What is the scoop on ROW M030?

I am seriuosly thinking about installing an ROW M030 suspension on my 02 Cab. The car is used for street driving and autocrossing, will most likley never see more than a handfull of DE days and those are in Green Group. I do understand the differences and advantages of PSS9. The question I have is if you have M30 are you happy? I have contacted a couple parts suppliers and each one has tried to talk me into PSS9s. They have told me that I will not notice any difference with the M30. My goal is to properly lower the ride height and stiffen the suspension a little but still have some road comfort. I also like the idea of an OEM part. This is why I am leaning towards the M30, plus it will save some bucks. I know that if I went the PSS9 route I would probably never change the setting and it would not be on the stiff setting either. Tell me, will I notice a difference over stock?

I have a RoW M030 and I love it. I have driven 996s with 17" & 18" rims with standard Euro suspension and there is no comparasion. The Euro M030, for me, street driven only, albeit "VERY spirited" is the right mix for the rough roads here. Sure, PSS9s are adjustable, but how often do you really want to mess with that? If your skills are such that you need to adjust the suspension for every event you enter, then you may want to consider something like Motons instead. Try and find someone who has RoW M030 suspension installed and try it for yourself!

I have installed the ROW M030 on my 2002 Cab, and could not be happier. Yes, it only lowered the ride height about an inch, and no it is not rough stiff, but it makes the car handle like it should. I would characterize the ride as compliant, firm, but not stiff. It makes the car more "tossable". Just point it in the direction you want to go, and it goes there! The chassis is very flat in turn-in, and makes the car much more controllable. Even my wife who hated the US stock suspension, likes the ride of the ROW 030. At $1200 it is a steal, and it only takes a few hours to install. For the best Porsche 996 suspension, always look for the green dot!

No doubt that a PSS9 will be better at the track, but the two question are how ride are you willing to give up and how good are you at adjusting the shocks. If you only do your DE and auto-x for fun then the M030 works fine, but however you will outgrow it if you get more serious about track days. I have done some experimenting with some set ups and can tell you the M030 works best for the guy who daily drives the car who wants a little extra handling. You can get a PSS9 and set it up to ride and handle like a M030 then retune it as your skill gets better. I personally can say that the M030 does not work for the track, but I use it because I like daily comfort. The M030 does make a big difference compared to stock. If you were to rank suspension on a 1-10 scale 1 being 75 Caddy and 10 being GT3RSR. The OE is about a 3 and the M030 is a 5.

hi there. i have the same dilema as you and been doing a lot of reading on the topic over the weekend. you might want to check out this article: http://www.pca.org/panorama/sample_article_3.html while i have not made a descision either way, i am strongly leaning towards ROW M30. here is my thinking: 1) it costs less and its OEM. this means it is easier to sell the car with it in place and if i do sell it in 2 years i dont have to explain what PSS9 is. 2) i never done track/auto-cross, but i will (only got the car two weeks ago). i might not like it or only do it once every six months. so ROW M30 will be fine for that. if i fall in love with track/auto-cross so much that ROW is not enough, i'll go get PSS9 3) it lowers the car, but not by much - which means i will still be able to pull into my driveway or go over speedbumps without much trouble. 4) i am going to a porsche drive on 24th and there will see many different suspensions and setups. after 24ths i'll make my final descision. hope it helps. let me know what you decide. maybe we can do a (mini) group buy

Here is my take.....I say buy once and be done with it. PSS9's give you the BEST of all worlds. GREAT handling and comfortable ride and great look. There is no down side. (except the extra cost) You do know that the PSS9, lowered, and better handling rides better than stock, and definitely better than ROW M030. So fo rme, I wanted a lowered car, but HATED the handling of my Eibach Pro springs, as well as the harsh ride, I felt like I was driving a race car around, in a bad way. The PSS9's set up fairly soft can handle SoCal freeway driving, and still handle the twisties with ease. Best mod I ever did....never tracked, but there is no other suspension that can get this low, and ride this smooth. NONE....So if ride comfort is an issue, PSS9's are the way to go. As far as what to do when you sell, ROW M030 would be a turn off to me no matter who made it. Why? Not low enough, and it rides rougher than stock. So why would I want it. Now if you are selling to the average Joe, they REALLY wont want it. PSS9's are an upgrade and its easy to explain that its smoother and you can set the height how YOU want it, and the ride quality as well. Its a $3000 system with a lifetime warranty from the same people that make the stock system for the Porsche anyway....Or you can take them off, replace with your stock system, and sell the PSS9's and recoup 75% of what you paid for them.

I'm very happy w/the RoW M030. I noticed an immediate difference, it's feels like a Kart in comparison; the way the car should be.

hey... nice write up. gives me something to think about. i wish bilstein had a trade-in program, where you could trade in your used PSS9 for 996 and buy new ones for 997 with a trade-in credit of sort. i wouldn't want to sell my 996 with PSS9 in it, since i wont be able to markup the price of the car to make up for it. btw, what kind of front bumper is it? techart? can i ask you how much and from where?

No its a 996 TT Bumper.....Heres a better pic....

that is sweet. if i had a black car, i'd definately get black wheels. so how much do those bumpers go for? is it just a direct replacement of the existing bumper? i have a 2003 C2 cab. do they come without holes drilled on the front bumper? i hope not

Rob, those were fantastic pictures for a comparison. Thanks.

I'm looking to get the RoW M030 too, looks like a perfect ride hight for me and it kills your grass, nice.

New they are about $1000-1500, used about $500 in good shape. Thats a used one, the only thing that was not perfect was the lip spoiler which is about $300 new to replace and takes 5 minutes, that old one lasted a year, I just put a new one on last weekend. They are a direct bolt on for your car...You can get one from a C4S, TT, or 996 Anniversary Edition. They come just lije you see, nothing to modify.

Rob, you'll have to do the RoW sport suspension, the ride will be the same as you already have the sport suspension, just 10-20mm lower. The x73 is 30mm lower and a whole different animal. I believe Gert was selling the RoW C4S kit at a decent price recently. Be sure the pn's are right with a cab though. CH

Chris, good point. What's the price point on the x73? Also I understand it makes a difference whether or not you have a cabriolet or coupe, but for the life of me I can understand why that would be?

Weight....Porsche is very specific about spring rates for their cars....maybe too specific...lol...but they will change a spring rate based on the weight and balance of a car.

Ah, that makes sense.

No problem, here's another one. The suspension upgrade makes your car look darker too, it's further away from the sun.

My impression of the ROW M030 is different on the street and track. It is a good compromise. There are differences between coupes and cabs, 2WD and 4WD, and MY99-01 and MY02-04. I can only comment about a MY02-04 Coupe. The regular M030 (US, ROW std) has about the same ride quality as the US std suspension. It has a little less body roll, most likely due to the larger sway bars rather than the shorter springs and shocks. The balance is still very much on the understeering side. On my car, the ROW M030 lowered the front about 1" and the rear about 3/4". It takes a few weeks for the front to settle, but the rear settles almost immediately. Ride quality from the front is quite good as the ROW M030 is only slightly stiffer than stock. The US M030 and ROW M030 have the same spring rates, but the ROW M030 springs are shorter. The front shocks on US M030's are actually softer than US std. The ROW M030 front shocks are only slightly stiffer. The rear is another story. The rear is about a 25% stiffer with much more aggressive shock valving on the ROW M030. The US M030 is only stiffer on rebound over the US standard suspension. It is the stiffer rear that gives the ROW M030 a much more neutral feel. It also degrades the ride quality. You are still able to absorb big bumps nicely, but small bumps and transitions in pavement are far more noticeable. Tire seem to be a big factor on the ride quality. Continentals, Bridgestones and older Michelins ride hard. Newer Michelins and Pirellis ride soft. A US std supension car on Continentals rides worse than a US M030 (ROW std) suspension on Pirellis. Driving my ROW M030 on Bridgestones is definitely stiff, but also very responsive. To compensate for some of the ride harshness and improve tire wear, I run only 36-38 lbs in the rear verus the rated 44 lbs. This keeps the centers from wearing out early. At the track on street tires, the car is well balanced and grippy until the temperatures rise. Then when the tires start going away, it slides contollably. On 235/40 and 295/30 Sport Cups it is perfectly neutral on the skidpad. With the extra grip, body roll becomes far more noticeable, in fact making the car feel soft at the track. The sway bars may still be a little too soft for track tires. Nevertheless, it is a good compromise for the money. I paid less than $1K for mine new out the door. PSS9's don't include sway bars. They do offering adjustable shock valving to help get a balance for both the street and the track. The are ride height adjustable which is more important for corner weighting than anything else. Figure about $2500+ship for PSS9's and GT3 or H&R sway bars.

I just installed H&R sport springs on my c4s coupe which originally came with the US M030 suspension (higher than euro). The car sits better on its wheels IMHO and the ride is less harsh (still has the M030 shocks which i think are the same as the euro).

US M030 (ROW standard) shocks are different in both travel and valving. The only parts in common between US M030 and ROW M030 are the sway bars and bushings. Here is a link to an article that explains the differences between US std, US Sport (ROW std) and ROW M030: http://www.pca.org/panorama/sample_article_3.html