car audio fitter should be familar with it, but as you can imagine, it is more expensive. Some people rip everything out and start from scratch (which may be cheaper). Don't let that put you off, it all depends what you want to do and whether you want OEM/Porsche parts (or spec compatible) or something else/completely new.

Hi, Congrats on the choice of 911! Not sure about the 4.5K reference. OPC prices are around the £1,800 inc vat and fitting. They were doing a deal last year. I would say that the PSE is the best sports exhaust option over "the mods" and other after market ones out there. Heard a lot and have compared mine to the £200 back box options, PSE is still better IMHO. Also note there is no BHP gain in getting this, so it is only for show! Brakes do take some getting used to and brake pedal needs a very firm pressure but it will scare you how quick you come to a stand still. Also good idea to do a good stop from speed to remove the surface rust from the discs that will arise from humidity and after washing. The comment on the stereo may be due to the auto volume option. Please note the C4S has the upgraded sound package any way even if you do not have the BOSE. The door base speakers are s*%te as are the rear speakers but the others are OK. As stated with MOSTBus after market options are a problem. Best to take to a high end audio specialist and get a better aftermarket satnav dvd system as anything is better than the PCM2! Amazing car the 996 C4S, enjoy your journey. Cheers Alan.

I am not sure how the PSE can sound different to the "mods" when the mods copy the PSE. If the same material (Stainless Steel T304), the same length, the same diameter, the same bridge points (entry/exit apertures) are used the sound willbe IDENTICAL. Just no switch and electro-vacuum actuated flap (which many mod/hack to overide the automatic cut-off anyway) STD PSE OETTLE (mod)

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Porsche have recently dramatically increased the price of the PSE retrofit. The parts alone are around £2500 with a good bit on top of that for fitting. At the old £1800 all in on the group buy at Colchester it was just about bearable but now its mad....particularly as you can get exactly he same sound from the Hayward and Scott (and others) mod for as GT4 says about £250 (You just cant switch it off. But why would you!)

I can help out if you need to turn off H&S mod OR

Many thanks for the replies, but cannot find the H&S upg All - Many thanks to everyone who has replied, and also been so friendly welcoming in a newbie with what are probably many asked questions... One thing I have been confused by with Mat & GT4's replies are where the H&S upgrade can be found... I have been on their website: http://www.haywardandscott.com/porsche/911/996.html and cannot see anything that seems similar to the upgrade you are talking about. Am I missing something? As for the brakes, I totally agree with Alan et al, that altho the pedal feels hard, the brakes are certainly very very effective (am glad this is one of the great points about getting the C4S over the C4). I just wanted to know if this is to be expected - which it sounds like it should be! 8) As for the Audio issue, I plan to look into it further, but want to look into the exhaust upgrade so that I will have no further need for an upgraded stereo :thumb: Thanks again guys for all the help and welcoming comments :worship: Cheers, S.

It's not on the website as it isn't a "product" per se, but more a tailored "service". Don't worry they probably do one a day (unless it's a Boxa.net or PH group buy, then they do TEN in a day!). Search here, PH or Boxa.net etc if you need more testimonials. Check out my thread for more details of my experience. http://911uk.com/viewtopic.php?t=51776