And now for a sad story with a happy ending. In March (has it been that long?) I purchased a Techart carbon fiber diffuser. The diffuser arrived quickly but:
I had bought the diffuser from an online vendor (who shall not be named as the experience wasn’t great, but it wasn’t all their fault) but I wasn’t able to make any headway getting the problem solved. Happily a representative from TechArt actually saw my first video and invited me to reach out to him. I did and TechArt offered to produce the correct part for my car:
In the end what’s an extra month or two? This kind of stuff isn’t a big deal and I am very impressed by the way TechArt stepped up. In fact it makes me feel extra good now to have TechArt products adorn my car. Even though this isn’t a high contrast addition (it sort of disappears into the valence) I still think it looks excellent.
I’m doing this blog post before I make a YouTube video this time. A lot of my posts these days seem pretty lazy to me. I just pop up a video and blurt out a few thoughts after the fact. Back in the good old days (when I didn’t make videos) I feel like my posts were a bit more thoughtful. That’s what I’m going for here.
When I had my Corvette I remember one of the things that really bothered me was the wheel gap.It was such a big deal to me that I contemplated spending about $3K on drop spindles (not including any installation costs). You can drop a corvette up to a 1/2″ on the car’s stock lowering bolts but knew I wanted to go at least an inch. Of course that didn’t matter because I ended up selling the car long before I got around to any mods like that.
Quite a wheel gap you have there!
When I got my 991 the wheel gap wasn’t large enough to demand my attention. I had lots of other things to do first…
Stock wheel gap here isn’t too bad. It’s hard to believe my car used to look like this 🤔
Fast forward a year or so and dropping the car was on my radar. After doing some research I settled on GMG’s lowering springs and ordered a set. I debated about whether or not to install them for nearly a year. My primary concerns were threefold: 1) How would the springs would affect the ride? 2) I felt stressed out about rubbing the front of the car when I drove over dips and uneven roads* (I have had other lowered cars and have done my fair share of nose grinding). 3) Would the stock wheels look okay on a lowered chassis (the centerlock offsets place the wheels a few mm inside of the fenders).
*This is a big deal on the 991 Turbo series because it has a retracting front spoiler. If you rubbed the underside of the car’s nose you’d actually be grinding the spoiler on the ground.
Eventually I decided to just go for it. I hoped the retractable front spoiler design would allow the car to have the clearance it needed. And who cares about ride quality when your car could look a little nastier. Plus if things didn’t looks right it would be a great excuse to get a new set of wheels. Can I get an “Amen”?
The guys @ Ken Garff were nice enough to take a few pictures of the install for me along the way. Don’t forget- when you have these installed you need to realign the car!
I dropped it off at my dealer on Monday and picked it up on my birthday a few days later. The install went well and when they did the alignment everything was within spec. I couldn’t believe how much of a visual difference the drop made (it ended up being abut an inch). Somehow it changed the car’s whole stance. The reaction at the dealer seemed very positive- several people there expressed how much they liked the modified look.
This is the ride height difference. The bottom of the wheels here are lined up with each other and you can see the gap difference which ended up being about an inch.
My concerns haven’t played out at all (yet?). I don’t really notice a difference in ride quality. It might be slightly stiffer but it’s extremely minimal. No undercarriage rubbing so far (although I still have a few places I haven’t gone yet that worry me). As for the stock wheels- they look good! Would they look better pushed out a hair? Perhaps… but I’m not even going there right now. So for I’m really pleased with this upgrade. Or maybe it’s a downgrade. Recommended 👍
Below is the video I eventually compiled:
From the video: Turns out that some dips are pretty tough to get through. All in all, 99% of the places I drive have been fine (I even went out and did some late night testing of areas where I know I’ll be driving the car).
As many of you know I am a carbon fiber addict (and apologize for saying this over and over and over… but the first step to overcoming an addiction is admitting you have one). I have been looking for ways to add a little more carbon fiber to the front of the car. The headlight rings have been on my radar for awhile but I resisted the urge because- and this may sound crazy- I don’t like to add carbon fiber just for the sake of adding carbon fiber. It’s nice when there’s some kind of functional benefit. But who am I kidding… I loved the set I had on my 997 so I knew I would like these too.
This was a fairly inexpensive set and I’m pleased with it, for what it is. The fitment is good (one side was slightly warped but I was able to get that sorted out alright) the quality acceptable and they look great. I had to use my own adhesive which was fine (all of this is covered in the installation video).
The one thing I’d nitpick is that the weaves weren’t complimentary. Typically, as I explain in my video, I’d expect to see the weaves running in opposite directions where there is a distinct left and right piece. Having them run in the same direction isn’t really much of an issue and my guess is that most people wouldn’t even notice this discrepancy. I thought it would bother me but having had them on for a week it’s not an issue.
Overall I think they are a nice addition. It’s a good way to get some carbon fiber on the forward facing end of the car. It’s a non-permanent addition too – if I find a nicer set down the road I should be able to swap them out with no issues. The parts were ordered from eBay seller dpro6097 (the eBay division of Darwin Pro). Customer service was responsive when I asked them about the issue I was having with a warped part.
I have lusted after the MACarbon custom steering wheels for long time. Last year I decided that I was ready. No matter the cost, no matter the wait… I was all in. I submitted the order for my wheel in October and hoped it would come in time for Christmas (my ignorance knew no bounds). I worked with John, who was fantastic. He suggested the white stitching on the leather portion of the wheel and I love how everything turned out.
Below is a video showing an overview of my steering wheel and demonstrating the wheel removal process on a Porsche 991:
The wheel was completely worth the wait! I’ve purposefully tried to balance the interior and not get too carbon fiber crazy (real crazy). I’ve kept a good mix of Aluminum present (i.e. door pulls, pedals, shift knob) and so I left the center of the wheel silver. But the carbon fiber dash accents flow perfectly with the top and bottom of the wheel, which are also carbon fiber. All in all I feel like it’s incredibly complimentary and perfectly inline with the vision I have for the car. The only drawback so far is that the carbon fiber parts of the steering wheel do get a little colder than the leather (not great on wintry days)… Still one of my all time favorite upgrades!
I really enjoy the process of customizing my car. I feel like each modification makes my car into something more one of a kind and that uniqueness beings a lot of satisfaction. I’m glad I did’t shy away from carbon fiber this time around. Also, I can’t say enough nice things about having a cool dealer right up the street- infinitely convenient.
The first time I laid eyes on these carbon fiber seat belt buckles (from MACarbon) I knew I’d have them in my car one day. It was a bit of a mental fight- they’re not cheap and the buckles I already had worked quite well- but the fever from my mod-bug infection was at an all time high. I’m pretty sure my order for these parts was placed in September of 2017! But good things come to those who wait, right?
These carbon fiber covered buckles really step things up a notch as these parts are surprisingly visible (not so much in the back, I suppose). The leather covers on the front buckles looks great and hides the wires that run from the buckle into the seat. The rear buckles have a nice leather base and then that’s framed by the carbon fiber trim- a good looking setup!
Driver buckle & passenger buckle
Left and right rear buckles are the same
I originally had these on my “to buy” list with a note that said “what is wrong with you?” This was a hard purchase to justify but I managed to push it through and I’m happy with the results. It’s the little things (“Is this guy serious right now??” Half).
Below is a tutorial of the installation process (for the fronts):
Quick comparison of new parts with old parts. Rear seat belt installation is really easy… unless your pieces aren’t made quite right. Such was the case with my shipment. The surrounds needed to have some of the carbon fiber removed. MACarbon kindly offered to pay to have them returned for a fix but I told them I could take care of it. It was no problem- I milled them down a bit with my trusty Dremmel and I got the parts installed in no time.
I can’t say I’ve spent a ton of time worrying about things hitting my radiators. It was obvious when I periodically cleaned them that they were getting dinged now and then by debris. My local dealer had offered me a solution that resembled something that looking like chicken wire (at least that’s how I remember it). Pass. And then one day some people on a forum were talking about their ZunSport Grills and how happy they were with the product.
I had a peek and they looked good! Great price (a substantial discount is offered with a forum code) including free shipping. “Easy install” (no bumper removal). I went ahead and ordered a set from Zunsport and had them just three days later! The box was a little crushed, but everything was still in fairly good order.
Here’s my installation video:
Install: I actually found a couple parts fairly difficult to install. However, I was able to work my way through the issues with only minimal drama.
Fit: With the possible exception of the top right grill everything fit pretty well. The aforementioned grill doesn’t seem to hold in place well but I think it may have something to do with a clip that got bent during shipping (I’ll be able to sort it out). I have been for a couple of drives so far and they have remained in place just fine.
Look: I really like them. I think the grills enhance the front of the car. It adds a bit of additional black makes her (him? Still can’t figure this out) look a little meaner.
Functionality: I think the grills will do a pretty good job of deflecting a rock or road debris. I’ll have to pay attention to see how chipped up they get over time. Incidentally, that’s another reason I really like them- very simple to replace and / or remove for cleaning. Some have worried they will affect air flow the car. Time will tell.
Overall, based on my three days of owning them I would give them a thumbs up!
I noticed Suncoast had a gorgeous white Porsche pen but it was the “short version.” Thinking quickly, as I always do (cough), I searched the web for the long version… And what luck! There is was in all of it’s extra-length glory on eBay (I have really wanted a nice pen to keep in my car).
The pen comes in a nice nondescript box. The barrel of the pen is cararra white while the top and bottom are a brushed aluminum. The top of the cap is meat to pay tribute to the center lock wheels gracing the Turbo S models. Over all styling and the pen’s action are both exceptional.
The only draw back to this pen is that it actually doesn’tfit in the 991’s pen holder (located inside the glove box). That’s a head scratcher to me; why would you make a brand specific pen that doesn’t fit the corresponding car’s pen holder. So into the center console goes until I can figure out something better (and just so we’re all clear… I won’t figure out anything better). Anyone want a pen?
Sometimes I just put a part on my car because I want to put something on my car. There is a strong possibility this is one of those times. While I wouldn’t call these an impulse purchase, I bought them because I thought they’d be fun to put on and because they were fairly inexpensive.
While I do think they look better than the stock offering they do very little to alter the car’s aesthetic. There’s no chance anyone will ever call out “Nice side skirts!”
