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YOUR RESEARCHFirst time Porsche owner now drives '03 996 C2
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matter of taste
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Suspected cause · Original poster
I personally didn't love the grey interior of the C4S and the AWD steering also felt heavier to me but that's probably a matter of taste.
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Suggestion · Original poster
As soon as the borders open again I'm going to check those out.
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Suggestion · Original poster
I did also consider changing the bushings in the control arms but I had the shop doing the install, and the shop that helped me remove the mufflers inspect them and they both said they were fine.
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Replace front outer cv boots as both mine were torn
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Suggestion
currently changing my front outer cv boots as both mine were torn.
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Suggestion · Original poster
I did also consider changing the bushings in the control arms but I had the shop doing the install, and the shop that helped me remove the mufflers inspect them and they both said they were fine.
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Hello from Victoria, BC, Canada.
I've been lurking in these forums for months if not years before making this first post. After endless research and searching for cars I finally picked up a 2003 C2 6spd in seal grey with a black interior with 190k kms (118k miles). Over the course of the journey, I've gone from someone that first said 'anything but a 996' to now being convinced that for someone like me the 996 is absolutely hands down the best 911 out there. I bought this beauty for CAD$24k (USD$17k) and couldn't be happier.
It came with a clutch replacement and new IMS bearing at 120k kms. Service history is documented from 2008. It was sold to me by the partner of the local indy Porsche mechanic here in town and came with a 30 day warranty.
I love that the 996 is the underdog of the 911 range, I love that the purists hate it, I love that I picked up a 2003 911 for 50% of the price of a 2005 997. I love that it drives better than most of the 993's out there. I love that it's still small and compact. I love that I purposely bought the C2 as it's the lightest and slowest 911 in the range, I love that I can hold the throttle down in 2nd for a few seconds longer than faster cars and hear that roar and feel that pull at 6500 rpm without going double the speed limit.
I've already made a few upgrades. Some not planned, I hit some road debris on my first road trip and blew a tire so now have Pirelli P Zero's on the rear axle. Some planned, I have a friend that's a welder that helped me do the bypass mod on the mufflers.
It's not a perfect car, there is a small RMS leak and the rear shocks are leaking fluid. In the mail right now are a set of Blistein B8 shocks, H&R springs and Eibach sway bars which I think will transform the handling. I'll keep an eye on the RMS leak but I reported it to the seller while the warranty was live. They are helping me out with the installation of the new suspension and we'll see if the leak warrants taking the engine out or just waiting until the next clutch replacement.
Anyway, my name is Iain. Thank you for all the previous posters for educating me to the point where I could make this happen.
Some pictures of the exhaust work. I'm not really sure if this is the Gundo hack or the Fister D mod but I do know it's the same exhaust routing as the Porsche Sports Exhaust. I'm not a total hooligan but really think it could still be a bit louder. If I were to do it again I would just join the two pipes and bypass the muffler completely.
Yeah, I am in the frame of mind that if the car lasted 10+ years and 120k kms before the IMS got replaced it was probably fine anyway but it doesn't hurt to know it's been replaced.
I'm not paranoid about this car and plan to drive it daily. I park it on the street and drive it in the rain. It will be cared for but driven and enjoyed.
Welcome to the show. You’re gonna love the way the car drives with your inbound suspension googahs. You found an all-around good looking 996. Enjoy in fine health!
Hey, I'm in Victoria as well. Congrats on the new car! Its my favourite colour for that model.
Just sold my 15 Boxster S PDK and waiting for a build spot on the GTS 4.0. I'm looking at the '03 C4S at the dealer while I'm waiting (may be a year or so) Did you look at it?
I'm glad we agree! I can't understand all the 'hate' for this car but as my friend said to me 20 years ago, 'Anyone that hates a 996 has never driven one'
Hi there, I bought the car from Forward Auto and they are installing the new suspension for me when all the parts arrive.
100% up for a hang, I took the car around the Victoria > Port Renfew > Cowichan > Duncan > Victoria loop last week and it was incredible fun. Would love some company on the next run.
You should get up to the Cowichan Valley for a track day at VIM . I live about 5 mins from there in Duncan
ive an 04 C2 , with a healthy amount of mods .
It's on my list but the $1200 per day entry fee is a bit of a put off. I grew up in the UK where you can do track days for
�150.
It does look like a great track though. Have you driven it?
“
I've been lurking in these forums for months if not years before making this first post. After endless research and searching for cars I finally picked up a 2003 C2 6spd in seal grey with a black interior with 190k kms (118k miles). Over the course of the journey, I've gone from someone that first said 'anything but a 996' to now being convinced that for someone like me the 996 is absolutely hands down the best 911 out there. I bought this beauty for CAD$24k (USD$17k) and couldn't be happier.”
Congratulations and welcome! Seal Grey is my favorite 996 color by far. It wasn’t available when I was looking so I ended up with a Black Cabriolet (after I said I would never by another Black car
)!
Hello!
Yes, I did look at that car! Wes took me out for a drive in that and the Speed Yellow 997 Tiptronic Cab they had. Both beautiful cars but weren't the ones for me. For the reasons I mentioned above I wanted a C2 and not a 4 or S of any combo, a manual transmission was also non-negotiable and Victoria isn't the town for a cabriolet IMO. I personally didn't love the grey interior of the C4S and the AWD steering also felt heavier to me but that's probably a matter of taste. If that Guards Red Targa they had was a manual instead of auto there's a chance I might be in that one though. That was very juicy!
If you take that C4S out for a test let me know what you think of the gear shift. I thought it felt a bit sticky and the
spring-loading to return the stick to the central position needed some attention.
Overall though, I thought Wes was a straight-up guy. He used to work with a good friend of mine that managed the Hyundai dealership on Gorge Rd and was personally recommended to me. I wish we could have made a deal but they didn't have what I wanted.
The track is really good, but very small and twisty. I'd say it's more of a driver's training track moreso than having enough room to really open it up. It's definitely for testing handling and control. The Area 57 track in Penticton, I've heard, is a real racetrack.
That's definitely my jam, I like tight and twisty roads and tracks. Have also heard really good things about Area 27 too. I think it would be fun to take the ferry from Victoria to Annacortes in WA, then take the North Cascades highway to the border crossing at Osoyoos and then up to the track in Oliver.
https://www.total911.com/north-casca...ton-state-usa/
Yup I found the stick was a bit sticky until it warmed up and then it ran great. I had it for an overnight and was pretty impressed at how tight it was. No rattles or funny noises. It felt a bit heavier, but thats prob because I came out of a 15 Boxster S PDK and that was whip quick in every aspect. Very analog after 3 years in the Boxster...
If you join the Porsche Club they are doing a track day for $500 in late May or so....I did it last year and it was great, they kept the numbers down so we got lots of seat time. The afternoon sessions were non-instructor led and that when we really opened it up. 1 poor guy blew his motor though, so that was a bit of a downer.
Welcome to the club. These are awesome cars. I've had mine for more than 7 years and absolutely love it. FYI there are a couple of great tracks in WA - Pacific Raceway in Kent and The Ridge in Shelton and both are a lot less than $1200 for the day.
Thanks for the recommendations ... there are only 2 tracks that I know of in BC and they are both silly money. As soon as the borders open again I'm going to check those out.
Very interested in that $500 track day ... is it a daft question to ask which Porsche club to join
Is there one specific to the island?
I'm sure that sticky shifter in the C4S is fixable and if you tell them it's an issue I know it won't be the first time they've heard it ... I'm interested to hear what you decide. Out of interest though, why did you move the Boxster when the GT is a year away?
You can join up at PCA.org. Your info will go to the chapter in your region, which is the Vancouver Island PCA. It's a great club with lots of social and driving events. You can also participate in the events of any other region, such as track days with the Pacific North West Region. They run great events at Pacific Raceway, The Ridge, and ORP.
congrats ian i live in port alberni and purchased a 2000 c4 cab tip with 120000klm on it last july
it has an ims retro tag from ln engineering but they cant seem to tell me much(whether single or double row) when i give the numbers
i love the car drove it as much as i could throughout winter.
recently purchased a used hoist makes working on these a lot easier
currently changing my front outer cv boots as both mine were torn.
enjoy the car
brett
Awesome! My old roommate just moved to Port Alberti and I was on my way to visit when I blew my tire. When this Covid thing is over I�ll head up again and look you up. Loving all the island connections I�m making here
Finally have all the suspension parts in hand, I'm booked in for the install on Monday.
Here's the obligatory car parts on the kitchen floor photo ...
I went with the following:
Bilstein B8 shocks (24-029940) and struts (22-046130)
H&R Sport Springs (29513)
Eibach Sway Bars (7213.320
)
I found the best prices in Canada at these vendors:
https://www.essexdistributors.com/
https://www.bilsteincanada.com/
https://www.essexpartscanada.com/
https://www.tdotperformance.ca/
No idea why Essex Distributors have 3 different web sites for different product ranges but there you go. Essex was a hair more expensive BUT they have parts in stock that were on a 3-month backorder at other places so I didn't mind paying an extra $20 to a local company to get stuff here faster.
If anyone else gets overwhelmed with the different part numbers you need for all the different variants of 996 I found these resources particularly useful.
http://www.hrsprings.com/application.../31/Suspension
https://www.bilstein.com/us/en/product-search/
I'm now wondering if I should have bought new bump stops and sway bar link ends? Any advice before this goes to the shop on Monday?
I'm also planning on going with the stiffest setting of 3 options on the rear sway bar. Can anyone with the Eibach sway bars comment on how the different settings ride?
Bump stops are a contentious issue. The instructions from Bilstein indicate that they are internally bump stopped and don’t need external bump stops, but then goes on to show the stock bump stops going in. Most seem to use the original (or new replacement) external bump stops. I’ve reached out to Bilstein but got zero reply.
I did also consider changing the bushings in the control arms but I had the shop doing the install, and the shop that helped me remove the mufflers inspect them and they both said they were fine.
I sold it because the numbers made sense. It was due for its Major, needed tires and possibly front brakes so it would have been a $5-6k expense and they offered me a very sweet price for it which included an allocation spot for the first orders when they open this summer. I sure miss it on such a nice day as today though!
I see someone else answered about the local PCA Club. Heres the link to the latest magazine they produce for the Island. On page 34 you'll see the info about the track day etc.
https://issuu.com/virpca/docs/porscher_2020_04
Good choice on the H&R springs. Here is my opinion on the rest:
*Bump stops, yes do replace, cheap and easy
*Stab bar links: only replace if boots are torn (also may want to go to adjustable for suspension geometry, depends on you and your preference)
*Rear Stab bar: softest setting for a rear engine car
Enjoy and report back!
Thanks for the advice. I was looking at these instructions regarding rear sway bar stiffness as I like a firm and direct ride but as I do live in a wet part of the world perhaps the soft or middle settings would be a better choice.
Quick update on progress. I started another thread specifically about the suspension install but have added some silver side stripes today. I think the silver on grey is a nice touch with the silver rims and looks even better with the lower ride height.
New Rein engine mounts go on tomorrow ....
My mechanic was busy today so the engine mounts are going on tomorrow instead. My spacers turned up though so I put those on instead. I got the 15mm cancer causing type for all 4 corners.
Before:
After:
It's getting a little bit close to the wheel liner at the front but I think it will be ok.
Rein engine mounts are installed and it feels noticeably better.
First off, you can see from these pictures that old mounts had definitely sagged and the exhaust tips are a little higher now. Not a massive visual difference but the feel is great. There was a strange shudder when the starter motor was turning which is gone and I swear that the throttle response and gear shifts feel sharper now.
All in all, I'm happy with the results.
Before.
After.
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